Love is not blind, but it is certainly virtual as ¡Glitch! Gaming Lounge in Airdrie holds it couples-centric “Love is Blind VR” event this Valentine’s Day.
“It’s kind of like our spin on blind dating,” explained ¡Glitch! Gaming’s co-owner and self-professed “director of awesomeness” Tracy Wright.
Wright said the idea stemmed from her own experiences visiting virtual reality (VR) arcades on dates. She said how someone reacts to VR is a good indicator of a person’s character, and thus, an ideal activity for a first date.
“It’s very telling, right? You can see little hints of people when they are in VR,” she said. “I found it to be good when it came to dating to weed out certain types of people.”
The Love is Blind VR event will include special games for couples and groups at its 12 VR stations, in addition to board games, darts, a free drink, an appetizer, and a special interactive VR game in its VIP rooms.
Wright said the event is fun way for adults to “play” while perhaps getting to know each other in a dating scenario, rather than the typical first date of meeting for coffee or drinks.
“Adults don’t play enough,” Wright said. “We’re hoping we can get a lot of adults in to try it and see what sparks are there … We are hoping for it to be that sociable get-together, trying not to have the stigma of a blind date. It’s just kind of come-and-have-fun, and see how it goes.”
According to Wright, there are not a lot of easy-going, fun events for Valentine’s Day in Airdrie, and Love is Blind VR is intended to bring in couples to simply hang out a little and get to know each other without all the high pressure elements they might experience in traditional dating.
“If you hit it off with someone, or even just makes friends with other people that are there – it’s that social piece as well,” she said.
Participants in Love is Blind VR will have special access to games and food at ¡Glitch! on Feb. 14, but the venue’s regular offerings will still be open to the general public, including its dining area and kitchen.
Tickets for the Love is Blind VR night are available through the ¡Glitch! Gaming website and all its social media accounts. Tickets are $30 each.
