TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwanese textile manufacturer Texray Industrial Co. and Shin Shin Department Store on Monday (May 23) announced a collaboration to establish the first virtual entertainment venue in the country to specialize in fighting games.

Billed as the first metaverse combat training cener, it will incorporate AR/VR-enabled combat simulation that allows participants to engage in scenarios where they feel like using “real” firearms, per CNA.

The 1,200-ping (3,967 square meters) VR training site will inject life into the old department store, which marks its 50th anniversary this year, said Chairman Yu Chih-huang (尤志煌). It will also serve to advance the country’s objective of boosting defense preparedness through honing people’s combat skills, he reckoned.

The arcade will boast games and other entertainment as well as physical training with wearable devices. It will also seek to tap into smart health management technologies as a platform for rehabilitative exercise, according to Texray. It is slated to open in November, wrote Anue.

Adjacent to the Regent Taipei hotel and Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Taipei Nanxi stores, Shin Shin Department Store is best known for housing Showtime Cinemas. The company is 43.16%-owned by the Veterans Affairs Council, a Cabinet-level organ.