Red Bull’s MR Game – Arena Defender

Red Bull tasked us with the challenge of developing an innovative and immersive mixed reality (MR) experience that actively engages fans during a match at the brand new SAP Garden Stadium. we transforms the stadium into an exciting playing field, where four MR players on the ice interact with up to 10,000 fans, bringing the fans directly into the action in an entirely new way.

 

through a custom web app, fans can design their own virtual objects, choosing shape, color, and initials, and send them into the game. these objects first navigate a „Pachinko“ board displayed on the video cube, where obstacles and power-ups affect their movement. once they pass through a portal, they fly onto the ice, challenging the MR players. the MR players, equipped with Meta Quest 3 headsets, defend the ice using shields to block incoming objects, all while navigating a virtual world. the game’s actions are shown on the large video cube, and the movements of the virtual objects are synchronized between the players‘ MR glasses and the projections on the ice.

 

we’ve integrated gamification elements that allow fans to compete against the players. by successfully guiding their objects through the Pachinko board and hitting the target, fans can earn loyalty points and win prizes. this creates a competitive and engaging environment where the fans’ actions directly impact the game.

 

to bring this experience to life, we combined a range of advanced technologies. the Meta Quest 3 headsets powered the MR gameplay, while Stage Precision’s SP software coordinated all system components. SP communicates with an AWS server, enabling fans to design their game objects via the Red Bull app. additionally, the Unreal Engine 5 creates the virtual game world, syncing the MR experiences with projections on the ice and the video cube. the project also leverages the ioversal Vertex media server for the dynamic projections and the grandMA3 lighting console to control the stadium’s lighting and sound effects, enhancing the atmosphere.