/vr/ - Retro Games

I keep meaning to get one.

Apparently the Wario Land game is one of the best in the series.

I do, bought it one some years ago with some games (Mario's Tennis, Teleroboxer, Golf and Virtual Boy Wario Land)
I think the 3D effect is actually cool and the games are pretty good, up to Nintendo's R&D1 standards. It's probably my favorite failure system ever made.

I didn't know anyone who owned it back in the day, but a friend of mine who I met later did, and he lost it. When I got my VB and he played it again, he seemed like a child again playing it, it's evident he missed it.

Back then, I wanted it because it was VIRTUAL REALITYYY but it was too expensive (and I wasn't lucky enough to come across them when they were dirt cheap by the late 90s). I did play Mario's Tennis at a store once and loved it.

>>2729985
I own one but one of the displays is broken so no 3d, kind of defeats the purpose. I heard if a fix (ribbon cable glue problem) but haven't bothered.
It's big and unwieldy.

bought one for myself one or two years ago now. Actually got two head units, but only one with stand and visor.

I really like it! The stand is awkward and makes your neck hurt, but I'm fortunate to not be bothered at all by the screens (though your eyes do need to readjust for the intense amounts of not-blue that you look at in the game). The controller is really good, and of the 5 games I own there are three really good ones (Mario Clash, VB Wario Land, and Red Alarm). I'm gong to send out for a FlashBoy at some point, to get into unreleased games, rare games, and homebrews.

My only complaint is that my main unit's right eye is totally fucked. Pretty sure it's just the connector, which needs that 'permanent' solution that's done with solder, but I'm not at all confident enough in my soldering abilities to try it, and chances are good that sending away to have it done would just lead to some new harm coming to the components. Not sure what to do with it at this point.

>>2729985

Pretty much a released prototype.
It would have needed more time but Nintendo had the N64 on the line and wanted to bring a bridge product out as soon as possible.
Because of this it is obviously unfinished, the playing position is uncomfortable, should have made it wearable, then you could have put it on and sit or lie down comfortably with the controller in your hand.
The red monochrome LEDs go on the eyes after a while. They are also the reason why i was not really hyped back then when mags told about that thing coming out in Japan, at first OMG 3D TECH but when screenshots showed that everything is in red not really anymore.
However it is not as bad as it is sometimes said, with more games designed for its features it could have been a good system. Something like Tennis does not really justify the amazing 3D technology, TeleroBoxer is one of the games that best showcases what potential the thing had. You have to have the eyes for it so you don't get nausea or headaches, kinda if you can play the 3DS with 3D on for long periods of time you can play this thing.

I got mine new for something like $20 in probably '97. At the time, I thought it was another mistake for Nintendo and a mildly interesting (if headache inducing) novelty. Red Alarm was pretty neat and I played that Wario game on it.

Now, it mainly serves as something that gathers cred and dust sitting on a shelf. It still has a certain novelty to its display that the decent, cheap VR headset I expect I'll be buying in the next couple years will be able to reproduce acceptably.

All things considered, I like to compare it to the Vectrex as they are both self-contained video game systems centered on novel display technology, they have a similar sized library and they balance nicely on display. The Vectrex beats VB hands down. Its games are more fun, it's easier on my eyes, and it's been around fifteen years longer.

The only thing the VB has going for it beyond novelty is that it's a Nintendo product which is apparently a major thing to some idiots.

>>2729985
Its not worth getting unless you are the biggest Nintendo fan around. The tennis game was fun. It basically had two fun games...but the downside is headaches and neck pain. Even as a kid I didn't see this machine taking off, even though it promised virtual reality. When you put your face in it you just know its a toy. But it is a collectible machine. I would have gotten one already if I wanted it. I don't want some dirty 20 year old machine some kid put their face on.

>>2730014
>When you put your face in it you just know its a toy

Video games are toys.

Also, the VB was based on the old 1920s stereoscopic photo visors that were popular on amusement parks and the prehistoric arcades with mechanical games.

