1990: Welcome to VIRTUAL REALITY | Tomorrow's World | Retro Tech | BBC Archive

Howard Stableford and Kate Bellingham delve into the futuristic world of "virtual reality". Virtual reality is a term coined by computer programmers to describe realistic interactive three-dimensional worlds that are generated entirely using sophisticated 3D computer graphics. These virtual worlds can currently be explored using a revolutionary new virtual reality headset, while electronic gloves and suits are in development in California.
Howard and Kate engage in a little virtual dogfighting in a virtual reality Harrier Jump Jet simulator.
Originally broadcast 1 November, 1990.
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[@vanessahawarden9028]

Note to BBC:Bring back Tomorrow’s World

[@cubes123]

How I miss Tomorrow's World :(

[@potatoface4698]

It's incredible how far we're come and i can only imagine how insane this tech will be in another 30 years. Current VR already has impressive games/experiences.

[@TheStevenWhiting]

@@oaktadopbok665 Not Meta, actual proper games look good. Although still have a bad habit of making you feel sick.

[@Battleneter]

​@@TheStevenWhiting the largest problems with VR has always been nothing to do with the graphics, if you haven't figured it out by now you probably never will :)

[@Battleneter]

I am 51 years old, was very hyped about VR in the late 1990's. Its incredibly disappointing how far VR has come, sure the graphics are clearly a crap ton better but the biggest issues with VR are still the same.

[@crumkill]

@@Battleneter what are those issues curious to know

[@spinofthewheel5345]

Vr looked better back then playing wise only thing that got better was the visuals

[@KidneyMush]

Still looks better than Mark Zuckerbergs metaverse

[@scaredyfish]

They had legs in 1990!

[@selbyjohnson5986]

hahaha yeah

[@DaysOfFunder]

Not wrong. Looks remarkably similar tbh

[@Sam-oo7bl]

Have you actually used a meta cause it's on a completely different level

[@BryanSteacy]

Yesss! Thank you BBC Archive for finally deinterlacing the videos to 50p from 25i. No more lost data :D

[@bob_obba]

I love the British refrain of: "You'll just have to believe me when I tell you that the sensation of depth that I am seeing is _quite_ convincing" These days it would just be some slack jawed influencer repeating "wow, WOW, WOOOW"

[@AcornElectron]

This is, and has always been, the way.

[@annother3350]

Quite, in that sense, means 'very' though rather than fairly

[@shaunj66]

I can only imagine how nauseating those low frame rate experiences were

[@NidonocuPoisonBunny]

Seeing how far we've come now and now doing what they suggested might be the future: hanging out with my friends for hours almost daily in VRChat, its rather awesome to see one of these looks to the future actually, for the most part come true.

[@engineeredlifeform]

Back in the early 90s, I went to various Computer Shows, and played with VR, and I really thought we were on the cusp of something, and here we are 30 years later, and it's still a bit niche. I was hoping for it to be ubiquitous by now, but I guess 3D TV has shown us people don't like wearing headgear so much. At some point I'll try one of the console VR offerings,.. maybe when the next gen are released.

[@potatoface4698]

It's very much worth it to at least try current VR like the Quest 2 (Q2) if you haven't. Heck, the PSVR 2 comes out soon so maybe try that if you can. We might be 5-10 years away from ultra-portable mixed reality glasses or whatever form it takes. Current VR has some incredible experiences with great graphics and high frame rate. The Q2 supports 120hz, double the console standard 60hz.

[@engineeredlifeform]

@@potatoface4698 I might pick up a PSVR 2 when they are available.

[@spider-ham7140]

VR has came a long way and atm the industry is growing tremendously with massive investment more than ever. Now is the best time to get into VR Not as niche anymore as we have millions of VR users these days. Industry is still growing and is getting better all the time with huge advances made in the technology. VR is here to stay , Pandora’s box has been opened

[@ShaunakHub]

One of the biggest problem I have with the headsets / glasses is the headache they give me after some time.

[@wallysymons7540]

@@ShaunakHub Same with me, I get dizzy/headaches and motion sickness even on the latest VR offerings. It's not for everyone

[@georgebailey98]

The Virtuality VR system used an Amiga 3000 to power its 3D worlds.

[@CricketEngland]

Probably they best most powerful home machine back then

[@danyoutube7491]

I was trying to figure out what those computers were on the desk @6:13. I thought that a mouse looked vaguely like the Amiga tank mouse, but could be a Mac mouse. The computer cases don't look like Amigas, more like Macs I think, apart from the one at the bottom of the screen @6:14, which looks a bit like an A2000 but I'm not sure the fascia looks quite right, it's more likely to be a PC.

