We try out a UK first gaming-karting crossover in Sittingbourne

The new BattleKart arena is a fully-electric racing experience that relies on augmented reality create the space you race in.

Transcript

00:00Start your engines, or press play to start.

00:04This UK-first karting experience in Sittingbourne takes drivers into a whole new world.

00:10With the help of scores of projectors lined along the ceiling of this farmyard warehouse,

00:15drivers can race, shoot, score and bump against each other on virtually any track configuration.

00:22I'm here at Sittingbourne's new Battle Karts, ready to take on the new virtual track behind me.

00:27But I'm not alone. We might not be Mercedes or McLaren, but the KMTV Racing Team is ready to give it our best shot.

00:33What do we think, guys?

00:34Yeah, we got it.

00:35Totally got it.

00:37Stepping into our karts, we didn't really know what to expect,

00:40but after a few laps of slipping and sliding around the bends,

00:43it wasn't long before we were turning on each other to get ahead.

00:50From your basic race as fast as you can around the track,

00:53to a life-sized version of the classic game Snake,

00:56the six different game modes are as fun as they are diverse.

01:00People do ask as well, like, what the speed limit is,

01:03and because of, obviously, there isn't exactly a speed limit,

01:06but you can't crash, it's anti-collision, you're able to put your foot down and go fast,

01:11but if you ever come off the track, the computer is generating, able to, like, slow you down.

01:17After our go at racing, and the scoreboard shaping up in favour of some more than others,

01:22it was time to check in with my team.

01:24First of all, I want to say, beginner's luck. Next time, I'm going to smash you.

01:27And what does that mean for you, then?

01:28It's only going to come first next time, that's what's going to happen.

01:30No, it felt really good. It was good fun. It was good fun out there.

01:33And it goes a lot faster than I thought it would.

01:34I felt like I was in a real-life video game.

01:36I couldn't quite grasp the Snake game, that I was pretty rubbish at,

01:40but the ball, when you had to get the football, it felt like Rocket League,

01:43but I did enjoy the solo games too, because I beat you both three times in a row.

01:48The football one was good, but the first one was my favourite.

01:50When we went around as karts, going around the track,

01:53picking up those little token things on the ground, it was good fun.

01:56And of course, it wasn't home time without a trip to the podium.

02:00Bartholomew Hall with the KMTV Racing Team in Sittingbourne.