VR Karting is a Real-Life Mario Kart Experience

If you’ve ever dreamed of experiencing a real-life Mario Kart race, your dreams may soon be coming true; we’re working with Master of Shapes, Intel, and BlackTrax to bring a virtual reality karting experience to K1 Speed that the world has never seen before.

The Gamification of Real-Life Kart Racing

While there’s no denying that the official Mario Kart VR arcade game looks pretty darn cool, the go kart racing itself is only a simulation of the real deal. This VR game, however, puts you behind the wheel of an actual go-kart on a real-life track, providing an authentic racing experience complete with cornering g-forces and that instant “push your back into the seat” torque that our electric motors provide. Even the best motion simulators cannot replicate this unique sensation.

How it Works

It took Master of Shapes six weeks to laser scan every twist and turn of our Torrance track, equip the track’s perimeter with 28 cameras that detect the driver positions while racing virtually, and build the gaming interface.  A microcontroller on the kart, called the Teensy, reacts in real time to any movement in the kart: each push of the throttle or gas pedal and every turn of the wheel is registered and reflected in real-time via virtual reality.

The Game

Though the race against the clock is familiar, everything else about this hybrid race experience is different.  When you step into the kart and put on the Oculus Rift VR headset, our Torrance track no longer winds its way through a warehouse in South LA County, but a post-apocalyptic Tokyo nightscape. As you navigate our track, you’re racing past towering skyscrapers, futuristic light posts, flaming barriers, lasers, scattered wreckages, and more – all in an eerie red ambiance. Of course, the experience would not be complete without a soaring synthwave soundtrack that could’ve easily been from the hit Netflix show Stranger Things.

Power ups and speed boosts are littered throughout the track, and because you’re driving the real deal, your kart responds appropriately with either a boost of speed or sudden loss of power.

OMG, WHEN CAN I TRY THIS?!

We’re still in early testing stages with the companies involved, but we are definitely looking at bringing this experience to the public as soon as 2019. Further testing will include the use of multiple karts on the track at once, and there may be more than one environment that’ll be offered (a race through the tropics, perhaps?).

No matter how long it takes before you’re able to try it out for yourself, it’ll definitely be well worth the wait. In the meantime, visit our Torrance location and become an expert at our track. A little Mario Kart here and there might not hurt, either.

The future of K1 Speed is an exciting one – be sure to stay tuned to our website next year for more information about this ground-breaking racing experience!