What We Know About Virtual Reality.

Before we start I think I should explain virtual reality. We’ve all used some form of this technology, in arcades to modern classrooms.

Virtual reality is defined, according to the Oxford English dictionary, as “a computer-generated simulation of a three-dimensional image or environment that can be interacted with in a seemingly real or physical way by a person using special electronic equipment, such as a helmet with a screen inside or gloves fitted with sensors”.

To me, virtual reality is something that is used solely for gaming, previously only found in those arcade simulator pods.

It’s actually a way of allowing a person to completely submerse themselves in a game, movie or scene and is pretty genius.

The first use of virtual reality, or by definition a device-assisted manipulation of a computer, would be in 1962 with the creation of the light pen, a device capable of writing on a computer without the need for physical link.

The first real immersive experience came in the 1970’s when the US, with newly advanced computer-generated graphics, built the first real flight simulator in real-time and by the 80’s with better hardware, software and motion-control platforms, pilots were able to fly through virtual worlds.

For virtual reality gaming, the birthplace would either be the Nintendo Power Glove or the Segascope 3-D.