Image courtesy Fractal Fantasy / Zora Jones
Fractal Fantasy, the label and creative collective headed by producers Sinjin Hawke & Zora Jones have launched their new online interactive club simulator. The audio-visual platform includes a soundtrack that features original music from Hawke, Xzavier Stone, Zubotnik, Martyn Bootyspoonand and Jones.
The platform gives users the chance to engage in a club experience from home by taking the form of a metallic, futuristic avatar to explore the single room space. The space includes a kitted DJ booth, projection mapping, lockers, a vending machine and original artwork from artists Nicolas Sassoon and øøøø. There is also a game-like element to the simulation. Users can access the club from anywhere in the world via a link and must give themselves a username upon entry. In the club, users must chat, dance and catch ‘mushrooms’ in order to gain points. The first user to gain 1000 points during the night wins, although it is unclear if there is a reward involved. The club has a capacity of 100 players.
The simulator follows on from Fractal Fantasy’s Virtua project which was unveiled last year. Virtua was a 360-degree 3D rendered nightclub space that repurposed a model for the ‘ultimate community space.’ A playlist was released alongside the render to give viewers a more rounded experience. The simulator takes much of Virtua’s concept and puts it into action by allowing users to interact with one another and the space, much like dancing with strangers in an actual club.
Fractal Fantasy also promises that the simulator will be able to host virtual events and live performances in the future. Since lockdown, creatives have been hard at work reimagining the culture of clubbing to adapt to the times. This has seen revolutionary projects such as Club Quarantine utilise online technology and video streaming services such as Zoom and Twitch in new and exciting ways. Fractal Fantasy’s simulator is another step forward for the cyberspace future of nightlife.
The fully virtual nightclub ‘metaverse’ launched on July 21, and is available to access 24/7. Check it out here.