[@GlennDavidson]

The first Virtuality headsets used A3000s, but the later systems switched to PC, sadly. Imagine if the Amiga and VR of the time had continued to develop…

[@Larry]

TWO Amiga 3000's

[@jo71394]

Someone please bring back this show! We need some optimism about the future again.

[@ctrlaltrees]

I played with one of these recently at the Retro Computer Museum in Leicester. It's amazing how quickly and precisely they track compared to modern VR headsets. Dactyl Nightmare is still a load of fun too. Well and truly ahead of its time.

[@NoosaHeads]

I absolutely love these old videos.

[@davidrenton]

i remember trying Virtuality in the Trocadero in London probably 1992 ish, it was expensive, but it worked , amazing how many things they did 30 years ago are still present in current systems

[@dean6816]

And here we are with all this tech and we still prefer to stair at the rectangular box!

[@Martyn2021]

It worth a look at the KZbinrs nostalgia nerd as he went to the museum that now houses the actual pieces of technology shown here and history behind the company and what it became

[@BenjyDale]

I remember learning about "Virtuality" (all 1 word) for the very first time in 1992 on a programme called Games Master. Then VR silently died off and that was it for years/decades. Now in recent years, it's coming back big time with Oculus Rift, Samsung Gear, PlayStation VR, Nintendo Switch etc

[@Larry]

Did you ever get to have a go on a Virtuality machine? Those headsets were super heavy.

[@ktsmells]

That lag and low framerate would make you pretty nauseous.

[@johngraves2755]

Cutting edge back in the 90's

[@Dan23_7]

Everyone loved Howard

[@VRnamek]

Oh yeah, we're finally in that future. 😎

[@Flying_Acehole]

I'm currently looking at this with my Meta Quest 3 in mixed reality. On a virtual display as big as my living room wall in full HD. -2024

[@KatemisMoon]

Over here with the Apple Vision Pro watching this on a virtual display on my ceiling. -2024

[@MatthewLenton]

Three years later we had Cyberzone with Craig Charles. Awooga!!!

[@danyoutube7491]

I loved that show, I was a big Red Dwarf fan at the time and had just gotten excited about computers the year before. A bit of fun early evening entertainment.

[@tharoog]

00:41 Robocop 2 poster. At 6:36 Robocop 1 music plays (composed by Basil Poledouris).

[@krognak]

Remember, one day we'll look back at today and laugh at our seemingly naïve excitement at current-gen tech. It's a journey!

[@chestercopperpot9294]

They used to have a Virtuality set you could play on for a fee in Game Cardiff.

[@bardo0007]

I remember the VR helmets in the 90's They tried to sell them to companies working with 3D design but the software was just not good enough.

[@Battleneter]

hmm VFX1 on PC was pretty decent, VR's biggest hurdles have nothing to do with graphics or software.

[@fidelcatsro6948]

Our smartphones today are more powerful than the electronics they had back in these back then

[@madm4tty]

A modern smartphone is significantly more powerful than the supercomputers of that era

[@DougHKG]

I’m sure there was some Robocop 2 promotion in there… cardboard cutout and music at the end😂

[@Brisius]

Watching this with a meta quest 3 in my hands

[@TheStevenWhiting]

I went on one of these once at trocadero, London, in the 90s. Never found them any good. They were fascinating but bad.

[@sammemrys8195]

Wonder what the headgear weighed?

[@andywest5773]

Remember, if you want to properly experience VR, you have to first put on an aluminum suit that makes you look like a baked potato. Otherwise you risk looking like a huge dork.

[@88rtd]

Why isn’t tomorrow world being repeated?

[@AtheistOrphan]

Lack of mass-market appeal. Today’s TV audiences much prefer Strictly or Love Island sadly. I’d watch it though!

[@88rtd]

@@AtheistOrphan even if they put it on iplayer and box set it maybe just episodes from the 80s/90s

[@AtheistOrphan]

@@88rtd - Yeah I’d definitely be up for that.

[@yinkstaiwo7622]

Its now a show called "Click" on the BBC channel.

[@KaityKat117]

Next time you see some shitty-looking new tech and people making claims about what those advances could mean in the future and you think "Yeah right like that'll ever happen", look back at this. This is what VR looked like back then. Those big bulky headsets, the shitty graphics, the latency, the low framerate. It was a mess! But if we'd just given up then, we never would've made it to where we are right now. Basically all the claims they made have come true. A tech that probably seemed really impractical and unrealistic is in almost every household. This is what tech demos could end up doing. Maybe not every tech demo will end up changing the world, but every tech demo has the potential to be the one that does.

