Yes, you read correctly! I actually really like the Virtual Boy!
So, I recently accidentally won a Virtual Boy in an online auction. I had heard they were a terrible system, with terrible visuals, terrible games and cause terrible headaches. But I thought it would be neat to own one anyway, since it's a Nintendo console I didn't own, it never came out here and is so infamous.
So anyway, I won the console, but didn't have any games for it, until today. Popped in Mario's Tennis and... I was impressed! The 3D looked pretty good, though the game itself was kinda meh.
But then I popped in Virtual Boy Wario Land. WOAH. Now this is impressive! The 3D looked great, with lots of multi-layered foreground and background elements. An impressive feat, since the Virtual Boy's 3D technology uses vibrating mirrors and LEDs. The graphics themselves were really nice too, smoothly animated and well-drawn. Oh, and it's gameplay is great too, Wario has a lot of moves to choose from.
Let's look at the console's common criticisms, starting with the black and red display. Yeah, it's not in color, but neither was the Game Boy, and that was a great system. I didn't find that the display really impacted the games at all, and I didn't find the use of red to be uncomfortable to my eyes.
And headaches? None here. I suspect that this might be because I'm already used to steroscopic 3D gaming, I've got nVidia 3D Vision for my PC and a 3DS. The interesting thing with 3D Vision is the software starts you out on a small level of 3D, which you can bump up as you get used to it. If you try to go all the way too early, you'll have problems focusing. This might have been the cause of the discomfort people felt with the Virtual Boy.
However, I think the real reason for the headaches is due to the stand. Yes, the stand. By the nature of it's design, you need to lean into it, since it's doesn't push the console out to you, which means your neck is bent. Add to this the fact that the stand is so short, you end up needing really bend your back and neck to see into the thing, which really starts to hurt your neck after awhile. If the stand was taller, or the console was able to be adjusted at a wider angle, it wouldn't be so bad. But as it stands (pun not intended) the terrible stand is the console's biggest flaw and probably the cause of it's headaches.
Apparently, the Virtual Boy was released before it's designer thought it was ready. It makes you wonder what it would be like if more time was given so it could be properly finished. At the very least, I would hope that the final version wouldn't need this stupid stand.
So yeah, if you ever get the opportunity to buy a Virtual Boy, don't turn it down! It's a great little console!
So, I recently accidentally won a Virtual Boy in an online auction. I had heard they were a terrible system, with terrible visuals, terrible games and cause terrible headaches. But I thought it would be neat to own one anyway, since it's a Nintendo console I didn't own, it never came out here and is so infamous.
So anyway, I won the console, but didn't have any games for it, until today. Popped in Mario's Tennis and... I was impressed! The 3D looked pretty good, though the game itself was kinda meh.
But then I popped in Virtual Boy Wario Land. WOAH. Now this is impressive! The 3D looked great, with lots of multi-layered foreground and background elements. An impressive feat, since the Virtual Boy's 3D technology uses vibrating mirrors and LEDs. The graphics themselves were really nice too, smoothly animated and well-drawn. Oh, and it's gameplay is great too, Wario has a lot of moves to choose from.
Let's look at the console's common criticisms, starting with the black and red display. Yeah, it's not in color, but neither was the Game Boy, and that was a great system. I didn't find that the display really impacted the games at all, and I didn't find the use of red to be uncomfortable to my eyes.
And headaches? None here. I suspect that this might be because I'm already used to steroscopic 3D gaming, I've got nVidia 3D Vision for my PC and a 3DS. The interesting thing with 3D Vision is the software starts you out on a small level of 3D, which you can bump up as you get used to it. If you try to go all the way too early, you'll have problems focusing. This might have been the cause of the discomfort people felt with the Virtual Boy.
However, I think the real reason for the headaches is due to the stand. Yes, the stand. By the nature of it's design, you need to lean into it, since it's doesn't push the console out to you, which means your neck is bent. Add to this the fact that the stand is so short, you end up needing really bend your back and neck to see into the thing, which really starts to hurt your neck after awhile. If the stand was taller, or the console was able to be adjusted at a wider angle, it wouldn't be so bad. But as it stands (pun not intended) the terrible stand is the console's biggest flaw and probably the cause of it's headaches.
Apparently, the Virtual Boy was released before it's designer thought it was ready. It makes you wonder what it would be like if more time was given so it could be properly finished. At the very least, I would hope that the final version wouldn't need this stupid stand.
So yeah, if you ever get the opportunity to buy a Virtual Boy, don't turn it down! It's a great little console!
