By Tinker Belle Diva
Which character will you pick?
Last summer, we experienced Virtual Reality (VR) at the Void in Downtown Disney in Anaheim for the first time. We HIGHLY enjoyed our experience as Rebel Spies fighting the Empire in the Star Wars version available at the Void that you can read about it here. In late 2018, the Void added a new adventure called “Ralph Breaks VR”. Since we enjoyed the movie and loved our prior VR experience, we booked a time to try this one out in March 2019. The good news for all is that this experience is available both in Downtown Disney in Anaheim and at Disney Springs in Orlando, which means you don’t need a park ticket to enjoy the Void and experience VR. You can read Passholder Diva’s review of the Disney Springs Void here.
So what is The VOID? They explain it as “a full sensory, immersive experience, with you, your friends and family walking around inside the action. It’s location-based entertainment – that means you visit one of our locations – and you walk into real-time hyper-reality that combines interactive sets, real-time effects, and amazing technology.” I agree. It is virtual reality gaming with the added bonus of interacting with characters, using tools and walking into and out of difference scenes.
PRO-TIP: Read the Pro-Tips on the back of each card before you go into the game. Super helpful!
Ralph Breaks VR is different enough from the Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire experience that it is worthy of trying it if you have already experienced the other. For example, in Ralph Breaks VR, you are competing against the others in your party, while in Secrets of the Empire, you are working as a team. The check-in and preparation procedure for either game is the same. The first step was to complete the waiver electronically for us and our children. Once the waiver is signed, you have the option to email it to yourself, and then a wrist band with your QR code is printed and placed on your wrist. It was explained to us that absolutely no cameras, recording devices, smart phones, or social media devices would be allowed in the game. There was one difference from Star Wars in that instead of choosing our character in the next room, we were given a selection of six character cards and were to choose one each. DIVA TIP: Read the “Pro-Tip” on the back of each card. If only we had done that before going into the game, I think we would have been able to figure a few more things out. We then were moved into the next room, skipping the area where you would choose your Storm Trooper color and instead the codes on our cards were scanned before moving onto another room where we locked all of our belongings (purses, backpacks, hats, phones, etc.) into a locker and were given a key. Then we shifted into the room where we were helped into our gear, which is the same relatively large vest that houses the computing device and headgear with the VR visor.
The only photos allowed are the ones taken at the end by the employee
Photo by the VOID
From here we went into the game. We started out riding along with Ralph and Vanellope into the Internet, and pretty quickly we are identified as viruses and then it gets a little crazy. In order to escape and not be terminated as Viruses, we have to complete a few games, which are fun and include a Space Invaders style arcade game and two opportunities for shooting gallery style games. DIVA TIP: After each game, look down at your wrist and you can see your score and how you tank against the others in your party. At the end of the game, the VR googles indicate for you to raise them, and then you are back in the real world. They offer to take a souvenir photo for you. Then you are back to the same room to remove your vests and googles, and retrieve your items from the locker. From here, we exited back to the lobby to view our photo. A 5×8 photo plus high-resolution digital copy is $15 plus tax. There are also shirts, jackets and hats available for purchase.
So what did I think? It was fun. We enjoyed competing against each other and having another opportunity to play with VR, and there is the benefit that if you decide to experience Ralph Breaks VR again, you can try to achieve a higher score from your prior visit (of course at ~$30 each, you may not do this back-to-back-to-back). However, we all agreed that given a choice, we would pick Secrets of the Empire over Ralph Breaks VR. We left the Start Wars version chatting away for hours and even days later about how exciting it was. I remember my heart pounding my chest at several points during that version. I never had the same experience with the Ralph VR. But the Ralph VR may be better for younger players that might find the Star Wars version a little too intimidating, but if you are trying to decide between the two, I recommend, HIGHLY recommend, Secrets of the Empire. Be sure to check the schedule on the VOID website (Anaheim and Orlando) to see when you can choose the Ralph Breaks VR or the Secrets of the Empire. For more FAQs or to buy tickets to the Void at Downtown Disney in Anaheim, click here. For the Void at Disney Springs in Orlando, click here.
If you want to create an experience at either Disneyland or Walt Disney World that includes trying the VOID, contact Patricia Payne at All For Dreams Travel.