>>2730010
>they balance nicely on display
By this, I mean they're about the same size and they look nice set up together. The VB is more interesting to look at when the Vectrex is off. If I have it on, the Vectrex REALLY draws attention.

Fun fact: The Virtual Boy's CPU is the same one that NEC used on their PC-FX computer.

The VB was pretty amazing hardware-wise, the sprites are big, very detailed, with nice animations, and no slowdowns whatsoever. The only downside is the monochrome color scheme (which I actually think it's cool, but I can see how some people might be turned off by it). And also as other anons said, the VB is not ergonomic, pain neck is assured.
The controller however is amazing, I kind of want a USB one to use on the PC.

I still have mine from when it was released. I usually take it off the stand, lay on my back, and rest it on my face. Warrioland is goat. Telroboxer is good. The nester bowling was surprisingly fun.

>>2730025
>No slowdowns

Red Alarm sure as fuck did

>>2730025
I hear the VB controller is the best part of the system, someone should clone it and sell it as a USB pad.

>>2730208

it's just very ergonomic and symmetrical. The only retarded thing it has is that you use the battery pack on the controller instead of in the actual headset. But should it be turned into a USB pad, it shouldn't need to use it.

>>2730214
S'what I'm saying, take the outward shape, with the two D-pads, two sets of buttons (can color them red, blue, green, yellow, like the SNES controller buttons), then label the buttons A, B, X, Y
Then, give it separate Start, Select, a turbo toggle (hold down the turbo button then press the button you want to turbo, cheap and simple but it works), on the middle of the controller.

Give it two sets of shoulder/trigger buttons, just for the fuck of it, to give it more versatility for emulation and PC games, and don't make the trigger buttons mushy, like on the PS3, the top triggers can be like normal buttons, the bottom triggers should have noticeable and positive (but not too loud) click, just for tactility, I hate how unreliable some shoulder/trigger buttons feel, like you just press them and it doesn't feel like there's any clear break, like you can't tell how far you have to press them for them to actually register,

Cut out the battery pack, fit it with a generously long USB 2.0 cord (perhaps braided, even), and just for shits, a very gentle yellow diode on the front face of the pad, which shines when it's plugged in.

I would love to play shit like Wolfenstein 3D with a thing like that.
Hey, speaking of which, why wasn't Wolf 3D ported to the VB? It seems like a simple and low powered enough game that it could easily work there.

My cousin gave me his and all of his games a few years back. I dont think he knew how rare this really was.

Its a pain in the neck to play. Literally. My neck hurts when I play it. It is also a pain in the eyes, and a pain in the head.

The games are ok. They remind me more of arcade games than gameboy games. There is a cool ship game that is in 3d, similar to starfox. Then there is a mario bros game like the original mario bros where you are in a sewer and kill enemies. The games are short and to the point, and they are cool for that reason, even if they are kind of mediocre.

I'm holding out to play any virtualboy games until I can play them in 3d on my 3ds with a cool blue palette.

>>2729985
I never really wanted it that much, it was too expensive and the red color pallet wasn't appealing. I wish I scooped all the copies of unsold games that WalMart was selling for $5 way back though.

I've only ever played it via emulator with those dorky red and blue 3D glasses. It's actually pretty cool that way, purple instead of red.

>>2730019
Thanks for that random kidbit that's only true by some autistic stretch.

I own several, they were going for $15 dollars each at Target during clearance.

>>2729985
Got one off a friend a few years back. Wanted it as a novelty and just left it sitting on top of the shelf that housed all my videogames.

Last year, my fiancé and I were both unemployed and bills were piling up, so I sold off all my shit. The Virtualboy was the last thing to go, because I figured it was worthless.
I was pleasantly surprised when the local reseller gave me $230 for it.

The funny thing is that I never even paid my friend the agreed upon price for the stupid thing, and he knows I sold it, lol.

As for what I thought of it. Well, Warioland was a great game. I actually do miss that one. The rest were just retarded shit that were barely tech demos IMO. It was a novelty system, after all.

