Explore Venus & Lost Giants Safari
Eden project virtual reality experiences
Zubr designed and delivered two exciting Eden Project virtual reality experiences for families. By virtually building the surface of Venus and a virtual reality safari Zubr supported the Eden Project’s education programme and helped their visitors experience the impossible.
Partners
Our inhouse designers and developers created two bespoke VR environments for the Eden Project.
Making family attraction virtual reality
Deep in the heart of Cornwall, the Eden Project visitor centre and global garden hosts thousands of families each year. With an ever-changing programme of horticulture exhibits, arts and culture programmes, community initiatives and education work there’s always something new for visitors to discover. And sometimes, that includes VR for kids!
As an educational charity that celebrates the interconnectivity of nature and highlights humanity’s dependence on plants and the natural world, the Eden Project’s mission is to demonstrate how working with nature benefits all living things.
But how do you show humanity’s impact on the world around us over time in a simple and engaging way? How do you help someone experience something that no longer exists, or let them navigate an environment that is inhospitable for humans? And how do you talk about extinction and environmental issues without becoming too preachy or depressing?
The Eden Project commissioned Zubr to provide entertaining but educational VR experiences which let their visitors uncover links between humanity and nature for themselves.
Using VR to experience the impossible
We created two immersive virtual reality experiences—a VR safari and a journey to explore planet Venus—designed to transport visitors to otherwise inaccessible landscapes.
We wanted to offer people opportunities to understand the co-dependency between humans and nature by navigating virtual spaces which they could never visit in real life.
By creating VR for kids we hoped to give them a once in a lifetime experience which would encourage deeper conversations about the climate and the symbiotic relationships which keep us all alive.
VR is one of the most dynamic new forms of entertainment and this is an experience that people can only have at Eden this summer. Where else will you be able to set foot on the surface of Venus?
Eden Live Programme Manager Kate Francis
VR is one of the most dynamic new forms of entertainment and this is an experience that people can only have at Eden this summer. Where else will you be able to set foot on the surface of Venus?
Eden Live Programme Manager Kate Francis
Part I: Venus Exploration
VR for kids needs to be impactful and fun. It has to offer something they can’s experience anywhere else, so in 2018 we virtually transported Eden Project visitors to Venus.
As the hottest planet in the solar system, complete with toxic clouds of carbon dioxide and nitrogen dioxide and a crushing atmosphere that would squish any human in seconds, Venus is not a welcoming destination despite its similar size and composition to Earth. Venus’ weather forecast includes sulphuric acid rain, wind speeds of 300km an hour and average temperatures of 462 degrees Celsius.
Our Eden Project virtual reality Venus experience involved navigating a 25 metre route that led visitors from ‘basecamp’ across the sweltering surface of the planet to a waiting rocket.
After donning a VR headset, users passed through the sliding doors of basecamp and headed out on the perilous journey, crossing a bridge above an enormous lava flow and stopping to explore caves.
In reality users were zigzagging across a 10x10m custom built space with directional speakers simulating the sounds of bubbling lava and the rumbling rocket. However the experience was so visceral and detailed that Eden Project visitors were completely immersed.
Over 1000 visitors took their first steps on Venus in just one summer, proving just how popular VR for kids is. Our VR exhibit supported the Eden Project’s other space offerings in ‘Expedition Space’, including mini golf on Mercury and sliding down the surface of the moon.
By safely experiencing conditions on Venus in VR visitors could appreciate the necessity to care for the only humanely-hospitable planet: Earth.
Part II: Lost Giants Virtual Reality Safari
The following year, we took things further—recreating four vivid biomes and populating them with giant extinct animals.
Our VR safari showed that immersive experiences for children don’t need to be gamified to fully capture their attention. From the North American plains to the South American deserts, Madagascan scrublands to Eurasian woodlands, each custom-designed habitat featured unique terrain, vegetation, and a dirt track leading to a prehistoric giant: the Irish Elk, Giant Ground Sloth, Giant Armadillo, or Giant Elephant Bird.
These animals, all extinct due to climate change and habitat loss, were brought to life using low-poly 3D models, rigged and animated to inhabit their virtual environments. Their immense size—some as tall as giraffes or as wide as cars—made them unforgettable, sparking curiosity about the delicate balance of ecosystems.
Children explored the safari in custom-built jeeps, complete with bass-powered engine sounds. The room itself became part of the experience, styled with explorer props and jungle-like décor to ease the transition into VR and build anticipation.
Unlike typical solo VR, our networked safari was a shared adventure. Up to six users could ride together, seeing motion-tracked avatars of their companions and enjoying realistic views from their seats. This collective journey encouraged post-experience discussions and helped groups leave more connected than when they arrived.
This is a major development for Eden and we’re proud to be working with Zubr to bring this unique experience and exciting new technology to our visitors.
Eden Live Programme Manager Kate Francis
This is a major development for Eden and we’re proud to be working with Zubr to bring this unique experience and exciting new technology to our visitors.
Eden Live Programme Manager Kate Francis
Making unforgettable memories
Using virtual reality as a tool for education as well as entertainment meant visitors to the Eden Project could visualise lost creatures and unreachable environments firsthand. There’s no better way to understand science than experiencing it for yourself.
Our collaboration was the first time the Eden Project has hosted a fully immersive VR experience. They’d previously shown 360 degree films through VR headsets, we designed these bespoke interactive experiences especially for the Eden Project using technology that had only recently become available.
In stepping out onto the surface of Venus and witnessing the atmospheric challenges of another planet Eden visitors realised the importance of ensuring the Earth remains hospitable, whilst getting up close and personal with giants from the past and exploring rich virtual habitats helped VR safari users celebrate Earth’s biodiversity in an embodied and sensory experience.
Our bold colour palette and sharp contours created memorable and absorbing virtual worlds.
Taking inspiration from theme park rides, we reflected the thoughtful VR design in the visitor journey to prepare visitors for both their VR space mission and VR safari trip and ensure they felt confident and at ease.
Knowing the heavy footfall the Eden Project receives during the holidays, we timed both the Venus Exploration and the Lost Giants Safari to maintain visitor flow whilst ensuring accessibility.
And lucky we did, as the Eden Project received more visitors than any other visitor attraction in Devon or Cornwall in 2019!
Our VR experiences prove the value of virtual reality in education as well as entertainment. Giving your visitors the power to step into another place or time and take control of their learning in an immersive yet social reality encourages a true sense of discovery and collective learning.
Want to talk about ways of using VR in your own work? Get in touch and let us know which virtual world you and your visitors would like to explore.
