Well, one of those "wow" moments that occured for me was playing a hologram game in an arcade at Gatlinburg. The game was called Time Traveler, and it blew me away. The gameplay was simplistic to the point of embarrassment, but the game really set my mind ablaze with possibilities. What I kept imagining was a new type of CRPG that would use this technology to really let you see battles and the like in a new way, sort of like the famous chess game played by Chewbacca and C3-PO in Star Wars.
Apparently, the whole "Time Traveler" machine wasn't really a hologram projector, but it was convincing enough to make for some very interesting possibilities that were later dismissed as part of the "laser disc era."
What I tend to think about when I stretch my imagination is games not being played on a flat screen monitor, but rather projected onto a board in three dimensions. Again, I realize this is strictly "Star Trek" for the time being, but ultimately it's more practical than "VR" and definitely more feasible than a holodeck. Perhaps one solution might be for the "board" to be encased in a glass or plastic case and flooded with some type of gas or ions that would respond to electrical impulses in a predictable, controllable way, in some ways reminiscent of an aquarium.
The precedent for this type of display has existed far longer than a flat screen. Ancient plays and gladitorial bouts, for instance, took place in a defined, three-dimensional space. Indeed, the 2-D limitation of flat screens is a relatively recent innovation. I think the hold-up is because futurists keep insisting on "immersion" and somehow transplating the player directly into the virtual world. This is a worthy goal, but I think an in-between step is necessary--not placing the player in the world, but just offering it as a perspective.
What's really sad to me is that we've lost that sort of "dare to do it" spirit of the early 90s that led to games like Dragon's Lair and Time Traveler. Now, we're content to make tiny steps forward in the forms of enhancements to existing paradigms--i.e., a few more pipes, faster polygons, etc. What we really need are more of those grand attempts to shatter the paradigm completely and leap out with something totally new.
In short, I think it's time we went back to some of these earlier attempts at revolution and made another go at it with today's advanced technology. My guess is that we've got a much better shot today at something that will stick than back then.
Well, one of those "wow" moments that occured for me was playing a hologram game in an arcade at Gatlinburg. The game was called Time Traveler, and it blew me away. The gameplay was simplistic to the point of embarrassment, but the game really set my mind ablaze with possibilities. What I kept imagining was a new type of CRPG that would use this technology to really let you see battles and the like in a new way, sort of like the famous chess game played by Chewbacca and C3-PO in Star Wars.
Apparently, the whole "Time Traveler" machine wasn't really a hologram projector, but it was convincing enough to make for some very interesting possibilities that were later dismissed as part of the "laser disc era."
What I tend to think about when I stretch my imagination is games not being played on a flat screen monitor, but rather projected onto a board in three dimensions. Again, I realize this is strictly "Star Trek" for the time being, but ultimately it's more practical than "VR" and definitely more feasible than a holodeck. Perhaps one solution might be for the "board" to be encased in a glass or plastic case and flooded with some type of gas or ions that would respond to electrical impulses in a predictable, controllable way, in some ways reminiscent of an aquarium.
The precedent for this type of display has existed far longer than a flat screen. Ancient plays and gladitorial bouts, for instance, took place in a defined, three-dimensional space. Indeed, the 2-D limitation of flat screens is a relatively recent innovation. I think the hold-up is because futurists keep insisting on "immersion" and somehow transplating the player directly into the virtual world. This is a worthy goal, but I think an in-between step is necessary--not placing the player in the world, but just offering it as a perspective.
What's really sad to me is that we've lost that sort of "dare to do it" spirit of the early 90s that led to games like Dragon's Lair and Time Traveler. Now, we're content to make tiny steps forward in the forms of enhancements to existing paradigms--i.e., a few more pipes, faster polygons, etc. What we really need are more of those grand attempts to shatter the paradigm completely and leap out with something totally new.
In short, I think it's time we went back to some of these earlier attempts at revolution and made another go at it with today's advanced technology. My guess is that we've got a much better shot today at something that will stick than back then.
Matt Barton, Managing Editor
Location: St. Cloud, Minnesota, USA
Email: matt@armchairarcade.com