Visit Chernobyl in virtual reality on PlayStation VR

A safe way to see Chernobyl.
By
Kellen Beck
 on 
Visit Chernobyl in virtual reality on PlayStation VR
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Sergey Dolzhenko/Epa/REX/Shutterstock (7944639h) A General View Shows the Amusement Park of the Deserted City of Pripyat Near the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Chernobyl Ukraine 11 April 2016 the Explosion of Unit 4 of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Early Hours of 26 April 1986 is Still Regarded As the Biggest Accident in the History of Nuclear Power Generation an Estimated 47 000 People of the City of Pripyat Were Evacuated After the Explosion in 1986 Ukrainians Will Mark the 30 Anniversary of Chernobyl's Tragedy on 26 April 2016 Ukraine Chernobyl Ukraine Chernobyl Nuclear Accident - Apr 2016 Credit: Sergey Dolzhenko/Epa/REX/Shutterstock

If you've always wanted to visit the abandoned location of the Chernobyl disaster, you'll be able to do that from the safety of your home soon with PlayStation VR.

The Chernobyl VR Project is coming to PS VR "in the near future," according to a PlayStation Blog post, sending people into the abandoned area of land around the site of the Chernobyl disaster.

In 1986, there was a disaster at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant near Pripyat, Ukraine, resulting in more than 30 deaths and sending radiation into the air. The area was evacuated and has been largely abandoned by humans ever since.

The Chernobyl VR Project is an "interactive journey" to the abandoned area of Ukraine, allowing players to experience the surreal scene that has gone largely untouched since the '80s.

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Here's a glimpse of the game, which is already available on Samsung Gear VR, HTC Vive and Oculus Rift.

The game takes a tour through the nuclear power plant, the iconic amusement park, a school, a hospital, and more.

"The Chernobyl exclusion zone, filled with a vast number of abandoned buildings, offers stories at every turn," developer Dawid Biegun said in the blog post. "You can spot everyday objects left behind by the populace during the evacuation, as they were told they’d return in a few days. 30 years later we came across rooms that seemed frozen in time, untouched since they were originally vacated."

While capturing footage for the project, the developers carried a Geiger counter to make sure they didn't step into radiated areas. They saw some of the structures falling apart while they were there, which further instilled their desire to document the area.

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Kellen Beck

Kellen is a science reporter at Mashable, covering space, environmentalism, sustainability, and future tech. Previously, Kellen has covered entertainment, gaming, esports, and consumer tech at Mashable. Follow him on Twitter @Kellenbeck


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