The Virtual Boy is a 32-bit portable video game console made by Nintendo and released in 1995. It was called the first system that could create 3D images, using a red-only screen viewed through special glasses. Games used a technique called parallax to make the images look deeper. The console did not sell well, and Nintendo stopped making it and its games in 1996 after only 22 games were released.

The Virtual Boy was developed for four years under the name VR32. Nintendo partnered with a company called Reflection Technology to use its 3D display technology, which had been studied since the 1980s. To prepare for making many units, Nintendo built a special factory in China. However, rising costs, health concerns about the screen, and focusing on another Nintendo project, the Nintendo 64, led to reducing the project’s size. Nintendo’s main game designer, Shigeru Miyamoto, was not heavily involved in its creation. The system was released in 1995 before it was fully ready to prioritize the Nintendo 64.

Critics gave the Virtual Boy poor reviews, and it failed commercially even after lowering its price. Its failure was due to its high cost, unattractive red and black screen, weak 3D effect, uncomfortable design, lack of true portability, and reports of health problems like headaches, dizziness, and eye strain. Later, 3D technology was used successfully in video game consoles, such as Nintendo’s 3DS. The Virtual Boy is Nintendo’s least successful console, selling only 770,000 units. For comparison, Nintendo’s second-least successful console, the Wii U, sold 13.6 million units.

History

In 1985, a company called Reflection Technology, Inc. (RTI) created a new display technology called Scanned Linear Array. This technology used red LED lights and was used in a prototype called Private Eye, a 12-inch display that showed a tank game. RTI wanted to find partners to help turn this technology into a product for sale. They showed Private Eye to companies like Mattel and Hasbro, but Sega refused because the display only used one color and had problems with motion sickness.

Nintendo was interested in Private Eye. Gunpei Yokoi, a leader at Nintendo, believed the technology was special and hard for other companies to copy. He thought the console could help Nintendo become known as an innovator and encourage creative games. Nintendo called the project "VR32" and made a special deal with RTI to use their display technology. At the same time, Nintendo’s R&D3 team was working on the Nintendo 64, while other teams explored new ideas.

It took four years to develop the VR32, and Nintendo built a factory in China to make the console. Yokoi chose red LED lights because they were the cheapest and created a deep, immersive black background. A color LCD system was too expensive and caused problems with moving images during tests. Nintendo also removed head-tracking features because of concerns about motion sickness, eye health in children, and new laws about product safety. The final design was a heavy, stationary unit with a shielded screen.

Nintendo showed the Virtual Boy’s abilities through demonstrations. One example was a driving demo that showed a first-person view of roads and trees. This demo was shown at events like E3 and CES in 1995. Early versions of the console were displayed at trade shows in 1994. Nintendo claimed it would sell 3 million consoles and 14 million games by 1996. A demo of a Star Fox game showed an Arwing flying with cinematic camera angles, similar to the later Star Fox 2 game.

The Virtual Boy faced challenges because Nintendo focused on other projects, like the Nintendo 64, and had little help from its lead game designer, Shigeru Miyamoto. According to a book by David Sheff, Gunpei Yokoi did not want the Virtual Boy to be released in its final form but Nintendo pushed it to market to save resources for the Nintendo 64.

The New York Times first wrote about the Virtual Boy on November 13, 1994, and Nintendo officially announced it the next day. The company said the Virtual Boy would "totally immerse players into their own private universe." Early reports focused on the technology rather than the games. The console was shown at Nintendo’s trade show in 1994 and later at the Consumer Electronics Show in 1995.

Nintendo priced the Virtual Boy at $179.95 (about $390 today), which was more expensive than the Game Boy but less powerful. It was not meant to replace the Game Boy because it needed a stable surface and blocked the player’s side vision. Some called it the next step in 3D image viewers like the View-Master.

The Virtual Boy was released in Japan on July 21, 1995, in North America on August 14, 1995, and in Latin America in September 1995. It was not sold in PAL markets. Nintendo included Mario’s Tennis with every Virtual Boy sold in North America. They expected to sell 3 million consoles and 14 million games but released the system later than other 32-bit consoles like PlayStation and Saturn.

Nintendo of America predicted selling 1.5 million consoles and 2.5 million games by the end of 1995. By December 1995, they had sold 350,000 units. Sales were disappointing, and the last game released for the Virtual Boy was 3D Tetris in March 1996. More games were announced but never made. Nintendo stopped selling the Virtual Boy in Japan in December 1995 and in North America in August 1996.

