The trailer shows the moment workers inside feel the plane hit the towers

A highly controversial virtual reality simulator is due to be released which allows gamers to live out the horrific final moments of the devastating 9/11 terror attacks which left nearly 3,000 people dead.

Titled '8:46' after the exact time the first hijacked plane was flown into the North Tower, the shocking 'game' has been slammed by social media users as deeply inappropriate and 'sick'.

Gamers play an officer worker, who is trapped inside the World Trade Centre and has to make decisions on what to do next to survive.

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The video shows how the character react to the shake of the building from the impact of the plane

Shocking: Gamers play an officer worker who is working inside the building when the hijacked plane strikes the North Tower

A short trailer for the game opens with the player inside an office when a co-worker receives a phone call.

Shortly after taking the call, the office worker calls the player over and they exchange a file just before the plane hits the tower.

In the background, the sound of a falling aeroplane can be heard and an awful crashing noise. The video shows how the character react to the shake of the building from the impact of the plane.

Screams can be heard and the lights go out as the game tries to show what the conditions were like for the people inside the building.

The player follows a character across the office, where they receive a torch from a security guard character.

Questioned: Social media users have already questioned the appropriateness and need for the 9/11 simulator

Terrifying: The simulator trailer shows an officer worker using a torch after the power was cut inside

It is unclear how graphic the full simulator will be but the attention to detail has left some people feeling uneasy with the game.

One social media user, known only as Icy/gx4 wrote: 'You shouldn't need a 9/11simulator to be able to empathize with anyone who died as a result of 9/11'.

Other commenters described the virtual reality experience as 'just sick.' 'Why on earth would you want to know what it feels like to be a victim of a terror attack? another user wrote on Twitter.

The creators said that it was 'based on countless hours of research' and was designed 'to try to properly recreate the atmosphere and dynamics within the top floors of the towers'

Unusual: The game is viewed through the perspective of an office worker inside the building

Despite the criticism, the simulator's creators said: '08:46 is a narrative driven experience designed for virtual reality, which makes you embody an office worker in the North Tower of the World Trade Center during the 9/11 events, emphasizing the victims’ point of view.'

The creators said that it was 'based on countless hours of research' and was designed 'to try to properly recreate the atmosphere and dynamics within the top floors of the towers'.

'08:46 was designed and developed as a school project during three months by a six member team,' they said.