[@DaysOfFunder]

I tried these headsets a few times back in early 90s. Was impressive poiking back. St the ti e it was amazing but was lacking graphically at the time and was in some ways underwhelming , looking back however holy hell it was advanced. I remember seeing the other player in VR accross the scene fkn unreal really.

[@NudelKungen.]

That looks just like the Metaverse!

[@NudelKungen.]

actually these guys have legs.

[@soumitrosarkar]

Until VR headsets become as light and small as sunglasses it won’t go mainstream.

[@diond1333]

Every time he mentioned the word 'helmet', I thought of Mark Zuckerberg. That's success for you.

[@kimeojin6447]

Every time someone mentions "metaverse", I think of Mark Zuckerberg and his horrible, horrible "Meta World". What an incredibly negative effect he has had on the topic of metaverses! VR tech can improve well without investors and the media hyping up the "metaverse" and making half baked applications of it. So I'm glad, in a way, that the Zuck has ruined people's perceptions of the metaverse.

[@robbflynn4325]

Wow the aircraft carrier landing was so realistic 😆

[@Battleneter]

better than consoles of today :P

[@AcornElectron]

33 years later, still makes me feel sick.

[@magicmagicman]

Its come along way since then but its still too expensive and niche. Until its as light and easy like putting on a pair of glasses I can't see it being mainstream. That is still probably 10-20 years away.

[@Ozymandias1]

And even then I doubt most people won’t want to live in a Ready Player One world.

[@ruddyhell7800]

£300 for a Quest 2 isn't all that much these days.

[@ruddyhell7800]

@@Ozymandias1 Social VR (like VRChat and RecRoom) is full of Furries, perverts, and kids - it really is shite.

[@magicmagicman]

@@ruddyhell7800 "Too much" is a relative term. £300 for a toy or ten times that for a decent PC setup with a vive is out of reach for a lot of people.

[@dzenacs2011]

Thats vr "should be pair of glasses" is incredible dumb. Cmon think - vr set should obscure your view so you wouldnt see your room as you playing a game. It will never be just "pair of glasses" cause of that lol

[@Battleneter]

VR is the future!!, the problem is, it will always be the future :P

[@lyleblue6739]

I'd want them to see modern vrchat now that society has recovered from the virtual boy, that set the technology back by 20+ years

[@THX-2208]

It still looks and performs better than PSVR 😂

[@Larry]

Careful, if you die in VR, you die in real life!!!

[@AcornElectron]

3:50 … dammed yanks, meanwhile we’ve been doing REAL work … on video games…

[@BOZ_11]

AAANND virtual reality STILL hasn't caught on, in 2023! But for certain niche applications, it's pretty dumb

[@dzenacs2011]

Its caught. you just dont have it lol

[@BOZ_11]

@@dzenacs2011 check the VR games and headset sales brosef. enjoy donning a plastic helmet 👍

[@8bitnitwit]

@@BOZ_11 You should give it a try if you haven't already, it's pretty great nowadays.

[@BOZ_11]

@@ek8710 the whole VR market has only sold about 21m units in the last 5 years, that's pretty dismal. so when u say "VR is more mainstream that it's ever been", it's misleading because it was never mainstream. ONE UNIT has broken the 10m units sold barrier, so i'd say it now barely classifies as "mainstream" (10m is the threshold for mainstream). To put that into perspective, as hardware sales go, if the quest 2 was a 21st century console, it would rank 18th. Control yourself.

[@dzenacs2011]

@@BOZ_11 well its a lot more expsnsive that your chesp consoles so it always be not for everyone

[@dzenacs2011]

That VR from 1986 they show is not vr at all. Just crt screen and woman in helmet. Btw first vr was from nasa in 1985. Its on youtube

[@8bitnitwit]

Yeah it's LCD flicker glasses synced to the TV, basically the same as Active 3D TV technology but probably a much lower refresh rate

[@cuttinchops]

Moist

[@CricketEngland]

Games company probably went bust as this never happened

[@ctcurry1777]

It's still rubbish 33 years later.

[@fidelcatsro6948]

hahaha lol

[@AtheistOrphan]

Getting distinct ‘Lawnmower Man’ vibes.

[@CricketEngland]

And still Virtual Reality is not popular in the home

[@VRnamek]

speak for yourself

[@puddleglum3306]

Not in your home perhaps. But the Quest 2 has been hugely popular.

[@CricketEngland]

@@puddleglum3306 nit as popular as the likes of other electronics from that period or future

[@Markcain268]

Real reality is good enough for me, don't need to pretend lol

[@ruddyhell7800]

@@Markcain268 So you've never read a book, watched a film or TV drama or play? They're all other realities too you know. VR is just a more immersive medium.