Virtual Reality Center Has Visions of Opening Near Fashion Island

Visions of Reality, a South San Francisco start-up company, said Wednesday it is negotiating with Fashion Island to build a virtual reality entertainment center in the vicinity of the Newport Beach mall.

Patrons would be able to experience games based on a three-dimensional computer graphics technology--dubbed virtual reality for its simulation of an artificial world--in a family entertainment center akin to an amusement park.

The center would charge $8 to $10 a ride for 10 minutes in any of its 36 pods. In the games, the rider wears a helmet that covers the eyes and displays three-dimensional scenes wherever the rider turns his or her head.

Ken Stone, project administrator for Visions of Reality, said the company hopes to open the center by year’s end.