It's just like the real thing but you can stay at home
by Volvo Ocean Race media 2 Sep 2014 14:34 BST
2 September 2014
Virtual Regatta and the Volvo Ocean Race are working with Save the Albatross Campaign © Ainhoa Sanchez / Volvo Ocean Race
Now it's double the fun
Two giants of ocean racing – one virtual and one very much reality – have joined forces to provide gamers with a double treat for the next nine months.
The Volvo Ocean Race is the sailing's leading round-the-world crewed event and Virtual Regatta boasts the world's largest sailing gaming community with peaks of more than one million players.
Together they are launching two games for the first time for the forthcoming Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15 that will allow both serious gamers and casual players the chance to immerse themselves in the real action at sea.
So what's in store?
Virtual Regatta Offshore allows players to participate in all nine legs of the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15, with your virtual boat. Your boat sails 24h a day/ seven days a week. It's up to the player to select the best heading and sails for the conditions. The game is available on all web platforms or from the Virtual Regatta apps (Android and IOS).
A 3D arcade-style game will allow players to get to know the Volvo Ocean 65, the new one-design boat that is being used by all teams. The objective of the game is to complete a short, technical course – as fast as possible. The game will be made available to the public in the stopover villages of the Volvo Ocean Race but it will also be online and on mobile applications (Android and IOS).
Follow the action online with Sébastien
For the nine months of the 38,739-nautical mile Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15, an online news programme highlighting the virtual race entitled "Virtual Regatta News" will be hosted by the popular French presenter Sébastien Destremau and co-produced by Cypok Media. The programme will feature news related to the virtual competition: interviews with players, advice and reports about the actual race.
Kicking off in September – and all in a great cause
Virtual Regatta and the Volvo Ocean Race are working with Save the Albatross Campaign to bring you the Prologue of the Virtual Volvo Ocean Race. The virtual fleet will depart from the Isle of Wight on September 15, onboard the new Volvo Ocean 65, and arriving in the port of Alicante. All profits from the race will go to the Save The Albatross campaign, helping save these magnificent sea birds. This race is exclusively available on Virtual Regatta and will not count in the final ranking of the Virtual Volvo Ocean Race.
They said it...
"We hope to have hundreds of thousands players from five continents taking part in the Virtual Volvo Ocean Race. The international reach of the Volvo Ocean Race aligns perfectly with our objectives, and we hope to have immense success with this project. This year we have a number of innovations that we hope players and the partners of the Volvo Ocean Race will enjoy. Records are meant to be broken!" - Philippe Guigné, CEO of Virtual Regatta.
"Virtual Regatta and Volvo Ocean Race are the best at what they do and together we make a partnership which we're sure will attract big followings for both our new games. One will be an opportunity for race fans and serious gamers alike to replicate the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15 itself with all the kind of tough tactical choices the sailors themselves have to make at sea. And the other will be an arcade-style game which you can play online in just a few minutes and challenge your friends to see who's best at the helm. I can't wait for the virtual action to start!" – Knut Frostad, CEO of the Volvo Ocean Race.
Save these dates now
September 15 - Departure of the Virtual Volvo Ocean Race Prologue
October 4 - In-port race in Alicante
October 11 - Departure of Leg 1 from Alicante to Cape Town
The Save the Albatross campaign is promoted by RSPB.