The world of gaming is changing every day with the release of new technologies that improve the quality and overall user experience of the game. It seems that virtual reality will play a big role in the future of gaming, and this suspicion is confirmed with the success of products like the Oculus Rift and the Razer Hydra. Well there’s one product that takes that virtual reality experience one step further. Introducing the Virtuix Omni, a virtual reality treadmill.
Like certain other virtual reality products, the Virtuix Omni had a hugely successful Kickstarter campaign. When I say successful, I don’t mean that they earned a couple thousand over their goal. Virtuix Omni had a goal of raising $150,000 from their Kickstarter, but in the end they raised a whopping $1,108,351! That’s almost 7 times their original goal! With that amount of cash, Virtuix has now said that their product, the Virtuix Omni is now available for pre-sale.
The Virtuix Omni is essentially an entire system dedicated to virtual reality gaming – that is where the gamer IS the person in the game. When the gamer runs, their character runs, when they jump, the character jumps, and so on. Naturally, this requires a lot of wearable technology. Virtuix is releasing a number of packages. The first is a $499 package, called the “standard” package, and it includes the platform, which you run on, shoes, a belt, and the tracking hardware and software. The second package, or the “dual” package as it’s being called, includes two of each of those things and three pairs of shoes.
Unfortunately the system does not include a headset such as the Oculus Rift, which means that the user will have to purchase that separately. That should run for another $300, so people should expect to pay around $800 or more for the full virtual reality experience. Thankfully there has been some talk about a headset having a subsidized cost for people who purchase the Virtuix Omni, so hopefully that will happen in the near future.
Gaming is changing immensely, and is expected to change even more over the next few years. Keep an eye out for these virtual reality platforms, as they are expected to pop up more and more, and may even eventually be more popular than the traditional gaming platforms that we’re seeing today. That could even help the world’s obesity problem, as gamers will be forced to get up and run for their games!
