We were lucky enough to be invited to try out the brand new multiplayer VR sci-fi zombie shooter ‘City Z’ at Anvio VR at Queensway in the heart of Central London.
Zombie shooters have never looked so good or felt so scary! Stepping into Anvio we knew this was something special, new and ambitious in the VR entertainment market. Anvio has an incredibly accurate full-body tracking system using positional markers work on the head, body, weapons, hands and feet which are monitored by over 30 cameras. The games accommodate teams of up to 4 players and you can see yourself and each other represented fully in the VR world. The game arena lets you roam 200 square metres of free roaming space so there is plenty of room to explore (or hide) which tackling the whopping 11 levels of gameplay. The setup is something almost out of a sci-fi movie so our excitement levels were off the chart!
The game itself was very immersive – every level was drastically different in look and feel with everything from atmospheric dark creepy tunnels to walking over narrow planks of wood between skyscrapers in broad daylight. The range was impressive and meant the act of just walking around in the world was an experience in itself. Add in some manic generator finding puzzles and waves of zombie hoards and you can’t really go wrong!
Personally, I had thought I would be good at this game, and fearless, having scoffed at the surprised shrieks and laughter coming from the team before us… but I was wrong! The game had me cowering, panicking and laughing at myself in equal measure! Even when asked to simply move to stand somewhere with better light for a presenting shot I felt it was hard to step onto areas which were giant drops or pits in the game even though I knew there was definitely floor there! Both the team and free-roaming aspect really adds something you can never replicate at home and made this an incredible experience.
‘City Z’ is however just the first of an impressive catalogue of games Anvio plan to offer. Their next game which will be released next week is ‘Lost Sanctuary’ – a more family-friendly (and gun-free) science fiction game where you explore stunning alien planet environments solving puzzles using grappling hooks and other items to progress. They have also announced plans for several more already in development and said that it will be possible to book from a growing library of games as time goes on. They are also opening new centres worldwide over the next year.
Anvio VR is one of the most impressive VR game systems I’ve ever played on with amazing accuracy, a ridiculously immersive feel and with about 40 minutes of game time across varied challenges (all whilst fighting zombies!) This is both fun & value for money at about £30pp – the same price as other 15 minute single level experiences I’ve tried!
Check out and book your session at Anvio VR here!
Their latest trailer for their new game Lost Sanctuary can be seen here.