In 1996, Nintendo reported selling 770,000 units worldwide, with 140,000 in Japan. Fewer than 13,000 units were sold by December 1996. The Virtual Boy is listed as the fifth worst-selling console in GamePro’s 2007 ranking.

Nintendo spent $25 million on advertising the Virtual Boy, showing it as a new kind of gaming experience. Ads used images of cavemen and bright colors to show its evolution from older consoles. They targeted older players instead of children, calling it a type of virtual reality. Nintendo focused on the technology but did not explain the games.

To help people try the Virtual Boy, Nintendo partnered with Blockbuster and NBC. A $5 million campaign encouraged people to rent the console for $10 at Blockbuster stores. Renters could return it for a $10 discount on a purchase. This promotion gave 750,000 units to rent but hurt the console’s reputation because many found it unimpressive. By 1996, Blockbuster sold the Virtual Boy for $50 each. The campaign was seen as a failure.

Hardware

The Virtual Boy uses a CPU made by NEC called the V810, which is a 32-bit RISC chip. This makes the Virtual Boy Nintendo's first system with a 32-bit processor. The system uses two 1×224 linear arrays, one for each eye. These arrays are scanned across the eye's field of view using flat mirrors that move quickly back and forth. The movement of these mirrors creates a humming sound inside the unit. Each game cartridge includes a yes/no option to pause automatically every 15–30 minutes, allowing players to rest and avoid eye strain. Stereo audio is provided by one speaker for each ear.

The Virtual Boy was the first video game console to display stereoscopic 3D graphics, which it marketed as a form of virtual reality. Unlike most games that use monocular cues to create the illusion of 3D on a flat screen, the Virtual Boy uses parallax to create the illusion of depth. Players look into an eyeshade made of neoprene on the front of the machine and view a monochromatic red image through a projector that resembles eyeglasses.

The display has two monochrome red screens, each with 384×224 pixels and two bits of color (four shades). The frame rate is about 50.27 Hz. An oscillating mirror turns a single column of 224 red LEDs into a full image. Nintendo said that a color display would have caused "jumpy" images and been too expensive. Color displays would require red, green, and blue LEDs, but blue LEDs were very costly at the time. This, along with other issues, led to the decision to use only red.

The Virtual Boy was designed for players to sit at a table. Nintendo planned but never released a harness for standing play.

The Virtual Boy's focus on 3D movement requires the controller to operate along a Z-axis. The controller has two digital D-pads arranged in an M-shape, similar to the Nintendo 64 controller. Players hold the controller on either side, with a power supply that slides onto the back, where six AA batteries are housed. These batteries can be replaced with a wall adapter using a "slide-on" attachment.

In traditional 2D games, the two directional pads are interchangeable. However, in 3D games like Red Alarm, 3D Tetris, or Teleroboxer, each pad controls different features. The controller's symmetry allows left-handed players to reverse controls, similar to the Atari Lynx.

During development, Nintendo planned to link systems for competitive play. A Virtual Boy link cable was being developed as late as the third quarter of 1996. However, the system's EXT port, located below the controller port, was never officially supported because no multiplayer games were released. Two games were intended to use the EXT port for multiplayer features, but these features were removed from Waterworld and Faceball was canceled.

Games

Nintendo first displayed three games for the system's launch and planned to release two or three games each month after that. However, because the system was used for a short time, only 22 games were released in total. Of these, 19 games were available in Japan, and 14 were available in North America. Support from outside companies was very limited compared to earlier Nintendo systems. Gunpei Yokoi, a Nintendo leader, explained that Nintendo's president, Hiroshi Yamauchi, had decided to show the Virtual Boy hardware only to a small group of outside developers before its public introduction. This was done to prevent low-quality games from being made for the system.

When asked if Virtual Boy games would be available for download on the Virtual Console for the Nintendo 3DS, Reggie Fils-Aimé, president of Nintendo of America, said he could not answer. He explained that he was not familiar with the Virtual Console platform and would struggle to support the idea of adding these games to it.

A group of hobbyists on Planet Virtual Boy created software for the Virtual Boy. Three games that had not been officially released before—Bound High, Niko-Chan Battle (the Japanese version of Faceball), and Virtual League Baseball 2 (a follow-up to Virtual League Baseball)—were shared online. Two more unreleased games, D-Hopper and Zero Racers, are planned to be officially released through the Nintendo Classics service in 2026.

