Virtual reality experience provider The Park Playground has released its latest location-based entertainment (LBE) VR escape room called The Break-in. This new VR escape room will immerse players into a fully interactive and personalised narrative using generative AI.
The Park Playground is known for its ‘mobile-first’ experiences, and with The Break-in, the platform utilised HTC Vive Focus 3 headsets to provide users with a fully untethered experience. In this adventure, players collaborate and employ creative problem-solving to solve puzzles and find missing artwork.
Peter Vindevogel, The Park Playground’s CEO says, “It’s always exciting to introduce a new experience to our players. The addition of The Break-in adds to our diverse library of original IPs to continue to accommodate all guests, regardless of their age or interest. I’m thrilled that we’re continuing our journey of bringing Al technology into the VR world.”
Specifically designed for individuals aged 12 and above, The Break-in requires two to eight participants per group who take on the roles of the central characters in a heist-themed story. The setting is the fictitious Crompton Bank, an imposing presence in its district. Teams must collaborate to recover a valuable masterpiece that has disappeared from a heavily secured vault filled with AI-generated artwork.
Creating unique experiences
To locate it, teams must find their way through the labyrinthine bank by solving puzzles, finding keycards and navigating lasers; all while avoiding enemy teams. The experience features cinematic moments, slow-motion effects and in-game mechanics that see the team communicate nonverbally by scrawling on a virtual windowpane and skilfully rappelling buildings to track down the artwork.
“We believe that technology should always be used in a way that creates the best possible experience for our customers and in this instance, integrating Al is allowing us to create a truly unique and social experience, each and every time it’s played,” added Vindevogel.
The integration of Al-generated art is a key component of The Break-in, allowing players to experience a different personalised experience regardless of how many times they participate. On arrival, players will answer some questions as a team that will dictate what the artwork in their experience looks like when it’s rendered in real time.
Isa Muhammad is a writer and video game journalist covering many aspects of entertainment media including the film industry. He's steadily writing his way to the sharp end of journalism and enjoys staying informed. If he's not reading, playing video games or catching up on his favourite TV series, then he's probably writing about them.