I consider myself a huge VR enthusiast. I own a Rift, it's amazing. I will say that the real value of VR, IMO, is the ability to do theme park-like things (and beyond) in the comfort of your own home. Using VR in place of actual physical attractions at an actual theme park really defeats the point. VR is a great alternative when you can't have the real thing...
In the case of coasters with VR -- sure, that's cool if it's done well. But in that case, the attraction can still stand alone and hold its own WITHOUT the VR.
VR technology -- both hardware and software -- are also moving far too fast right now for it to be a viable option for a full attraction. Whatever they cook up now will be out of date by the time it's open for the public to enjoy. The biggest complaint with the Ghost Train attraction at Thorpe is that they have a beautiful train set and then you put the Vive headset on and are treated to a grainy, primitive graphical experience that just completely pulls you out of it. Imagine how much worse it will seem in a year or two when the novelty of first-time VR use had worn off for a lot of people.
The best opportunity for VR within Disney would be a temporary attraction at Innoventions ala Sum of All Thrills, not a full Tomorrowland attraction. Me personally? I'd rather see them put some $$$ into developing unique attractions (or home versions of existing ones) for the home that I can pay a small fee for on the Oculus/Steam/PSVR store. Now that would be pretty cool!
Here's the thing though- as fast as VR technology is moving, the actual goggles component would one be one, rather small part of the ride, as it's rumored to be built.
If they do what I think they're going to do with the space we're going to have:
1. Video-based preshow elements that explain the concept of Sugar Rush, the characters, and how to board the simulators and wear the goggles
2. Audio-based components both for the preshow, the VR simulator itself, and the entrance/boarding announcments
3. The ride hardware itself, which would, as it's rumored, consist of:
a.) a motion base kart simulator with pedals and a steering wheel
b.) a VR headset, probably tethered to a ceiling rig
and
4. Software to run a VR kart-racing game
Add in possible rumors of a picture-taking element to the preshow so that Disney can map everone's face onto the riders for both in-simulation viewing a purchasable video of the rider (and his/her family) through My Magic Plus.
Now of these components, only the ride software and the possibly the headsets themselves would ever need to change. VR headset technology is actually plateaueing right now because anything the least bit economical is tied to smartphone tech in terms of processor strength and screen resolution. I mean, once you get to 2X 1080p 60fps and sub-microsecond response times for the POV, isn't it good enough? WDI (or whoever the vendor is) could probably get around the on-set processor limitation by having it done server-side and sent to the headsets by tethers (or, God help us, wirelessly) but unless someone just hates money, the headsets themselves are still going to be basically smartphones, which means their screens are tech that's more or less slowing down in advancements and reigned in by weight and heat management concerns.
Long story short, if Disney uses something on par with Galaxy Note 7 based screens inside the sets, I think they'll be par for the course for at least the next 5 years.
Now, it SHOULD be a simple thing for Disney to keep updating the software running the ride simulation program every year or two, but Disney has a an absolutely abysmal record of spending money to upgrade in-park CGI, even when it would be relatively simple (and cheap!) to do so (Mission Space, Midway Mania, EVERYTHING at DisneyQuest, the CGI you see on Buzz Lightyear, etc. etc. etc.)
BUT, assuming that they budgeted enough money to replace the headsets with newer models every 2 years (and I maintain that they're all going to have a 3-month service life anyway) AND budget enough money to improve the resolution of the software running the game every 4 or so, this ride could be enjoyable for 15 years or more.
Heck, they could so something really interesting and intentionally make the "Sugar Rush" world in the game appear 32-bit, and kind of low-fi as it is. Then, it would age gracefully be definition!
"Sugar Rush" is supposed to appear 32-bit, right? As a parody of the golden age of Kart Racers?
