Virtually perfect: The past, present, and future of VR

Virtual reality is currently the hot new thing in the world of gaming. Facebook’s Oculus Rift and Sony’s Project Morpheus headsets consistently make headlines, and it’s well-known that Valve is actively developing its own VR implementation. If these technology giants actually execute on the promise of “VR that doesn’t suck,” virtual reality has the potential to invigorate the industry like nothing else before. However, the Rift and Morpheus have decades of VR failure to fight against. Even if the finished products are solid, can they convince the average consumer that virtual reality is worth the investment?

A truly compelling VR solution has been a long time coming, and we’ve seen countless attempts in the past. The first real efforts to produce a virtual reality were made in the middle of the 20th century, and there have been far too many prototypes and failed products to cover in a single article. Instead, I’ll be focusing on the more recent history of virtual reality, and how it transitioned from a crazy sci-fi concept to a tangible household item that can take us anywhere we want to go.

Nintendo Virtual Boy

When I first saw the Oculus Rift Kickstarter project in August of 2012, I immediately thought back to the mid-90s when Nintendo released the Virtual Boy. Designed by Gunpei Yokoi (creator of the Game Boy), this red monstrosity wasn’t quite a home console, but it wasn’t portable either. This oddball device only displayed monochromatic red images, supported a mere 14 titles in North America, and was abandoned less than a year after its initial launch.

The high asking price and strange hardware configuration surely contributed to the Virtual Boy’s failure, but ultimately it came down to the disappointing tech. Sure, it could produce 3D images, but the result looked markedly worse than existing SNES titles. The Virtual Boy also needed to be used sitting awkwardly still at a table, so extended play was completely impractical. No head-tracking here! The mass-production of the Virtual Boy was certainly a large step forward in consumer VR, but the lackluster implementation left a bad taste in everyone’s mouth, and led to the ousting of Yokoi from Nintendo.

Image credit: Trypode

Head-mounted displays of the ’90s and ’00s

Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, a number of different head-mounted displays (HMDs) were released to little fanfare by consumers. I-O Display Systems had its obnoxiously-named “i-Glasses,” VictorMaxx had a number of HMDs with names like “Stuntmaster” and “CyberMaxx,” and Forte Technologies had its “VFX” line. By and large, these HMDs were complete failures. The underlying tech just wasn’t good enough yet, and the large price tags prevented even the slightest bit of traction from forming.
Among these headsets, the resolution and overall performance were usually underwhelming, but the worst part was how half-hearted so many implementations were. Some models didn’t feature motion tracking, and others lacked a stereoscopic 3D display. Given the technological restraints of the era, it’s easy to see why these VR headsets weren’t quite right. Even so, these companies were still selling helmets for hundreds of dollars a pop, so let’s not let them off the hook completely. Anyone snookered into buying one of these devices was most certainly disappointed in the modest hardware and severe lack of content.

TrackIR

Unlike the HMDs, TrackIR does one thing, and it does it well. This little sensor sits on top of your monitor, tracks the movement of your head, and translates that motion data into camera movements in first-person games. In very complex games like flight simulators, it’s important that the camera quickly moves exactly where the player needs to look, so the TrackIR’s head-tracking is a perfect fit.


TrackIR has been around for well over a decade now, and it has seen six major revisions in that time. While it’s been criticized for its high asking price in the past, the most recent model is available for only $150. It’s certainly not as impressive or complete as the Rift or Morpheus, but it’s a must-have for serious simulation fans.

Motion controls

When the Wii’s motion controls were announced, many pundits scoffed at the idea. As it turns out, the quirky use of accelerometers and IR triangulation was a hit. The Wii became one of the biggest selling consoles in history, and it inspired other companies to develop their own motion controls. The PlayStation Move and Kinect were both responses to the success of the Wii, and continue to inform the latest generation of game consoles.



While motion controls certainly don’t offer a complete VR experience, they do offer a lot of the same benefits when implemented properly. Maneuvering our bodies and limbs in a 3D space is something we’ve evolved to be quite good at, so harnessing intuitive motions helps add to the immersion. The less conscious thinking you have to do about controlling a game, the easier it is to become immersed completely in the virtual world. If you want the complete VR package, motion controls are a must.

Oculus Rift

For much of the past two years, the Oculus Rift has been trumpeted as the savior of virtual reality. The first development kit was a hit among game developers and VR enthusiasts, and the second iteration is even better. It supports full 1080p (960×1080 per eye), has a 100-degree field of vision, and refresh rate of 75Hz. Better yet, it combines a built-in gyroscope, accelerometer, and magnetometer inside the helmet with a position-tracking camera to capture as much motion data as possible. All of that works together to make a very compelling product, and anyone can order one for $350.



With the recent acquisition by Facebook, the future of the Rift is up in the air. While Valve and other developers seemed very positive about the Oculus Rift when it was a fun indie project, ownership by a cut-throat megacorp like Facebook could certainly sour developer relations. If I had to guess, the Facebook acquisition will spur even more competition in the market. Nobody wants to live in a dystopia where Facebook rules the realm of VR gaming, so expect even more Rift competitors to pop up in the next year.

Project Morpheus

Speaking of competition, let’s take a look at Sony’s Project Morpheus. This HMD prototype was publicly unveiled at the Game Developers Conference earlier this year, and the reaction was very positive. This prototype is roughly on par with the second Rift development kit — offering a 1080p display, a 90-degree field of view, accelerometers, gyroscopes, and positional tracking with the PlayStation Camera.



There’s no telling when this device will hit store shelves, nor can we guess the final MSRP. All we know at this point is that Sony believes virtual reality is important to the future of the PlayStation, and it has the technical chops to deliver an experience comparable to the Oculus Rift. Let’s just hope that this public preview of Project Morpheus puts pressure on Microsoft and Valve to innovate in this space as well.

Military and industrial VR

Of course, video games aren’t the be-all and end-all for virtual reality. The uses are nigh-on endless, really. The military can use VR to safely train soldiers, pilots can use VR to learn to fly, and surgeons can use VR to practice precise incisions. In fact, all of those professions already use VR technology for training purposes, so your life may have already been saved thanks to VR training.
As the tech becomes better and cheaper, even more industries will benefit from VR training. Imagine letting your 16-year-old kid log hundreds of hours behind the virtual wheel before she gets on the road. Think about learning a trade from the comfort of your own home. Virtual reality has the potential to be an amazing tool in every industry — even sex work.

The long march to perfection

We’re still a long way away from the virtual reality from science fiction, but these last few years have given me hope that something along the lines of The Matrix is within our grasp. When you look at motion controls like the PlayStation Move, head mounted displays like the Rift, and the advances we’re making in neuroscience, real virtual reality actually seems plausible.
Sure, it’d be incredibly fun to play Doom 4 with an HMD and motion controls, but that’s small potatoes. Imagine revisiting historical events in the first person. Consider what it would be like to skydive into the grand canyon without any risk of injury. The possibilities are endless, and products like the Rift are just the beginning