Free-roam multiplayer VR provider Zero Latency has announced multiple new arenas, in Greater Boston, Massachusetts, and in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The Australian VR start-up – which already has arenas in Australia, Japan and Spain, as well as Orlando, Florida and two Kalahari resorts locations, in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, and Pocono Mountains, Pennsylvania – has signed a deal with MindTrek to open the new venues in 2017.

Zero Latency developed its own patent-pending motion-tracking technology, which works with up to 16 participants, allowing each to move freely around the space in the game, monitor other players and control their own “weapon”.

With “dual arenas” opening in Woburn and Marlborough, Massachusettes, and one in Philadelphia, the upcoming locations will be the biggest yet, and can be combined into single 4,000sq ft (371sq m) gaming landscapes for an even bigger gaming experience. When used separately, the operator has the flexibility of being able to offer different experiences simultaneously.

MindTrek was recently started by three US entrepreneurs, Brad Wurtz, David Rzepski and David O’Connor. It’s expected more VR locations will open in 2018.

According to Zero Latency, these will be the only dual-arena facilities in the world and the largest free roam VR gaming facilities in the US.

“Zero Latency’s extraordinarily flexible approach to virtual reality gaming will give us the chance to instantly switch between games, change the length of games, or combine arenas for twice the play space throughout the day,” said MindTrek co-founder Brad Wurtz. “It’s the type of model that attracts repeat business and allows us to scale to demand on an hour-by-hour basis, which is attractive to us as operators.”

To read our recent interview with Zero Latency CEO Tim Ruse, see the Q1 17 edition of Attractions Management, or click here.