Virtual Reality? Sorry Mate, You're About 30 Years Too Early!

Cyber Zone Game Show



For our first videogames affiliated post, we are recalling back to an obscure 1 series gameshow on the BBC, BBC 2 I think. Remember all the virtual reality craze back in the 90's? This was when 3D graphics had just become mainstream in 1992, when you had a film like "The Lawnmower Man" coming out.

I remember seeing in shopping malls and libraries cordoning off sections, for people to experience this "VR" in huge chunky helmets You might've got this in fairgrounds too. As the show looks, way too excitable, about what seemed like very limited games with compared to now, really awful graphics! Presented by Red Dwarf's Craig Charles, bringing the crowd to fever pitch, like he would do in "Robot Wars". This was laughable though, but back then, OK it's no Sonic the Hedgehog, but it may be start of a new revolution. No it was not! We are 17 years later down the road, and yes, games have become more interactive such as the Nintendo Wii, but that's different. That was a success, and what's more, it doesn't immerse you into the screen like VR helmets too, it's just the biting arm movements that count, and that doesn't count as virtual reality for me. You're looking at a screen. That's why I'm saying 30 years, on a betting but safe side, as I'm sure games will become even more interactive, than what you get with the Wii, and alot can change in a decade.

So anyway, Craig Charles televisual side-kick is called "Thesp", looking like an American cowboy but with a British accent. The games were basic and more like, what some early 90's kids would reagard as boring, which was the reputation it used have, which is PC games. One game was like a flight simulator, and one was like simply to find you're opponent and shoot them with an arrow...that was it, not collecting over 100 rings or beating up tens of guy to get to a level boss. The concept was lost in many viewers, because the console games of even that age, could crap all over this.

Obviously, the show never came back after 1 series and 10 episodes. However, it's always stood out for me, as it was the only virtual reality show of it's kind. It was the world's first VR gameshow, so let's end on a positive note!