Derren Brown’s Ghost Train – short notes about the VR experience

For all of you wondering how the Ghost Train, I was visiting last Friday, has been, here some small explanations.

It seems to be a combination of two train tracks, each combined with a switch traverse, one of which seems to be (really?) suspended (the first one), so they’re even able to twist and turn the train when lifted up. It’s primarily an attraction where you sit in a replica of a London Underground with VR headsets on (because some dangerous Gas has been leaked and the headsets are -in reality- Gas masks). Then, all hell breaks loose and a demon reaches the carriage and pretty much shoots it to hell.

For my taste, the first part was a little bit too dialogue-driven and senseless. However, the driving part of the Ghost Train felt pretty realistic, because the traverse lifts the train to an ACTUAL track and IS really riding on it. Very nice.

The show part in the middle (where you leave the train for a short period of time for an evacuation scene) seemed to be improvised when we were there – quite likely because the second traverse switch which (I think) should pull the train onto another track was not working as it should and so everything took much longer than expected (this is a theory, though, as Thorpe Park does not show ANYTHING of how this actually works, but it would fit, because it also took ages for us to enter the next tube station/traverse switch with the VR headset not showing anything except black and screams).

The third part when we we’re back in the ghost train was good, though. When the demon lifted the carriage, it was more like a simulation ride and it seems they really pulled everything they could from the supsended traverse (don’t forget: with a real scale tube train on it!). Still, it could have been much scarier for me (with lot’s of possible improvements in story, design, graphics and flow), but it seems it was already more than enough for most visitors. Also not many people seem to be to familiar with VR headsets, yet. Most people just watched straight ahead, missing most of the 360° action. A little tutorial might have helped. So: Not the best attraction, but still a good impression of how VR, ride systems and good theming could work together very well.

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