>>2729985
i remember being a small boy and going to JC Penney's and sticking my chubby face into this thing. Was super disappointed at some red glowing bullshit screen.

There are a couple of good games but it makes my eyes hurt.

>>2729985
>Did anyone here actually own this thing when it new?
Yes.
>What did you think about it back then?
I don't care to say.

How is the controller? While having two d-pads seems weird the controller looks really nice and comfy.

>>2730770

thanks for buzzwords meme meme memes, you are a great contribution to this board meme

If they waited a little longer, the price of blue and green LEDS would have fallen, and they could have made it a peripheral for the N64.

>>2731317
Supposedly very comfortable.

>>2731336
That could have been something actually.

>tfw you kinda want to buy a Virtual Boy just to see what's it like but can't because you are eurofag and the system wasn't released here

The two big problems were the red LED screen and the awkward way you had to play it.

The red LEDs cause migraines (full blown migraines, not just headaches) and the viewing position causes neck strain.

If it was wearable and if it used green LEDs it would have been a better system and I thing more games would have been made for it. Unfortunately it was doomed anyway because it was in a choppy area between the Super Nintendo/N64 and the Gameboy/Gameboy Color.

Monochromatic was dead. Portable games needed color. Portable 3D is a concept that came 20 years too early. I think that the idea is going to have a comeback with stuff like the VR headsets that use your phone.

Fucking loved this thing. Wario was the shiite

>>2731910
Buy one and import it.

>>2729985
My family rented one from blockbuster.

The novelty wore off after the 1st day.

It was neat, but my eyes/head started hurting after 30 minutes or so.

>>2729985
take breaks or you'll go blind

question for those who say your "eyes hurt" when using it: did you adjust the Focus switch and the inter-pupil distance switch to match your own eye sight?

I've played lots of VB and never experienced anything remotely close as eye pain. The only pain I felt was in the neck.

>>2732032
I figure some would forget to adjust the "screen", but the bright red can be harsh on some people's eyes for longer periods.

I figure most of the headaches come from the neckstrain you'll get from trying to find a comfortable position to play it in though.

>>2732030
Pretty sure that was just lawyer speak in the instruction manual, but then again, not a lot of people bought it so who knows?

>>2731916
It already had its comeback with the 3DS, though no one uses the 3D because it sucked until the "new 3DS" XL models came out

>>2732134
Some people simply can't view 3D projections, I can't look at 3D movies or use the 3D feature on my 3DS because it causes strong and immediate eyestrain, it's like a tickling feeling between my eyes, I can't focus it in the slightest and it's impossible to concentrate on what's on the screen.

I'm pretty sure it's related to my astigmatism, I probably couldn't play a Virtual Boy either.

I kinda wish they would port some of the VB titles to the 3DS, with the option for a 2D mode, because I think some of the games look like they would be really fun, like Teleroboxer or Wario.

>>2729985
I got one for my birthday the year it came out. I shelved it almost immediately after, it sat in my room and I didn't have the hart to tell my mom it sucked. I made a cut out of a chick from playboy to fit the eye piece so I could "pretend" to play it if my mom was around and asked me about it.

Years later I ended up getting a complete boxed set just because my friend asked me about it back in like 2004 or something and we found out how few games were on it, and how relatively cheap they were at the time.

Probably the easiest console to get a full set for. That being said, there are literally dozens of better ways to spend your money in terms of buying old video games.

i own one, and I have a flashcart for it. theres some decent homebrew

I remember buying the ac pack for it and that stupid thing would not stay on the controller.
Many a game was interpreted because I lightly touched the controller to the ground.

>>2730242
Wolf3D was pretty old by 1995, I doubt that there was much interest by then especially when the system didn't take off at all.

It sounds like a good idea for a homebrew port though. There was a good version of Faceball 2000 that was a prototype, which has since been dumped for our enjoyment. No reason you couldn't do Wolf3D as a fan project. I agree, it would be swell to play.

>>2730327
Bet more on seeing homebrew emulators for it before Nintendo doing it themselves.

