A virtual reality game has recreated the final hours of John Jones, the amateur caver who died in 2009 after becoming trapped upside down in Utah's Nutty Putty Cave. The game, Cave Crave, allows users to explore the cave's narrow passages, including the spot where Jones spent 28 hours trapped before succumbing to cardiac arrest and asphyxiation.
Jones, a 26-year-old medical student, entered the cave with a group of 11 people on November 24, 2009. He became wedged in a crevice known as Bob's Push, an L-shaped passage only 18 inches wide and 10 inches high. His head was angled below his feet, causing blood to pool in his brain and putting immense strain on his heart.
Rescuers briefly freed Jones and provided him with food and water using a rope-and-pulley system, but he fell back into the tight space when an anchor in the cave roof failed. Veteran caver Brandon Kowallis, the last person to see Jones alive, described the situation as 'bleak' and noted that Jones was barely conscious and 'talking about seeing angels and demons around him'.
Jones died after approximately 28 hours. His body was left in the cave due to the dangers of retrieval, and the cave was subsequently closed to the public. He was survived by his wife, Emily, who was pregnant at the time; their son was named in his honour.
Developer 3R Games said the VR recreation was based on official records and rescue testimony, and that it avoids 'gamifying the tragedy' by offering a 'respectful and authentic' experience. The game includes a chalk message pointing to Jones's 'final route and resting place'. Players cannot die in the simulation, and their flashlight battery never runs out.
Gamers have expressed mixed feelings about the addition of Nutty Putty to Cave Crave. One wrote: 'Thanks to VR technology, I can now also refuse to go in VR.' Another commented: 'You know that dirt hole someone died in? You can crawl in it [with] VR – that sounds so thrilling.'
