AR Go-Karts Have Arrived, And We’re Here For It
BattleKart’s immersive go-kart experience brings games similar to like Mario Kart & Rocket League to life in the real world.
AR-powered racing games appear to be a growing trend. Last year we covered Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, a multiplayer thrill ride coming to Universal Studios Hollywood powered by AR headsets. Prior to that, we talked about Chaos Karts, another in-person experience that has visitors driving real go-karts across a high-tech race track.
BattleKart is another in-person multiplayer attraction that uses a combination of augmented reality (AR) technology and electric go-karts to immerse drivers in a variety of interactive experiences similar to popular games such as Mario Kart, Rocket League, and the classic game of Snake.
Instead of a conventional race track, BattleKart uses a high-tech screen capable of projecting different circuits and game modes in real-time. This includes everything from a virtual soccer ball to various obstacles designed to slow you down.
The platform features 5 unique games at the moment, each of which has drivers interacting with different virtual elements as well as each other:
BattleRace – Similar to Mario Kart, this kart-based racing game has you competing against other drivers to complete the most laps within a set time limit. Along the way, you can drive over special boxes to unlock additional bonuses like speed bursts. BattleColor – Drivers are split into teams and tasked with coloring the track with their assigned color. The first team to color 10 successive squares on the fully-gridded track wins.
BattleSnake – Inspired by the classic game of Snake, drivers collect colored balls scattered throughout the track to grow their ‘snake’ behind their kart while avoiding others. There are also speed bursts and missiles you can use to outplay your opponents. BattleFoot 2.0 – 2 teams go head-to-head in a next-gen soccer game similar to Rocket League. Drivers use their karts to ‘kick’ a virtual soccer ball into the opposing teams next. The team with the most goals by the end of the match wins.BattleVirus – A cooperative game mode in which drivers team up to battle a killer virus capable of infecting and immobilizing your go-kart.
BattleKart is open to the public now at select locations in Belgium, France, and Germany. You can find more information over at battlekart.com. The website also features a unique live stream experience that lets you follow along with races happening live around the world.
Here’s hoping we begin to see more of these next-gen racing experiences make their way to the US in the coming years.
Image Credit: BattleKart
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