Another day, another Japanese VR arcade that we’re intensely jealous of. This time it’s the latest from Bandai Namco, which looks to offer a greatest hits of its VR software.
Mazaria is a gigantic VR facility opening soon in the Toshima Ward in Tokyo. Namco has previously drawn headlines for its VR Zone arcades that offer new experiences from beloved franchises like Mario and Dragon Quest. Mazaria doesn’t seem to offer anything super new, but it does house most if not all of the company’s past games under one roof.
https://youtu.be/0WsvFom3UxU
The arcade is split into four sections, each covering different types of games. In the Festival Zone you can get crazy with Mario Kart VR, Taiko no Tatsujin VR (the one with the disturbingly cute sentient drums) and, uh, Pacman VR. Meanwhile, over in the Adventure Zone you can jump into the world of Dragon Quest in VR, take a virtual fishing trip and work with friends in a VR white water rafting experience.
Next up is the Panic Zone or, as I like to call it, the ‘Nope’ Zone. It’s got horror experiences and other such frights. Finally there’s the SF Zone which has a bunch of sci-fi experiences. That includes Gundam and Godzilla VR apps as well as VR’s very own take on shoot ’em up classic, Galaga.
The park opens soon. You’ll be able to get a day pass as an adult for 4,200 yen (about $39) and 2,700 yen (about $25) for kids. We’d love to see some of these experiences make their way to the west some time but, so far, only Mario Kart and a few others have done so.
