Las Vegas will be transported to the retro-future with the launch of PING! at The Wall Gaming Lounge (located in the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino) on Friday, October 5. Created by location-based virtual reality (VR) company Modal Systems, PING! is a wireless free-roam VR interpretation of classic arcade gameplay. Players are beamed into a fully immersive VR environment that was once only a 2D screen in arcades. Players compete by physically moving left to right, batting the virtual ball back and forth at one another. Atari founder and Modal co-founder Nolan Bushnell stated: “I always say we’re in the ‘Pong Phase’ of virtual reality but VR arcades will be a multi-billion dollar industry in just a few years. Kicking off the revolution with gameplay I designed over forty years ago is just pure fun.”
Joining forces with Modal, HTC VIVE will bring Modal’s vision for location-based entertainment to the next level with the VIVE Focus, the company’s premium 6dof standalone VR headset. “Modal has a unique approach to location-based VR,” said Alvin Wang Graylin, China President, HTC. “Modal has leveraged VIVE’s cutting-edge technology in creative ways, allowing Modal to bring affordable free-roam VR experiences to a mass market audience with an extremely easy to use interface.”
Hybrid One & The Wall’s Dan Martinez says: “Modal’s products and overall approach are a good fit for many of the properties we are currently developing. Modal’s emphasis on hourly throughput, affordable ticket prices, and replay factor are very important to us.” Hybrid One & The Wall’s Ryan Sauter added: “PING! tournaments deliver unexpected excitement to the lounge while creating fun memories for guests. It’s also not a bad workout!”
Modal co-founder Jason Crawford stated: “Our goal is to make virtual reality accessible and fun for everyone, especially those who may have found it intimidating or too costly in the past. Forward-thinking partners such as HTC VIVE, Caesars Entertainment, and The Wall are powerful allies in helping us realize this vision.”
In addition to PING!™, more Modal games and experiences will be rolling out in Las Vegas, including Infinity Racer™, Ghost Manor™, and Project Zenith™. Other Modal titles created by third-party developers will be announced soon.
EVENT DETAILS
- Friday, October 5th
- The Wall Gaming Lounge
- Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino
- 3700 W Flamingo Rd, Las Vegas, NV 89103
6PM to 8PM – Private Press Preview / Mixer (by invite only)
- Complimentary food & beverage
- Open bar
- Complimentary PING! gameplay
- Atari 2600 lounge
- Chat with Atari founder and Modal co-founder, Nolan Bushnell
- Complimentary VR ARCADE Game Stations
- Learn more about the future of location-based VR entertainment
8PM to 2AM – VIP Party (ticket holders only)
- Complimentary PING! Tournaments
- Complimentary VR ARCADE Stations (Raw Data, Sprint Vector, Beat Saber, and more)
- Win HTC VIVE prizes
- Win an Atari 2600 Console, signed by Nolan Bushnell
- eSports Tournaments (Super Smash Bros, Overwatch, Fortnite, and more)
- Open bar (8pm to 9pm)
- 80’s music and videos