Harford’s sheriff’s office uses a VR simulator for use-of-force training. Here’s what happened when a reporter took the course.

The training system — made by VirTra, an Arizona company — looks like a walled-off stage connected to a computer. Five walls encircle about 300 degrees of the raised platform and can be used to project onto one screen at a time or construct a panoramic view of places officers may find themselves responding to a call. When the system engages, its screens light up, the room’s lights dim and a blue-painted Glock 22 is passed to the trainee, or, in this case, me.