Later this week Steven Spielberg will bring a bold vision of the future of VR to the big screen with the release of Ready Player One in cinemas across the globe. It’s probably no coincidence that a trailer for a new Netflix series that looks strikingly similar recently popped up online too.
Kiss Me First is a new British TV drama coming to Channel 4 and Netflix. It stars Tallulah Haddon as Leila, a young girl with an addiction to videogames that gets wrapped up in the online world of Argora, a metaverse that, judging on the trailer below, isn’t too dissimilar to the Oasis platform seen in Ready Player One. Leila uses a VR headset to jump into this new world, paired with something called an Azanaband that mimics impulse such as elation, letting you feel virtual emotions as well as sensations. It even simulates pain.
Just like Ready Player One, the series is comprised of live action footage in the real world then, when in VR, it switches to CG to simulate living in a game world. Judging by the trailer, it looks like the world’s obsession with the game will create problems both in and out of its virtual landscape. There’s even a car chase scene that looks very similar to the one shown in trailers for this week’s blockbuster. Given the format, though, we’re hoping Kiss Me First is able to dig a bit deeper behind the ramifications of a successful metaverse than Spielberg’s shiny summer flick.
The show will air on Channel 4 on April 2nd in the UK, though there’s no word on when it will come to Netflix just yet.
