ONE FM DJs battle VR zombies
Shrieks pierced the air between shouts of "zombie, zombie!", as radio personalities from ONE FM 91.3's morning show, Glenn and The Flying Dutchman, battled the "undead".
They did this with some of the station's listeners who had won an on-air contest held earlier this month to play virtual reality (VR) game Outbreak Origins with the ONE FM gang.
Last Tuesday, the group participated in the 30-minute session on VR entertainment company Zero Latency Singapore's premises at Suntec City.
Players are outfitted with virtual reality headsets, wear a military-grade backpack containing a high-performance Alienware PC gaming computer, and carry simulated weapons to fight hordes of zombies created by a deadly virus.
The game allows up to eight players to roam around 200 sq m of game space and strategise as part of a team.
Even though this was his first time playing a VR game, DJ The Flying Dutchman (FD, whose real name is Mark Van Cuylenburg) managed to earn a solid third-place ranking.
FD, 62, told The New Paper: "When I finally got those zombies to die, I was on a roll...I expected a lot of disorientation, but this didn't happen at all."
Shaun Tupaz, 30, a former commando, said of Outbreak Origins: "This was my natural field, with the whole combat element."
Andre Hoeden, 45, added: "Even if you know it's not real, the VR experience really takes over reality, and you're immersed in it - especially climbing up into the helicopter."
Ong, 48, said: "I was the best, it just didn't show on the scoreboard."
He added: "Our chemistry is good, but it's something we continue to grow."
The ONE FM contest winners also had a blast.
Superfan David Yeo, a 48-year-old store manager at a signage company, told TNP: "The DJs were pros at teaching us how to work together as a team. They would tell us where to hide, and go out and conduct probes."
Mr Kendrick Wee has played VR games before using his mobile phone, but they are "nothing like what I experienced with the DJs".
The 25-year-old civil servant said: "I could make out their distinct personalities through all the noise and clamour."
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