How Far Have We Come With Virtual Reality?

The promise of virtual reality, since the idea first broke ground years ago, remains one shrouded in anticipation. Seen as a method of inducing another state of reality that could previously only happen with the use of hard drugs, VR to many is the safe, preferred medium in which to experience escapism. Born from humble beginnings, the notion of strapping on a headset and transporting oneself to essentially anywhere you desire is a notion that has both intrigued and mystified. While VR has murky beginnings in the military, attempts to carry forth such technology to the mainstream consumer market seemingly hid behind closed doors and played second fiddle through much of its history to the proliferation of the internet. The virtual world, for the moment at least, would have to wait.

Touted as the Father of Virtual Reality, filmmaker Morton Heilig in 1957 created and later patented what many believe to be the first true VR system called the Sensorama. Using 3D motion picture, stereo sound, seat vibrations, scent and flowing wind, the revolutionary machine did well to fabricate brain-bending illusions. While several others following suit, the industry eventually fell dormant for quite some time before a laudable push at the onset of the ‘90s. Arguably the single biggest breakthrough since the Sensorama came at the hands of head-mounted display designer Lucky Palmer and his Oculus Rift. With the announcement that Facebook had purchased Oculus in 2014 for $2 billion USD, tech companies, gaming groups and movie studios began once again to reimagine the future, attempting to revolutionize how the masses consume and experience everyday entertainment. Add the introduction of such devices as the HTC Vive, Samsung Galaxy VR and PlayStation VR, and 2016 can be seen as the year that virtual reality finally became mainstream.

The Evolution of VR

View-Master (1939)

Quite possibly an ill-suited place to start, the humble View-Master as first introduced in 1939, helped transport users to the world’s most revered landmarks through the use of stereoscopic imagery. Each cardboard disc contained tiny color transparencies, which when viewed through the twin-set lenses boosted the optical representation. Fast forward almost 80 years later, Google’s Cardboard headset relaunched the View-Master as a nifty VR update.

Sensorama (1957)

Created in 1957 and patented in 1962, this simulator rendered 3D motion imagery for up to four people. System additions include Morton’s 1960 patented Telesphere Mask, the first ever head-mounted display and the Experience Theater, a motion picture theater complete with a large semi-spherical screen.

Virtuality (1991)

1991 saw the launch of Virtuality VR gaming pods, complete with such games as Pac Man VR and Grid Busters. Running off Commodore Amiga 3000 computers, gamers would don a Visette head-mount apparatus while manipulating a series of controllers in real-time multiplayer action. Displays were a low-res 276 x 37-pixel configuration with a frame rate of just 20fps, and when priced at $65,000 USD per system, Virtuality units failed to move in large quantities.

SEGA VR (1993)

For those old enough to remember, the SEGA VR debut at the 1993 Summer CES was an affair greeted with much expectation. Valued as a $200 USD add-on to the SEGA Genesis console, which included a five-game pack consisting of Virtua Racing, Nuclear Rush, Iron Hammer, Matrix Runner and Outlaw Racing, SEGA’s contribution quickly fell victim to underlying issues that plagued early VR type setups — headaches and motion sickness.

VFX1 Headgear (1995)

In what some consider to be the first true consumer-level VR system, VFX1 Headgear launched in 1995 to the joy of many. Along with the VR helmet, the system included dual LCD displays, motion tracking, stereo speakers and its own motion sensing controller called the Cyberpuck. Moderately successful in terms of sales, games such as Doom, Descent and Quake helped the system overcome its visual shortcomings.

Current VR Trends

Aside from obligatory shooter games and rugged off-road racing competitions, virtual reality has taken substantial strides to bring about more experience-worthy developments, such as the recently unveiled Google Earth VR. Here are a few noteworthy examples that have been making noise as of late:

NBA VR

The NBA announced right at the onset of the current 2016/2017 season that one game would be streamed each week in VR. Working in collaboration with NextVR, live in-game action can be viewed through Samsung and Oculus’s GearVR platform. While NextVR and the NBA have linked up before to bring forth virtual reality basketball, this new arrangement marks the first time any professional sports league has offered a reoccurring live VR broadcast. Proving big news for hoop junkies and general sports aficionados alike, this is as close you can possibly get to court side action other than being there yourself.

