Side street in Limerick plays host to the ‘future of gaming’

Blue Monday dawned yesterday and bearing such a bleak moniker, I opted to transfer into another world reaching out to the galaxy.

My mesmerising escape from foreboding beckoned within a nondescript building off a Limerick side street.

Within minutes I was moving along the Amazon, launched into outer space, before returning to Earth in a capsule which roamed around inside the human body, navigating all the vital organs. In between I waged ferocious warfare on all types of aliens.

The virtual wonderland is the brainchild of Damien McNamara, who holds a PhD in computer science.

McNamara, a 36-year-old graduate of Limerick Insitute of Technology and a former student of Sexton Street CBS, first read about how the concept operated in Scotland — where it had been imported from Canada — in the Irish Examiner.

On the second floor of Pillar House in Little Ellen St, he has built seven virtual reality zones. Called Fury VR, it offers 16 experiences which can be embarked on by groups or individuals.

The menu takes in all kinds of worldly and outer space adventures, and along the way there are battles with zombies and paintball warfare. After all that hi-tech combat, you can go back in time for an archery challenge.

“This virtual reality centre is the first of its kind in this country. I built the seven different zones and put the equipment together myself and opened in November,” said McNamara.

“Each experience lasts about 30 minutes. Our virtual experiences cater for 10 year-olds and upwards.

“As well as the range of games, we also offer an education programme which includes a virtual tour inside the human body in a capsule and a visit to outer space where a person can visit the planets.

“It has been created with cutting-edge technology powered by high-spec gaming systems and consoles. What we now have in Limerick is the future of gaming.”

As I returned to the street and the real world, Blue Monday came into sight in the form of a forlorn motorist watching his illegally parked car being reeled in to a towaway truck called by the Garda Traffic Corps.