{"id":578814,"date":"2026-08-24T13:04:08","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T13:04:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/578814\/"},"modified":"2026-08-24T13:04:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T13:04:08","slug":"zero-latency-vr-the-state-of-location-based-vr-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/578814\/","title":{"rendered":"Zero Latency VR | The state of location-based VR 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Zero Latency, a global leader in VR entertainment<\/a>, has revealed the results of the largest consumer study ever run on location-based VR, which found that immersive virtual reality is the most wanted attraction in entertainment venues. <\/p>\n

The study, The state of location-based VR 2026, was commissioned by Zero Latency VR and conducted by independent agency Glow. It engaged 2,386 participants across the US, Canada, Australia, France and Spain.<\/p>\n

When asked about the attractions they most want, participants ranked virtual reality first at 93%, followed by options like arcades, bowling, escape rooms, mini golf, laser tag, karting, and immersive and interactive game rooms. This finding was consistent across every region surveyed. <\/p>\n

However, the attraction guests most want, Zero Latency says, is the one many venues don’t offer. This presents a real opportunity for operators.<\/p>\n

The full report is available here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Key findings<\/p>\n

Since 2023, VR is the only major attraction to see a rise in pull. In contrast, arcades and karting have lost ground to more social experiences.<\/p>\n

The study found that only a third of participants play VR solo, with a preference for the shared experience that cannot be replicated from the sofa. 73% play with friends, 60% with family, and 52% with their partner. <\/p>\n

VR’s mix of genres and formats serves this appetite. Suitable for different group sizes, a single attraction can welcome friends, families and corporate teams for a larger audience than gamers, bigger group tickets, and a fuller venue across more of the week.<\/p>\n

The report also notes that visitors’ reasons for booking are shifting. <\/p>\n

At 36%, thrill and excitement are now the top reason people book a VR experience. While trying new technology was previously the primary motivator, this has dropped to fourth place. <\/p>\n

Visitors judge VR on quality first, says Zero Latency, and value graphics (42%), tech and venue (38%), and great games (36%). Notably, ‘great games’ has risen three places since 2023, demonstrating that visitors increasingly rate VR by the depth of its content rather than by the novelty of putting on a headset.<\/p>\n

Audiences will pay for this level of quality. Research has found that Gen Z will pay a premium for high-quality experiences, such as big licensed worlds like Jumanji and Cyberpunk 2077<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Yet, guests frequently cite the lack of nearby VR venues as a key barrier to visiting. This is evidenced by independent real estate data, such as JLL’s 2026 entertainment tenant study of location-based entertainment (LBE) locations across the US and Canada. <\/p>\n

This study showed extensive growth in the wider sector, with escape rooms, for example, seeing a +247% increase since 2023, with 721 more locations already planned across the wider sector. Yet of JLL’s 4,746 LBE locations, just 83 were VR venues. <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, for established family entertainment centres like Chuck E. Cheese<\/a> or Dave & Buster’s, growth has flattened to 10.6% since 2023, with a focus on consolidation rather than expansion.<\/p>\n

Zero Latency’s own footprint of over 150 installations across 30 countries, the company says, shows where that growth could come from next.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, Zero Latency announced that Jumanji: The Lost Levels<\/a> is set to launch on 4 December 2026. Developed in partnership with Sony Pictures, the experience will be available at Zero Latency VR locations across the globe.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Zero Latency, a global leader in VR entertainment, has revealed the results of the largest consumer study ever…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":578815,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[18017,18019,285168,18021,3447,90891,131516,270433,111,139,69,145,360,89508],"class_list":["post-578814","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-attractions-business","tag-brand-experiences","tag-competitive-socialising","tag-fec-suppliers","tag-gaming","tag-immersive-experiences","tag-ip","tag-lbe","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-technology","tag-virtual-reality","tag-vr-games-and-attractions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/578814","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=578814"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/578814\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/578815"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=578814"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=578814"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=578814"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}