Birdly

For all those who have ever dreamt to “fly like a bird,” SOMNIACS have done well to simulate adrenaline-pumping flight-like action with Birdly. Researchers from Zurich University’s Interaction Design Program have devised a flap-bearing apparatus where users take position on a padded board while donning a VR headset/headphone combo. Enjoy spreading your wings over a picturesque city skyline or out over the Swiss Alps as you navigate high up in the clouds. The platform adequately adjusts to your body angle, thanks largely to the hydraulic mechanism, while an accompanying wind machine acclimatizes to your speed.

Boiler Room

Intersecting the worlds of live music events and cutting edge technology in a scheme not yet exploited before, Boiler Room in conjunction with VR specialists Inception, aim to bring forward the very first virtual reality music venue. Through the use of a VR headset, the duo will host immersive beats-filled functions anyone can attend, all without ever having to leave the confines of your couch. Those interested to partake can stream choice DJ sets, minus the sweat and stuffiness such gatherings often entail.

Surfing

While many love the idea of surfing, think surfers are totally rad, and have the sport logged on their bucket list of things to try before they die, we reckon a good portion still have yet to ride the waves. Helping with this dilemma is GoPro with its own Facebook-enabled virtual surf experience. Through the use of a Samsung Galaxy, an immersive 360-degree field of view replicates the curling and crashing of those majestic Tahiti waves.

Cirque de Soleil

With the help of the Cirque du Soleil Kurios app, you can live out your childhood dream of performing on a circus stage — Cirque du Soleil no less. Taking part in the show, “Kurios: Cabinet of Curiosities,” a box of wonders unfolds around the user in an immersive environment. Through the use of Samsung Gear VR, the user acts out as one of the “curiosities” while surrounded and gawked at by other members of the production.

Issues with VR

The matter of motion sickness has historically plagued the technology, with some questioning if such a hurdle can effectively be addressed. “The experience can cause nausea, eyestrain and headaches. Headset makers don’t recommend their devices for children. Samsung and Oculus urge adults to take at least 10-minute breaks every half-hour, and they warn against driving, riding a bike or operating machinery if the user feels odd after a session.” As was reported in the Wall Street Journal. While tech companies work around the clock in attempts to tackle the issue at hand, a much more serious concern of permanent harm lingers on in the minds of many keeping tabs on its progression. Some have even come forward suggesting VR headsets can cause a spectrum of temporary and/or permanent neurologic deficits.

Personal isolation is another issue that continues to perturb those both inside and outside of the virtual reality arena. With the advent of the World Wide Web, portable tech devices and social media streaming, the struggle individuals face in keeping one with the physical world is a real and ever present truth. Would strapping on a headset further close those off from society, even more so than keeping fixated on their smartphone screen? “There could be a world where VR replaces most real-world interactions. What will happen is for many low-value interactions, VR will replace a lot of those.” Ocular Rift’s Palmer Luckey was quoted saying.

The Future of Virtual Reality

Although the VR landscape has grown leaps and bounds since the first prototypes debuted decades ago, it however, remains clear to many that virtual reality still presides in its formative years. One such area of interest that has long preoccupied researchers is the notion of increased physicality. “The next evolution of VR would be where you participate physically in that VR world and not just sitting down; if you’re a quarterback, you actually get to throw a football, and you can interface with the team. So that kind of stuff, it’s there, it’s going to happen,” described Nelson Gonzalez, Alienware’s co-founder and former CEO in speaking with the Times.

Moreover, to better coincide with these touch control enhancements, many would like to see some past concepts further refined, namely, the elevated employment of our other senses as earlier attempted by the Sensorama in addressing matters of scent, vibrations and wind, etc. While VR headsets cater to visual and audio stimulation, tech companies face the current dilemma of attempting to integrate smell, taste, body temp fluctuations, etc. With a more well-rounded experience, one that dials into all sensory functions, we can surely better explore the relationship between what is virtual and what is reality.

Without question, the grandest, most anticipated scenario on everyone’s mind is; downing the red pill and entering into the matrix, so to speak. With the rapid development of such areas as neuroscience, nanotechnology and artificial intelligence, there are those who believe that such a truth is close at hand. While the most intricate concoction of goggles, headphones and external controllers have done well to provide a glimpse into an alternate reality, only when we learn to hijack the sensory inputs in our brain and successfully upload it into a computer, can we then attain a true virtually real existence. Broadly speaking, nanotech — already used in various medical procedures to deliver cancer-fighting medications would be called upon to deliver complex artificial intelligence programs to the brain — transporting us to the far of recesses of, well, anywhere. While some feel the idea ludicrous, essentially a page ripped from a telling science fiction novel, there are legions of others who believe this to be all but an inevitable fate.

What is your take on the current state of VR? Where would you like it to go?