The makers say the new park, located on the high-rent shopping area of The Beach on the Dubai Marina, is however a “limited engagement” with a presumably finite amount of slots available to the public before it closes. The park opens on March 24th, with tickets going on sale the 23rd. No definite closing date has been reported.

void-building
photo courtesy The VOID

The Void combines a real world environment—i.e. a predetermined play space and objects within it—with corresponding virtual imagery shown via the platform’s powerful backpack-mounted PC and modified Oculus Rift headset, making it an entirely untethered, free-roaming VR experience. With additional smells wafting your way and other special effects like wind, heat, cold and vibration, The Void promises to offer a uniquely immersive ‘4D’ mixed-reality experience.

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Cliff Plumer, CEO at The Void and former president of cinematic VR company Jaunt’s Santa Monica studio, said: “At THE VOID we are committed to allowing everyone, everywhere to step beyond reality, and into the most immersive entertainment experience imaginable. We are excited to partner with Meraas to bring THE VOID to Dubai, one of the most innovative leisure and entertainment destinations on the planet. The cutting-edge innovation we’ve seen in Dubai is a natural fit for the hyper-reality experience THE VOID will bring residents and visitors.”

The Dubai location was created in partnership with Meraas, a UAE-based holding company and owners of several locations including Dubai’s The Beach.

the void ghost busters dimension (5)
photo courtesy The VOID

Road to VR contributor Paul McAdory stepped into The Void’s Ghostbusters: Dimension experience in New York last summer, saying that while it isn’t the most graphically intense VR experience he’s ever seen (and was remarkably short), the uncanny immersion of feeling virtual objects while he tracked and trapped supernatural enemies through a New York apartment complex brought the entire experience together. Check out his detailed hands-on here.

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The Ghostbusters: Dimensions experience is said to last between 10-15 minutes including suit-up and suit-down. Dubai pricing and ticketing information hasn’t yet been released yet, but can be found on The Void’s website starting March 23rd.

The company maintains a test facility just outside of Salt Lake City, Utah—still closed to the public and by invite only.

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Well before the first modern XR products hit the market, Scott recognized the potential of the technology and set out to understand and document its growth. He has been professionally reporting on the space for nearly a decade as Editor at Road to VR, authoring more than 3,500 articles on the topic. Scott brings that seasoned insight to his reporting from major industry events across the globe.
  • VR Geek

    Sounds like someone paid the Void a lot of money so they can check the box off that they too have VR.

  • NooYawker

    This is in Dubai? Are women allowed to use this?

    • DougP

      As long as the virtual avatar they choose is appropriately covered & a man (preferably their husband) is present & condones/directs their actions in the game/experience.

    • Joe Roche

      My wife and I just got back from Dubai and no-one in this kind of facility cares less what women do. It’s very westernised – only 20% of the population is actually from the area.

      • NooYawker

        They don’t care what women do?
        https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2016-04-11/us-woman-faces-insult-charge-in-united-arab-emirates

        That’s just insulting a local. Look up what happens if a woman is actually sexually assaulted in Dubai.

        • Joe Roche

          Firstly that’s sloppy reporting – that incident was in Abu Dhabi, not Dubai. Different emirate. Second, I meant (and said) in a vr arcade/facility. Muslims rarely work in these places. Tourism is vital to Dubai, and tolerance of western values during tourist activities is pretty high. It’s still better to be respectful. What happens in the street is a different matter. I’m not sure what point you were making about sexual assault, but the penalties are extreme. Dubai is incredibly safe as a result.

          • NooYawker

            If you didn’t get the point of the article there’s no point in explaining it to you.

          • Get Schwifty!

            Amazing eh? If they get their way all democracies will be shut down and forget things like VR….

          • Bryan Ischo

            I read the article and I didn’t get the point as it relates to this article.

            Also you didn’t respond to Joe Roche’s actual refutation of your article, which is:

            – It didn’t happen in Dubai

            (I would also add that I can’t see how the article that you’re referring to would be relevant even if it did happen in Dubai.)

            Second, he noted that Dubai has (apparently) a different tolerance for western-style behavior than other parts of UAE.

            So “Are women allowed to use this” apparently can be answered with “yes”.

            Finally, it’s quite clear from your original comment, your unrelated “article”, and your subsequent comment, that you don’t actually have anything pertinent to say about the VOID in Dubai, you’re just looking to express your dislike for middle eastern countries. Which makes continuing to engage with you in this discussion not a particuarly interesting idea so … I’ll sign off now.