Skip to main content

Fox is building a massive, free-roaming VR Alien experience

alien vr experience fox feat
Image used with permission by copyright holder
The interactive entertainment branch of Fox, FoxNext, is building a new experience based on the Alien franchise, but this is no theme park. Instead, it will be a free-roaming virtual reality facility that lets player step into a world populated by xenomorphs — at their peril.

Of all the games and experiences that were at one point in time compatible with the pre-consumer release headsets, like Oculus’ DK2, the one that many fans remember most fondly is Alien: Isolation. Although it had its problems and is somewhat playable on modern hardware, it’s that claustrophobic, xenomorph-hunted experience that many still hanker for.

That’s exactly what FoxNext is looking to deliver, but unlike Isolation, it won’t utilize gamepad controls and be a static, standing experience. What its making is ‘warehouse scale’ in that you can walk around a large facility that measures 2,000 square feet, with “prop guns with haptic effects and hand tracking,” (as per the Hollywood Reporter).

Some press have been walked through a proof of concept experience, with FoxNext using that feedback and the experience of creating it to build the final version. In that, four players will be able to explore the Alien setting together, shooting and flinging grenades at various digital xenomorphs as they try to survive.

Although FoxNext hasn’t suggested what the VR hardware will be like in the final experience, in the proof of concept Gear VR headsets were used. However, it also made use of proprietary wireless technology created by iP2 Entertainment, with whom FoxNext is partnering to build the attraction. The VR setting will be made using volumetric capture techniques, so it’s possible that real sets will be built and digitally brought into the virtual world, rather than digitally created within a typical gaming engine.

It will also be partnering with PureImagination studios, which previously put together the Justice League 4D dark ride for Six Flags Over Texas as well as the Angry Birds 4D Experience for Thorpe Park, England.

FoxNext already has some experience creating virtual reality attractions with The Martian VR Experience and Alien: Covenant In Utero. It seems likely to have drawn from other developments like The Void, as well in this creation.

Editors' Recommendations

Jon Martindale
Jon Martindale is the Evergreen Coordinator for Computing, overseeing a team of writers addressing all the latest how to…
As an enthusiast, these are the apps every PC needs to have
A gaming PC with RGB synced lights running Apex Legends.

I've written about PC hardware for several years, and I proudly wear the badge of "enthusiast." But for as fun and interesting as the hardware is, no high-end PC is complete without the proper software.

Over my years of building PCs and tweaking hardware, I've cultivated a list of software that I need to install on every device I use. Here's what I install on every PC I build or test.
Afterburner
MSI

Read more
Nvidia’s RTX 5090 might completely run AMD into the ground
RTX 4090.

Nvidia's best graphics card might reach new heights in the next generation of GPUs -- or at least that's what a reputable leaker implies. The RTX 4090 already delivered a massive generational uplift, and we're looking at something similar, or even better, with the future RTX 5090. It all comes down to a ridiculously large memory bus and a huge increase in CUDA cores. But does Nvidia really need all that juice to compete with AMD?

Today's round of tantalizing leaks comes from a well-known source in the GPU space, kopite7kimi, who released some speculation about the possible architecture of the GB202 chip, which would be the Blackwell counterpart to the AD102. There's a bit of math involved.

Read more
Best OLED monitor deals: Get an OLED screen from just $370
Marvel's Spider-Man running on the Samsung Odyssey OLED G8.

If you want the best screens that you can get from monitor deals, it's highly recommended that you go for displays featuring OLED technology. OLED stands for organic light-emitting diode, and because they eliminate the need for a backlight by generating 100% of the light on the screen, OLED monitors can offer perfect black levels, extremely wide viewing angles, and insanely fast response times, among other benefits. If you're interested in OLED monitor deals, here are the top offers that are available right now, but you'll need to hurry because they may disappear at any moment.
ViewSonic 15.6-inch ColorPro VP16 OLED monitor -- $370, was $400

The ViewSonic ColorPro VP16 OLED monitor is a portable display that features a 15.6-inch screen with Full HD resolution. It comes with a flexible and foldable ergonomic stand for easy height and viewing angle adjustments, and there's also a tripod mount integrated into the stand so that the ViewSonic ColorPro VP16 can be used as photo or video preview screen. For connectivity options, you get two USB-C ports and a mini HDMI port.

Read more