The entrances are still blocked by construction fences. From September 21, about six million tourists will come to Oktoberfest. But the first guests have long been out and on tours, because Oktoberfest has already started virtually: Oktoberfest fans can already walk around the festival grounds with virtual reality glasses. Another virtual version is being tapped.
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First of all: be careful when taking your first steps into the virtual world. Newcomers may get confused when strolling through the festival grounds without even a single pint of beer. Using VR goggles requires some practice.
Children accompany guests to Oktoberfest
But The tour that is already available Visitors are guided by the children Felix and Leah, who are deaf. Christoph Osler, boss and founder of the company Connected Reality and initiator of the VR4Kids inclusion campaign, says that the virtual tour with the two should enable everyone who cannot come to the festival in person for whatever reason. “The big keyword is participation.”
The visitor partly takes on the role of children and explores the festival from their point of view: he rides a Ferris wheel, a bumper car, a ghost train – or jumps into the middle of the almond stand. According to Ostler, the oldest person who visited Oktoberfest in the test with VR glasses was 96 years old. She commented on the visit: “Now I can go to Oktoberfest again.”
Ostler says it’s not just about disadvantaged or disabled children, but about everyone who would otherwise not have the chance to come to the festival. Leah also explains Oktoberfest in sign language – and together with Felix shows visitors some of the Oktoberfest words in their language. An English version is now also available.
Comic-like, virtual Oktoberfest game
At the beginning of the actual Oktoberfest, guests from all over the world can also expect the virtual reality game “Oktoberfest – The Official Game” from Munich studio K5 Factory, which the city of Munich has licensed as the organizer of the Oktoberfest. It takes visitors to a completely different, comic-like, stylized Oktoberfest scene, which at the same time depicts the festival in great detail: the Ferris wheel, the Schippel, the flea circus, the Devil’s wheel, the original beer tents – everything is like the real Oktoberfest, just a little more colorful.
The target group here too: Oktoberfest fans who cannot come to the festival themselves. The producers here think globally. The game is being launched as an English version – also with the main target market in the United States in mind; a Bavarian one could follow, but as a lie. “The main language in the games is English,” says Oliver Simon, founder and managing director of K5 Factory. In addition to the European markets, the Chinese market is also interesting, says managing director Thomas Wagner.
The idea came during the pandemic. “The idea was: we have to create virtual spaces for private and business purposes,” says Oliver Simon. “And: how can you make things tangible for people who can’t go there?”
The party is “beamed” through a beam of light.
Guests “ray” – or “teleport” – themselves into the party as an avatar using a beam of light. Depending on their skill level, beginners may need a few tries before making the leap. Just like the real Oktoberfest, the ride is free. However, if you want to ride or wear a dirndl and lederhosen, you’ll have to dig into your pocket – and pay with in-game currency or real euros.
At the festival, guests meet friends or other visitors with whom the newcomers, who wander the streets intoxicated by VR, like to bump into each other. Brass music comes from the tents, the murmur of voices – these are real recordings of the Oktoberfest – comes from all around. There are virtual pretzels – not very nutritious – but also fun that can be implemented virtually, from can throwing to high-speed rides such as the drop tower and the topspin. Tip: settle down in the real world before the virtual journey begins.
Rolling without even a peg of beer
It is easier to get dizzy here than at the festival. If you like high-speed rides with stomach pain, VR glasses are perfect. The lack of correspondence between the perception of speed and the actual speed disturbs the balance organ – motion sickness. This is the same effect as seasickness, in which the brain cannot correctly classify the ship’s motion.
This is why visitors cannot ride the carousel during the vr4kids inclusion or the Oktoberfest games at the K5 Factory. “Things that spin quickly in a circle quickly cause motion sickness,” explains Thomas Wagner, managing director of the K5 Factory. “We are very careful, especially now at the beginning.”
Oastler and his team are a little more reserved here: with one slide, a bumper car, and a — slowly spinning — Ferris wheel, they don’t expect much more from guests.
The makers of VR Vision do not believe that virtual travel will spoil the mood of the real Oktoberfest. Ostler says that the possibility of virtual visits to various tourist attractions showed that people really wanted to visit the places and experience them in reality.
The world through VR glasses
Using VR goggles to experience events you wouldn’t otherwise have access to – the idea isn’t new. Ostler and his team have also included visits to the players’ tunnel at the Allianz Arena, swimming with dolphins – and basketball training at the event, including with a wheelchair basketball player. Ostler says it should encourage more children with disabilities to try the sport themselves.
The K5 Factory team has other projects in the works besides Oktoberfest. “We are developing Banksy’s Walled Off Hotel as a VR experience,” reports Wagner. The K5 Factory is actually replicating in great detail the hotel in Bethlehem, West Bank, which is currently closed due to the political situation. During the virtual tour, guided by a little bird, guests will learn the background to the construction of the hotel and experience Banksy’s art.
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