Dragon Quest virtual reality attraction opens in Tokyo, and we join the adventure

VR Zone Shinjuku dedicates a huge room to bringing the classic RPG to virtual life.

Tokyo’s VR Zone Shinjuku has come up with some cool virtual reality experiences, letting guests pilot the giant robots from anime Evangelion or throw blasts of energy from their hands like Dragon Ball’s Goku. But their newest attraction is on a whole other level of awesomeness.

The recently added Dragon Quest VR is, as the name implies, a virtual reality game that lets you step into the world of Dragon Quest, Japan’s most venerable RPG video game series. Since VR Zone Shinjuku is located in the same part of town as SoraNews24 headquarters, we recently snuck out of work and headed out on an adventure

In the very first Dragon Quest, released for Nintendo’s 8-bit Famicom way back in 1986, a solitary swordsman took on the forces of evil. In modern installments, though, a band of heroes works together, and Dragon Quest VR operates under this contemporary framework, putting you into a party of four adventurers. If you show up with friends, the staff can put you in a group together, but if you’re by yourself, or have less than a quorum of four, you’ll be folded in with other waiting players.

Once our party was formed, a staff member explained the controls to us, which are simple enough for even young kids to understand (though players between the ages of 7 and 12 must be accompanied by an older guest). Each four-person party is made up of two fighters, a magic user, and a priest, who get outfitted with VR headsets, headphones, a microphone, and handheld weaponry.

After getting suited up, it’s time for the adventure to begin. Oh, and you’re not sitting in a chair for this. Instead, the action takes place in a 20 by 12 meter (66 by 39 foot) room that you and your companions roam about while battling monsters.

With our party’s fighters swinging their swords and the magic user and priests slinging spells, we coordinated tactics through the microphones, and felt like we were truly RPG heroes.

And if all that adventuring helps you build up an appetite, the center’s attached restaurant (home of the Pac-Man curry) currently has a lineup of Dragon Quest-themed food and drink.

Dragon Quest VR costs 3,200 yen (US$30) per play, with admission to VR Shinjuku a separate 800 yen. Reservations are required for the attraction, and can be made online here.

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Top image: VR Zone Shinjuku
Insert images: SoraNews24, VR Zone Shinjuku

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