Virtuality

Virtuality Group (originally founded as W Industries) was a pioneering virtual reality company based in Leicester, England, that developed and commercially produced some of the world's first VR arcade machines and entertainment systems in the early 1990s. Founded by Dr. Jonathan D. Waldern in 1987, Virtuality became one of the most influential companies in the first wave of virtual reality technology, creating immersive gaming platforms and innovative VR hardware solutions for both entertainment and professional applications.

Virtuality
Information
Type	Public Company (1993-1997)
Industry	Virtual Reality, Electronics, Interactive Entertainment
Founded	October 1987 (as W Industries), renamed to Virtuality in 1993
Founder	Dr. Jonathan D. Waldern
Headquarters	Leicester, England
Notable Personnel	Al Humrich, Richard Holmes, Terry Rowley, Dennis Ohryn, Ray Ticer
Products	Virtuality 1000 Series, Virtuality 2000 Series, Virtuality 3000 Series, Project Elysium, Space Glove, Visette
Website	virtuality.com

History

Origins and founding

Virtuality's roots can be traced to the academic research of Dr. Jonathan D. Waldern at the Human Computer Interface Research Unit of Leicester Polytechnic (now De Montfort University) in the early 1980s. By 1986, Waldern had developed a system known as the "Roaming Caterpillar" that could deliver a stereoscopic view of a three-dimensional scene using a moveable CRT screen with shutter glasses and acoustic sensors for tracking head and hand movements.

In October 1987, Waldern established W Industries (named after himself) along with software specialist Al Humrich, mathematician Terry Rowley, and engineer Richard Holmes, with the goal of commercializing 3D visualization technology. The four founding members pooled their individual expertise and resources, with Rowley, Holmes, and Humrich each contributing £2,500, while Waldern invested considerably more and maintained a majority stake in the company.

The company developed multiple prototype VR units, including one nicknamed the "giraffe" (a mechanically tracked headset mounted on a boom arm). By 1989, their fifth prototype became the basis for the first commercial Virtuality system and won the British Technology Group Award for Best Emerging Technology.

Commercial breakthrough and expansion

Virtuality achieved its commercial breakthrough in November 1990 when it launched the Virtuality 1000SU VR system at the Computer Graphics '90 exhibition held at Alexandra Palace in London. This system, despite its crude graphics by today's standards, was described by Computer Gaming World in 1992 as offering "all the necessary hallmarks of a fully immersive system at what, to many, is a cheap price".

The company's initial focus was on professional and industrial applications. The first two networked VR systems were sold to British Telecom Research Laboratories for networked telepresence experiments, with other early systems sold to corporations including Ford, IBM, Mitsubishi, and Olin.

In 1991, capitalizing on growing public interest in virtual reality, the company released an arcade version of the 1000SU called the 1000CS (CS referring to "cyberspace"), which brought VR gaming to the public. This coincided with increasing media attention on virtual reality technology, exemplified by the 1992 science fiction film "The Lawnmower Man," which helped popularize the concept of VR.

In 1993, W Industries officially changed its name to Virtuality Group to align with its product branding and prepared for a public stock offering. In January 1995, the company expanded its executive team, bringing in Dennis Ohryn as Deputy Executive Chairman and Ray Ticer as Finance Director, together bringing over 50 years of experience from technology companies such as Prime Computers, Sun Microsystems, and Apple.

Decline and bankruptcy

By the mid-1990s, Virtuality faced increasing challenges as the initial VR hype began to wane. The company struggled with the high cost of its systems (around $65,000 per unit), declining arcade popularity, and competition from home gaming consoles. Despite attempts to diversify into home VR systems, professional applications, and collaborations with companies like Atari for the Jaguar VR headset (which was never commercially released), Virtuality was unable to maintain its market position.

In 1997, Virtuality Group entered bankruptcy amid the broader collapse of the first-wave VR industry, which also saw the demise of other pioneering VR companies like Forte Technologies and VPL Research within months of each other. By this time, approximately 1,200 Virtuality arcade machines were in use worldwide.

Following bankruptcy, the company's assets were divided. The rights to the entertainment machines (but not the Virtuality brand itself) were sold to Cybermind UK, which was later acquired by Arcadian Virtual Reality LLC in 2004. Arcadian operated until 2012, when it was acquired by VirtuosityTech, Inc., the current owner of the arcade machine assets.

Products and technology

Arcade systems

Virtuality produced several generations of VR arcade systems:

1000 Series (1990-1994)

The original Virtuality systems came in two configurations:

• 1000SU (Stand-Up): Featured a waist-high ring with a magnetic source for tracking, where the player would stand and use a free-moving "Space Joystick" controller
• 1000SD (Sit-Down): Players would sit down with various control options including joysticks, a steering wheel, or aircraft yoke depending on the game

The 1000CS (Cyberspace) variant, released in 1991, was specifically designed for arcades. It was priced at approximately $60,000 per unit, with around 350 units produced - 120 of which were installed in the United States.

The 1000 series was powered by a Commodore Amiga 3000 with 4 MB of RAM and a CD-ROM drive. The system included a pair of graphics accelerators (one for each eye) based on Texas Instruments TMS34020 GSP (Graphics System Processor) chips with TMS34082 floating-point co-processors. Each of these cards could deliver about 40 Mflops with the capability to render 30,000 polygons per second at 20 frames per second.

