Forum8's products are definitely a treat, though they're certainly not for the average consumer.
During the Tokyo Game Show, my wife and I visited the AR/VR Game Area, which was in a separate exhibition hall from the Makuhari Messe venue's other gigantic buildings. There, we chanced upon a booth showcasing the offerings from Forum8, a Tokyo-based company that manufactures simulators used in attractions and civil engineering projects.
Given that we dropped by during a public day—which meant that the general public was already allowed inside the venues, as opposed to the media-only business days—the booth was already packed with attendees. Still, we received an opportunity to try the products. We're certainly awed by the level of immersion, though expensive price tags also mean that they're not easily obtained by regular folks.
First on our list was the Train Simulator program, a customized modification of Forum8's UC-win/Road, a software that's used for road planning, construction, traffic management, and, yes, even seasonal conditions. The booth representative advised that the Train Simulator is used in cooperation with the East Japan Railway Company (JR-East), which operates hundreds of trains and stations in Tokyo, as well as the northern and eastern regions, except for the island of Hokkaido.
This greatly piqued our interest because, apart from attending the Tokyo Game Show, we were also vacationing in Tokyo and surrounding areas. Given that we've previously visited Japan multiple times, we've been fascinated by their public transport system. We even plan our daily trips based on train schedules, right down to the specific platforms/tracks, transfers, and IC cards or metro passes that we had to use. That's why the notion of testing a simulator designed for training locomotive engineers and conductors is a memorable experience.
There were two rigs available to test the program. The first was a flatscreen variant, though it had lever controls for acceleration and braking. The VR variant used a HTC Vive headset. The controls for both were fluid and responsive for the most part. However, I genuinely preferred the flatscreen option since the levers and panel offer greater immersion compared to the Vive's controllers. Still, I had to chuckle when both my wife and I accelerated well past the next station. Thankfully, that immersion didn't extend to virtual passengers yelling at us because they missed their stop, though the representative did shrug and shake his head in disappointment.
Next up, my wife tried Forum8's VR Motion Seat, which has a hefty $16,000 price tag on the official website. The short demo puts users firmly on a roller coaster ride. The VR Motion Seat itself can pitch forward and backward, as well as heave upwards or tilt sideways, simulating the sudden jerking motions while on a roller coaster.
From there, we tried the VR 360° Simulator, which is somewhat akin to VART's 360° Rotating Chair. This contraption is primarily meant for arcade businesses due to its large size, exorbitant cost, and function. Apart from having the pitch and tilt movements of the VR Motion Seat, the 360° Simulator does what its name suggests: a complete 360-degree turn that spins you on your vertical axis. Strangely enough, the demo being used for the showcase was a rather simple program where you automatically moved on-the-rails while avoiding obstacles; it wasn't a high-speed racer or a sci-fi flight sim.
Forum8's booth offered an impressive showcase at the Tokyo Game Show. That being said, their software and hardware offerings are primarily meant for transportation services, urban development, or facility attractions. It's unlikely that we'll be able to afford a 360-degree spinning chair for our living room any time soon, though the experience remained memorable.
