THE WORLD’S HIGHEST LOCATION-BASED VR EXPERIENCE

Happy Finish created a world-first VR Slide experience for The View from The Shard in London.

Towering over London at 95 stories tall, The Shard has redefined the London skyline since its opening in 2012. The View from The Shard is the open-air viewing platform on the 72nd floor from which visitors can experience panoramic views of London. Eager to integrate virtual reality into the attraction, The View from The Shard turned to Happy Finish to help them create a thrilling addition to the observation deck.

With an impressive skyline and an 800ft drop at our disposal, Happy Finish came up with the concept of ‘The Slide’: a unique VR experience that takes users on a rollercoaster ride around the iconic London landmark whilst still taking in London’s breathtaking views.

 

 

 

 

Happy Finish created incredibly realistic content by sending drones out of the top of The Shard to take four 360° images at each corner of the sky-deck before combining with a transparent slide and a replica of the Shard built by our artists in CG. Happy Finish developers then took it one step further by introducing a custom-built motion platform that could replicate speeds of up to 200mph and tested 20° tilts and 60° movements to make sure the user physically experiences every twist and turn they are viewing in the headset. All of this together resulted in a thrilling photo-real VR slide experience which went viral thanks to users sharing their hysterical reactions online.

 

 

 

 

Commenting on ‘The Slide’, CEO Daniel Cheetham said: “We can now use VR to totally immerse someone in an experience that would have previously only been available to the imagination. We can elicit emotional responses that feel absolutely real – with The Slide we directly evoke fear, joy and exhilaration equally by making people believe they are truly sliding out of the Shard on an adrenaline-fuelled ride.”

 

STUDIO: Happy Finish