A few thoughts on seeing immersive experiences in China

Top story: A few thoughts on seeing immersive experiences in China (see below)

Research: Researchers found that immersive VR can improve movement execution in Parkinson’s rehabilitation for certain exercises but therapist-led training remains more effective for tasks such as balance, highlighting the importance of task-specific design in VR interventions.

Other news: The National Museum of the United States Army has launched “American Revolution: The Augmented Exhibition,” using tablet-based augmented reality to animate Revolutionary War scenes with interactive 360-degree historical environments (more below)

Caveat: What I’m about to say has roughly the same (limited) factal backing as a politician giving a speech. I won’t be using numbers, and it’s based entirely on my experience moving through several major cities in China, alongside a general gut feeling shaped by those travels. Please take this with, like, five buckets of salt.

First, the shopping malls. I can’t overstate how strongly entertainment is woven into the mall experience in China. The one I visited in Beijing had a mini reptile exhibition placed right in the middle of the mall, surrounded by shops. While there are malls in the UK and the US that include entertainment features, I haven’t seen anything on the same scale or level of integration as what I experienced in China. Across these spaces, there are immersive, arcade-like experiences and interactive installations embedded throughout. It made me wonder whether there might be a gap in the UK market for expanding similar experiential elements into high streets and retail centres, assuming they can be delivered at a viable cost. (I know, it’s not a deeply researched conclusion, but it left me thinking about possible opportunities for growth in more experience-led retail environments — there is room for expansion).

Second, experiences away from home. I got the impression that in China there is a stronger culture of spending evenings outside the home, whether that’s walking, gathering in public spaces, eating out, or simply socialising on the streets. Of course, it’s impossible to summarise the habits of over a billion people, but my overall sense was that many of the most valued experiences feel more outward-facing and embedded in the local environment, rather than centred on the home. So I wonder whether immersive experiences that exist out in public space, rather than primarily home-based entertainment, might represent a more durable market in some contexts. Less shooting goons at home, and more using immersive tech to understand the local environment/entertainment. For example, installations or interactive experiences placed in street corners, nightlife districts, or areas where people naturally gather to eat and drink could feel more aligned with that kind of social rhythm.

Coventry University is hosting Creative Tech Fest 2026 at its Bugatti Trust Hyperstudio, showcasing student and industry XR, games, and digital media work alongside free public workshops and XR experiences in collaboration with Deliaphonic.

The National Museum of the United States Army has launched “American Revolution: The Augmented Exhibition,” using tablet-based augmented reality to animate Revolutionary War scenes with interactive 360-degree historical environments.

Resolution Games has launched Spatial Ops: Campaign Edition on Apple Vision Pro, marking one of the platform’s first full-featured shooter experiences and its sixth title on the device.

Shaun the Sheep: Fun with the Flock augmented reality trail is launching at Gunwharf Quays in May, allowing families to complete interactive character-led challenges and view 3D animations across a mapped waterfront experience.

Vstars is collaborating with The City of Liverpool College to develop a virtual reality dance game, with students contributing motion capture performance and programming as part of a cross-disciplinary training initiative.

WWE has introduced a fully virtual studio for its Raw Pre-Show on the WWE Network, using advanced virtual production technology to create a digitally rendered broadcast environment.