Virtual Reality in Video Games

Individual Project of Averil Santos

2013-25246

     Imagine yourself becoming part of another world, breaking the barriers and walls lifted up by television and monitor screens. Virtual reality has always been a dream for many, and now with the help of the advanced technology developed throughout the years, that dream is now attainable.

      First, what is 'virtual reality?' From the definition of the two words that comprises it, 'virtual' means near while 'reality' is what we experience as human beings therefore the term 'virtual reality' is basically means 'near-reality.' Technically, virtual reality is the term used to describe a three-dimensional, computer generated environment which can be explored and interacted with by a person. That person becomes part of this virtual world or is immersed within this environment and whilst there, is able to manipulate objects or perform a series of actions.* The virtual world mentioned is an environment that can simulate physical presence in real or fictional places. How do you do that? You appear as an avatar in the virtual world:a virtual representation of yourself.

      As the concept of 'virtual reality' gains the spotlight because of films such as The Matrix, Tron and Avatar, the need for the gaming industry to catch up with this trend began to surface. In 1962, Morton Heilig unveiled the Sensorama. It was a large box featuring a stereoscopic 3D screen that enclosed the viewer's head. The seats tilted and the box unleashed wind and aroma which accompanied the gameplay. In the end, Heilig was forced to stop the development of the Sensorama because it was costly. 

       One of the most well know failures of Nintendo is when they tried to embrace the concept of virtual reality with the help of 'Virtual Boy.' They advertised it as the first video game console that is capable of displaying 'true 3D graphics.'After releasing it to the public, 'Virtual Boy' proved to be a commercial failure. Its high price and uncomfortable gameplay was widely judged by the audience.

        It seems like Nintendo didn't learn their lesson because after Virtual Boy received tons of poor reviews, they moved on to the virtual reality glove. It recreates the motion of a user wearing it on screen but the motion tracking was imprecise thus, producing another commercial failure.

        After failing to commercialized the concept of 'virtual reality' in video games, Nintendo didn't give up. They released the home video game console called 'Wii' in 2006. It features a remote controller which serves as a handheld pointing device which detects movements in three dimensions. The console won several awards and it was highly approved by the market.

       Microsoft countered the rising popularity of Nintendo's Wii with the Kinect. It was a line of motion sensing input devices made especially for Xbox and Windows PCs. It revolves around the concept of webcam and it enables the users to control and interact with their console without the need for a game controller through gestures and spoken commands. These movements are fed back to a computer which then analyses the data and uses this to transform your actions into the appropriate responses on the screen.

      Time goes hand in hand with improvements. If you think today's virtual reality games are pretty damn awesome then imagine what tomorrow's games will look like. Perhaps in the future, they will be able to use the latest innovations in virtual reality technology. 

References:

Anonymous 2009. What is Virtual Reality? Virtual Reality Org. http://www.vrs.org.uk/virtual-reality/what-is-virtual-reality.html.  March 6, 2014. 

Ferreti, Matt 2014.  Is Virtual Reality About To Become Reality?. Fox News.  http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2014/03/03/is-virtual-reality-about-to-become-reality/. March 6, 2014.

StephenGoldMeier 2009. 7 Failed Virtual Reality Technologies. io9. http://io9.com/5280347/7-failed-virtual-reality-technologies. March 6, 2014.