They interact with professional actors and face a variety of situations. At the end of the competition, one victor will prevail and will have earned the title "One True Hero."
Contestants from all over America were chosen to make "The Quest", and face challenges both physical and mental. Jim Curry, a student from Little Rock, AR, said, "We are each representing a different kind of fantasy; we've got "Harry Potter," "Lord of the Rings," all these different fan bases."
Bonnie Gordon, a property manager from Lafayette, LA, added, "We literally dropped everything in our lives; no access to the outside world." But once they became a part of this so-called "immersive reality", they were sold! Gordon praised the production values of the show, including sets and costumes. "You've read about it in books," she said. "They made it happen. It was real."
Ashley Guerrero, a horse trainer from Murrieta, CA, agreed. "It was like all the stories you had been telling yourself, all the things you had been creating in your mind since you were little. That time, you know, you jump off your bed with the cape to land on the floor... it was just unbelievable."
Patrick Higgins, a math teacher from Joliet, IL, summed it up this way: "It was virtual reality on steroids. That's the best way I can describe it."
"The Quest"debuts Thursday night at 8 p.m. on ABC.