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Haruka Tomatsu Shows Off VR Headset That Lets You Meet Sword Art Online's Asuna
posted on by Eric Stimson
Virtual reality (VR) continues to erode the barrier between actual reality and the imagined reality of mass media. FOVE, a VR developer based in California and co-founded by Sony Interactive game producer Yuka Kojima, is participating in this effort with a new demonstration campaign for its VR headset involving Sword Art Online's Asuna.
Users will be able to meet Asuna, who will explain how the headset works as your "concierge." The device will read the user's eye movements, though, allowing Asuna to react to their actions — for example, smiling when she's looked right in the eye or getting upset when she's ignored. FOVE claims that the experience will be "natural communication like never before."
Asuna's voice actress, Haruka Tomatsu, shows off the headset and how well it tracks your movements and gaze. She swears that Asuna will get angry if you glance at her chest.
If users don't have the FOVE 0 headset or a high-spec gaming PC, they can always visit an Internet cafe with the VR platform Virtual Gate. The service begins on January 31 and lasts until July 31; it will be available in Japan and South Korea. More information will be coming soon at the FOVE website.
Sword Art Online has already received a virtual reality demonstration last year mimicking the titular game. The demonstrations help promote Sword Art Online the Movie: Ordinal Scale, which hits theaters on February 18; its plot involves an ARMMORPG (Augmented Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game), Ordinal Scale.
Sources: 4Gamer.net and FOVE
