[Editor's Note: also see the related topic augmented reality]

About

Virtual Reality, or VR for short, is a computer-generated simulation of an interactive 3D environment, either realistic or fabricated. Simulations are typically navigated using headsets and other devices that allow users to move freely in the environment or create a variety of sensory experiences.

History

The earliest known VR-style device was created in 1962 by inventor Morton Heilig, who built the Sensorama machine allowing users to view several short films while stimulating their sense of sound, smell and touch simultaneously (shown below). In 1968, computer scientist Ivan Sutherland and student Bob Sproull developed the first head-mounted VR and augmented reality (AR) display.

In the 1980s, computer scientist Jaron Lanier popularized the term "virtual reality," releasing several related products through his company VPL Research. In the 1990s, Sega announced its "Sega VR" system and Nintendo released the "Virtual Boy" device as the first commercial console with a full suite of VR features but were not widely adopted.^[1] In 1999, entrepreneur Philip Rosedale launched the company Linden Lab to create computers capable of creating VR experiences, which subsequently shifted focus to creating the 3D online virtual world Second Life.

Online Presence

On October 27th, 2009 Urban Dictionary user Guido1 defined virtual reality as "a place gamers would rather live in."^[5] In 2009, the virtual reality subreddit was created for discussions about the technology, which gained over 13,000 subscribers in the next six years.^[4]

Groping Controversy

On October 20th, 2016, writer Jordan Belamire published an article on Medium^[17] titled "My First Virtual Reality Groping," in which she recants playing multiplayer mode in the archery castle defense game QuiVr on the HTC Vive, when a player named BigBro442 began repeatedly touching her avatar's chest in the game. At the end of the article, Belamire argues that laws should be enacted to prevent sexual assault in virtual reality:

" Eventually we're going to need rules to tame the wild, wild west of VR multiplayer. Or is this going to be yet another space that women do not venture into?"

The following day, the article was reposted on the tech news site TechMic.^[15] On October 23rd, Redditor girlwithruinedteeth submitted the article to /r/GirlGamers,^[16] where many commenters told similar stories of being harassed in online games. On October 25th, YouTuber The Amazing Atheist posted a video mocking the Mic article (shown below, left). On October 27th, YouTuber ReviewTechUSA posted a video criticizing Belamire's article for comparing being griefed in a video game to sexual assault (shown below, right).

Current Devices

Oculus Rift

Oculus Rift is a virtual reality (VR) head-mounted display (HMD) developed by Oculus VR. After a prototype debuted at the 2012 Electronic Entertainment Expo, the first batch of developer systems were funded through a Kickstarter campaign. On March 25th, 2014, Facebook officially acquired the startup for $2 billion after much speculation that computer gaming giant Steam would be the first to purchase the company.

Microsoft HoloLens

Microsoft HoloLens is a combined AR and VR headset being developed by Microsoft, who officially announced the device during a press conference in January 2015.^[8] The device uses technology similar to the Kinect in a self-contained system that does not require connection to a PC or Xbox.

PlayStation VR/ Project Morpheus

At the Game Developers Conference in 2014, Sony announced that it was developing a VR headset for the PlayStation titled Project Morpheus, using components from their already established PlayStation Camera and PlayStation Move devices. On September 15th, 2015, Sony officially announced the final product would be titled PlayStation VR^[10] and had 41 titles in development.^[11]

Left: Sony Prototype VR Headset | Right: PlayStation VR Design

HTC ReVive and Steam VR

In March 2015, HTC partnered with Valve to create the "HTC ReVive" virtual reality headset, powered with SteamVR technology.^[3]

Google Cardboard

Google Cardboard is a VR system designed by Google for the Android operating system. The design was announced at Google I/O 2014 and incorporates 3 main elements: an Android phone, the cardboard phone holder, and the Google Cardboard app. Google initially published the cardboard viewer design for home development but unveiled partner Cardboard developers for more permanent solutions at the 2015 I/O conference. The Mattel View-Master features an updated design on the classic toy which incorporates the experience of the phone with the classic 3D reels.

Left: Original Google Cardboard Design | Right: Mattel View-Master Design

Jaunt NEO

On September 21st, 2015, the VR startup Jaunt announced they had raised $65 million from Disney and other Hollywood investors.^[13] In total, Jaunt raised over $100 million, surpassing Oculus' $93.4 as the most independently funded VR startup. Thus far, the company's only announced product is named Neo, a professional-grade stereographic cinematic VR camera. The company has also produced a separate VR camera for ABC News as part of a collaboration for the Jaunt iOS and Android apps.^[14]

Left: Jaunt NEO Camera | Right: Jaunt NEO Head-Mounted Display

Search Interest

External References