Unique immersive experience located in the heart of Canterbury
Virtual & Retro started in August 2021, by five locals wanting to create a unique entertainment experience in Ashburton. They looked around Mid-Canterbury and noticed a gap. It was easy to find a place to buy things or grab a quick bite, but hard to find a modern, indoor space where local teams, friends, and families could genuinely connect, collaborate, and share a massive laugh together without driving all the way to Christchurch.
In February 2025 Virtual & Retro went under new ownership, with Adi, current owner and an Ashburton resident for the past decade, aiming to make it a central Ashburton community hub where you can experience a collaborative escape room with your team, play a casual tabletop, board game or Magic the Gathering game with friends, or simply sit comfortably with a coffee while watching your team or kids interact on the big screens. In June 2025 we moved to our current location providing a more spacious, modern and bright welcoming environment.
Our goal is to make sure you are in full control – all of the content is able to be easily selected by our customers from our VR menu system (giving you control of what you want to play, and for how long) or for the escape rooms pre-selected on-site. We also welcome spectators, with comfortable seating, and plenty of screens so even if you don’t want to try VR, you can see what’s happening and encourage your friends and family in VR.
Today, Virtual & Retro is proudly 100% locally owned and operated right on Havelock Street, in the centre of town, across the street from the public library, just off State Highway 1. We aren’t a dark, isolating arcade; we are a certified safe space and a proud Hāpai Access card partner. Whether we are hosting a team of 15 from a local business on a Friday afternoon or saving a busy parent’s sanity during the school holidays, our mission remains the same: holding the hands of first-timers, breaking the device routine, and building stronger local connections.
Our Diverse Offerings
At Virtual & Retro, we bring to you a plethora of entertainment options in 160 square meters venue, whether its over 30 different VR Escape Rooms tailored to delight gamers across all age groups, wide range of VR experiences, boasting over 50 games, the Retro gaming consoles, racing simulators or dedicated Esports PCs with 32” screens high-performance keyboards and mice.
And it’s beyond just entertainment – our VR experiences provide an immersive educational experience, from Google Earth, through space exploration to climbing Mt Everest. Our VR escape rooms are a unique team-building experience, with members of the team working together to solve puzzles.
Whether you’re a solo adventurer or part of a group seeking a thrilling challenge or looking to organise a work function for your employees/teammates, our venue promises an experience like no other.