2000 Series (1994)

The 2000 Series (both SU and SD models) featured significant improvements:

• Intel 486-based PC as the host computer
• Expality PIX 1000 proprietary graphics card with dual Motorola 88110 RISC processors
• Enhanced visette headset with higher resolution (800x600 pixels per eye) delivered by two 1.6" LCD screens
• Improved lens system for a wider field of view
• Texture mapping and other enhanced graphics capabilities

3000 Series

The 3000 Series was an upgrade to the 2000 Series that featured:

• Intel Pentium processor
• Rifle-shaped VR controller available in two versions:

  * Standard SU-3000 with a generic rifle controller
  * "Total Recoil" version with a replica Winchester controller featuring a CO2-powered blowback mechanism

Hardware components

Visette

The Visette was Virtuality's head-mounted display (HMD):

• The original Visette used in the 1000 series featured two Panasonic LCD screens with a resolution of 372x250 pixels per eye
• The Visette 2, used in the 2000 series, improved the resolution to 800x600 pixels per eye
• The headsets included integrated headphones for audio and a microphone for voice communication in multiplayer games
• The 1000 series Visette weighed approximately 3.5 kilograms, making it significantly heavier than modern VR headsets

Tracking systems

Virtuality used magnetic tracking systems to monitor players' movements:

• The 1000 series used a Polhemus "Fast Track" magnetic tracking system
• The 2000 series employed a Polhemus InsideTrak magnetic tracking card that could position multiple objects at a range up to 76 cm from a transmitter in 6 degrees of freedom (6DoF) with a static accuracy of about 1.3 cm and 2 degrees of rotation

Space Glove

In 1991, Virtuality released the "Space Glove," a VR data glove peripheral that could:

• Track the position of the user's hands
• Measure one angle of flex for each finger and two angles for the thumb using 12-bit A/D converters

Software and games

Virtuality developed numerous games and experiences for its systems, including:

• Dactyl Nightmare: The most iconic Virtuality game, a multiplayer first-person shooter featuring platforms where players competed in deathmatch or capture the flag modes. A pterodactyl would occasionally swoop down to pick up unwary players.
• Dactyl Nightmare 2 - Race For The Eggs!: The sequel to the popular original game
• Grid Busters: A robot shoot-em-up
• Hero: A locked door puzzle game
• Legend Quest: A fantasy adventure
• Battlesphere: A space battle game
• Exorex (originally titled "Heavy Metal"): A multiplayer mecha robot battle game
• Total Destruction: A stock car racing game
• VTOL: A Harrier jump jet simulator
• Flying Aces: A biplane dogfight simulator
• Zone Hunter: Released for the 2000 series
• Pac-Man VR: A virtual reality adaptation of the classic arcade game
• Zero Hour: A first-person on-rails shooter designed for the rifle controller of the 3000 series
• Quickshot Carnival: A shooting gallery game featuring clay shooting and other target practices for the "Total Recoil" version

Professional applications

Beyond entertainment, Virtuality developed several systems for professional use:

• Project Elysium: A virtual reality system developed in partnership with IBM for use in architectural, medical, and educational markets. It was a complete integrated VR workstation that included development software tools, the Visette 2 headset, and the V-Flexor hand-held controller.

• Ford Galaxy VR Experience: A VR attraction created in partnership with Creative Agency Imagination for the launch of the 1995 Ford Galaxy

• LIFFE Virtual Trading Floor: A virtual trading floor developed for the London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange

• Oil Rig Evacuation Simulator: A training system simulating the evacuation of an exploding oil rig

• Surgical Training Simulator: A system designed to test surgical skills in a virtual operating theater

Legacy and influence

Virtuality is widely recognized as one of the most significant pioneers of commercial virtual reality technology. The company's arcade machines represented the first exposure to virtual reality for many people in the early 1990s, creating a foundation for public understanding and interest in VR that would later support the modern VR revival.

While the company ultimately failed as a business venture, Virtuality demonstrated the potential for immersive virtual experiences and multiplayer virtual environments. Many of the concepts introduced in Virtuality's systems, such as 6DoF tracking, motion controllers, and networked multiplayer VR, remain central to modern VR technology.

Dr. Jonathan Waldern continued his work in immersive technology after Virtuality's bankruptcy. In 1997, he founded Retinal Displays, which produced head-mounted displays that were licensed to Japanese toy manufacturer Takara as the "Dynovisor" and to Philips as the "Scuba Visor," selling over 160,000 units combined.

Waldern later founded DigiLens Inc., a company specializing in diffractive optical waveguide technology for augmented reality displays. In January 2017, DigiLens raised $22 million in capital to develop AR displays no thicker than regular eyeglass lenses, with applications in automotive, aerospace, and military industries.

Today, the legacy of Virtuality is preserved by enthusiasts and museums, including the Retro Computer Museum in Leicester, which displays and maintains working Virtuality machines. VirtuosityTech, the current owner of the arcade machine assets, has announced plans to port classic Virtuality games to modern VR platforms, allowing a new generation to experience these pioneering virtual reality titles.

Virtuality's contribution to the development of VR has been summed up by Simon Marston, a VR collector who restores Virtuality machines: "Virtuality was the world leader in VR at one point; without the company, we must question if VR would have made its reappearance again in more recent years."