Looking to do something different this weekend? This new Virtual Reality experience in Dublin City Centre is definitely worth checking out.VR Link was set up in the Ha’Penny Room in The Clockwork Door on Wellington Quay a couple of months back, so I went along with a mate to check it out. And when I say I had such a laugh, I’m not lying. It was such good craic.First of all, it was my first time in The Clockwork Door, so I was really curious about what it was like to hang out in the city’s only time-house. Basically, a time-house is a pay-as-you-go space, where you have access to unlimited tea, coffee, popcorn, board games and video games, and you only pay for the amount of time you spend there.My main reservation about hanging out there before was that I thought it would be full of younger people, and I would be far too old to enjoy the space. When I got there, I quickly learned that wasn’t the case. It’s simply an alternative sober space where you can hang out with pals if you’re around the city centre.Anyways, onto the VR.The owner, Philip, set us up with the headsets and hand controls and guided us through the whole thing.I don’t have a lot of experience with virtual reality, so to ease me in, I played a game where I had to slash boxes with light-sabres, which was great craic, but I was ready for more.So I moved onto a game where I was in space and using the hand controls to shoot down little space ships that were attacking me. Even though I knew I was in a room in a building on Wellington Quay in Dublin, it was hard not to feel like I was actually there in space living my Guardians Of The Galaxy dream.But it was the next game that felt a little too real. My friend and I got to play together in multiplayer mode. We were dropped into the apocalypse and had to fight off zombies together. Again, even though I knew it wasn’t real, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t ducking and screaming like a five-year-old. It was a bit too real, but absolutely gas craic all the same.I may have looked like a fool to anyone who was watching, but when you have the headset on and there’s a zombie running towards you ready to leap on you, it’s hard not to at least yelp.To finish off, Philip pulled us up a chair and set us up in an escape room game called You Will Die, which I was fairly rubbish at. Pro-tip: read the instructions before actually attempting to get out of the room, because I just picked up the gun and started shooting, and I got absolutely nowhere. If you’re already into VR, or it’s something you’ve been wanting to try, I would definitely head along and try it out. If you’re not in the mood for a night in the pub and want to try something different, it’s an ideal alternative.Until August, new visitors can get 45 minutes for €15, while €20 will get you an hour and 15 minutes. After that, €15 will get you a half hour and €20 will get you an hour.And on Wednesdays, a whole hour only costs €10.To find out more about VR Link, check them out here.
