Virtual Reality in Video Gaming Then vs Now

Source: Google Image

Virtual Reality
We've been hearing this word quite a lot now, haven't we? What exactly is it? What can we use it for? How beneficial is it anyway and, do we need it?

Virtual Reality has been promised by many technological companies. Very often, and abundantly. "Put on these goggles, and you can go anywhere!" "Put on these glasses, and feel what teleportation is like!"

The first question we're going to tackle is, when exactly did it start and how?

It is considered to have started in the 1950's, but some people have said that it traces back to the late 1860's, long before digital technology was even developed!

There are different ways it started. An artistic example could be taken from playwright Antonin Artaud , who started 360 degree murals that allowed the observer to engage with the artwork.

In the 1920s, Edwin Link made the first flight simulator to train novice pilots.

An interesting and notable fact is the creation of the Sensorama designed by Morton Heilig, an it was very impressive if you would note its creation was in the 1960s.

The player was simulated to be riding a bike in the cityscape, and they could feel the wind, the vibration of a motorcycle seat, and even the smells of the city. However, the Sensorama was doomed because it was very expensive to produce again.

The virtual reality device that might be most familiar to us now is; The Oculus Rift. By putting these on, the players are put into the gaming world, although only through the eye. Other examples include the Wii Remote, the Playstation Move/Eye and the Kinect. These only send the motion of the player to the console.

Gaming industries, especially Sony, are competing against each other to see who can develop the most accurate and immersive Virtual Reality technology. Sony has announced Project Morpheus, which is now dubbed as "the chance sony may have in winning the battle to virtual reality."

Here is a video on the announced Project Morpheus.

The video below shows a gameplay of a virtual reality game, The Deep.

But even so, how good is it when it was announced in the San Fransisco Game Developers' Conference? Here's a video that gives a review of it.

If Sony keeps this up, maybe they will win. But who knows, Sony might just let their guard down because of this new title and another device may catch up. What are your thoughts?

--Nadya