While there are a number of VR-enhanced arcade machines out there on the market right now, nothing has made as big a splash as the Virtual Rabbids: The Big Ride by LAI Games. By all reports I’ve heard, the machine is performing well on location, and has likewise been selling well into new locations.
To build on that momentum, LAI Games announced today that they’ve spent the past year working with Ubisoft to develop a major expansion pack that is now available for operators to purchase and add to their machines. Called The Big Expansion, it doubles the content found on existing units, bringing it up from three rides to six. Here’s the official promo trailer that gives you a complete run-down of the existing as well as the new content:
For more detail, LAI provided this info; they also stated that this is NOT a replacement for the original rides, emphasizing that it’s an Expansion. Essentially DLC for arcades:
KITCHEN CATASTROPHE
You’ve been shrunk to the size of an egg… don’t get cracked like one! Hop behind the wheel of your toy car and escape the mad Rabbid Chef in his gigantic kitchen. Beware the flying utensils and take cover in the drains! Experience mammoth moments of fun from your pint-sized perspective!
SPACE SKIRMISH
Speed through the galaxy as you encounter UFOs (Unbelievably Funny Obstacles), and take control in our first interactive stage, by blasting your way through the enemy stronghold and shooting at the numerous spaceships and Robo-Rabbids coming after you!
COASTER CALAMITY
Do you have the stomach to embark on an extreme rollercoaster adventure, specially designed by a team of harebrained Rabbids? Climb into your carriage and hold on for an epic journey, full of breathtaking heights, hilarious drops, and logic-defying twists and turns!
I did get the chance to play this Expansion at Bowl Expo, where I tried out the Space Skirmish ride. What intrigued me the most about it was the fact that it’s partially interactive; occasionally, a pair of laser cannons appear and will auto-fire at UFO targets that show up on-screen. All you have to do is look at them and line-up the shot; the game automatically fires for you. It even keeps a score, making this particular ride a proper game.
If you are an arcade operator with this game, then contact the distributor you bought the machine from to see how much the Big Expansion pack is and how to get it; if you are a player and know where to find one of these, I imagine that you’ll find the update added to machines without too much of a wait.
This isn’t the only new thing that LAI has had in the works for a while; expect to hear some news about Outnumbered here soon!