>>2732032
I've never had the eye pain either, but I assume that others don't have the same eyes as I do. I'm able to play 3DS for long periods too.

>>2732134
Speak for yourself, I've been using the 3D extensively on the original model. I will admit that the 'new' model is way better though.

>>2732140
problem of that is the system doesn't have the hardware chops or the controller needed to make it work well. Nintendo is somehow both very low-effort in their virtual console and very high-standards with its play. It has to be accurately emulated, but it can't take too much effort on their part. Given the complexities that 3D adds to it, I imagine that they won't bother. That's why I recommend looking into /hbg/ on /vg/ and seeing how the homebrew scene is going. We'll see homebrewers come out with a working emulator long before Nintendo ever does.

>>2733354
Really? I never had issues like that with mine. Might have been a bad adapter.

I'm looking forward to 3D printers for helping to make replacement parts for VB stuff. The system's extras are so less often found compared to the head unit itself, and I'd like for people to stop using those rarer parts for their different mounting projects.

>>2729985
Honestly? It's really good. Also the "few" games for it are really nice to awesome. And i played hours with it, neither getting hurt eyes(hey we are gamer so we are used to it anyway) and with modern (rechargeable) batteries or AC-adapter it's also no problem. Black/Red color has also it's own charm. Hell, back then computers also had just monochrome screens(black/green or black/white). So that is actually fine too for real /vr/-people.

That bashing against it, is likely just by people who never owned it but heard all the negative things on the net and hipsters on YouTube.

The only "negative" things about is are the maybe common mirror/cable problem, but fixable. Or the price(especially for those few very rare games). But besides that, it's really worth it in my opinion.

>>2731775
>That could have been something actually.

Right? The VB resolution was about the same as the N64's most commonly used video mode (320*240)

It woulda halved the polygons you could put in a scene but 30fps would've cut it, as you can't move your head around (preventing motion sickness)

Smooth textured stereoscopic 3D polygons in 1996 would have blown more than a few minds. Games could have an optional "Virtual mode".

Since a lot of games were 4x splitscreen anyway, the work was already done to scale back the polys in each window so the system could manage 4 of them at a decent clip. Doing 2x instead is no big d.

Imagine Virtual Mario Kart 64.

>>2733784
I'm sure something like this was also in Nintendo's mind.

Also fascinating that the idea of 3D/VR was also mostly still implemented in GameCube, and very likely also in Wii/Wii U but not used yet, just likely because of cost and too scared to fail(again). Sadly.

But for N64 it would have been the very first practicable VR before even "Oculus". Who knows if they actually had it ready, at least i'm almost sure they experimented with it to some degree.

Sometimes i really hope that Nintendo will someday reveal all their planned but scrapped stuff maybe in an official book. I was already amazed that they had shown early work papers of Mario at last E3 press conference.

>>2733794
>Also fascinating that the idea of 3D/VR was also mostly still implemented in GameCube, and very likely also in Wii/Wii U but not used yet

I really hope this was planned in advance so that when they finally do a VR console, all their older content back to Gamecube works on it

>>2733801
https://tcrf.net/GameCube_Service_Disc_v1.0/03#Stereoscopic_3D

>>2733801

https://tcrf.net/GameCube_Service_Disc_v1.0/03#Stereoscopic_3D
http://www.unseen64.net/2008/04/08/luigis-mansion-gc-proto-beta/

>>2733801
Dolphin has its own 3D support, if you have a 3D display/3D glasses.

>>2733783
>Hell, back then computers also had just monochrome screens(black/green or black/white). So that is actually fine too for real /vr/-people.
The Virtual Boy came out in 1995, monochrome displays on computers had not been a thing for the better part of 10 years. I'm going to assume you did not grow up in the 90s, let alone the 80s if you're trying to make that claim... Do you think Windows 95 was monochrome?

>>2733820
I'm wondering if that was a language error and he meant "back then" as a general reference to the past rather than to the 90s in particular.

>>2733828
Yes, i meant this.