Reception

The Virtual Boy received poor reviews from critics and did not sell well. It failed for several reasons, including its high cost, the discomfort it caused during use, and a marketing campaign that many people thought was poorly planned.

At the Shoshinkai 1994 trade show, gamers who tried the system said the Mario demo was not realistic, not in full color, and did not adjust the image when players turned their heads. In an editorial from Electronic Gaming Monthly, Ed Semrad predicted the Virtual Boy would not sell well at launch because of its black-and-white screen, lack of true portability, weak selection of games, and high price. Next Generation’s editors also doubted the system’s success after the show, saying, “But who will buy it? It’s not portable, it’s awkward to use, it’s 100% antisocial (unlike multiplayer SNES/Genesis games), it’s too expensive, and—most importantly—the ‘VR’ (3D effect) doesn’t improve the games at all: it’s just a novelty.”

After its release, some reviews praised the Virtual Boy’s unique features but questioned its usefulness and long-term success. The Los Angeles Times said the gameplay felt “familiar and strange.” The column praised the motion and graphics but said the hardware was hard to use and not portable. Later, the same reviewer called the system somewhat antisocial but remained hopeful about its future. Next Generation said the Virtual Boy was “unusual and innovative,” like a gamble similar to the Game Boy, but it was harder to see it achieving the same level of success. They noted that while the display and 3D effect were impressive, the black-and-white screen and possible harm to young players’ eyes limited its appeal. They also said the game collection was okay but missed opportunities by not including popular Nintendo games like The Legend of Zelda and Metroid, and the Mario games were not in the same style as the most successful games in the series.

Although Nintendo promised a virtual reality experience, the black-and-white screen limited the system’s ability to create a sense of immersion. Many reviewers said the 3D features were more of a gimmick than a real improvement, as the games were mostly two- or one-dimensional. The Washington Post said that even when a game seemed 3D, it used “simple graphics that did not look realistic.” Yokoi, the system’s inventor, said the Virtual Boy worked best with action and puzzle games, but these types of games only offered limited immersion. Critics also pointed out the lack of head-tracking, which made it hard for players to feel fully involved in the game worlds. Instead, players used a controller in the same way as traditional two-dimensional games. Boyer said the console struggled to combine the features of home consoles and virtual reality devices. While the system used some basic virtual reality techniques, it did not include any feedback from the player’s body movements.

Many reviewers reported physical discomfort while using the Virtual Boy. Bill Frischling of The Washington Post said he felt “dizziness, nausea, and headaches.” Reviewers blamed these issues on the black-and-white screen and the uncomfortable design. Scientists warned that long-term use might cause more serious problems, and magazines like Electronic Engineering Times and TechWeb suggested that using immersive headsets like the Virtual Boy could lead to sickness, flashbacks, or even permanent brain damage. In the years after the Virtual Boy failed, Nintendo openly admitted its mistake. Howard Lincoln, chairman of Nintendo of America, said simply that the Virtual Boy “just failed.”

Legacy

According to Game Over, Nintendo blamed the Virtual Boy's problems directly on its creator, Gunpei Yokoi. The Virtual Boy's poor sales reportedly played a role in Yokoi leaving Nintendo, though he had already planned to retire years earlier. Before retiring, he completed the successful Game Boy Pocket, which was released shortly before his departure. According to his colleague Yoshihiro Taki, Yokoi had decided to retire at age 50 to spend time doing what he wanted but delayed his plans. Nintendo stated that Yokoi's departure had nothing to do with the Virtual Boy's sales. The New York Times noted that Yokoi remained connected with Nintendo after leaving. After leaving, Yokoi started his own company, Koto, and worked with Bandai to create the WonderSwan, a handheld system that competed with the Game Boy.

The Virtual Boy's focus on special effects and touch feedback returned in later years. The company that originally designed the Virtual Boy, Reflection Technology, Inc., was reportedly very hurt financially by its poor performance, and by 1997, its operations had greatly decreased.

The Nintendo 3DS was released in 2011 as a handheld console that showed 3D images without requiring special glasses. Before its launch, Shigeru Miyamoto discussed the Virtual Boy. He said it used wireframe graphics, which are simple outlines, and that these effects were mainly used for 2D games with layered backgrounds. He noted that wireframe graphics were not visually appealing and that during the development of the Nintendo 64, he had decided not to use them for character designs. Miyamoto also said the Virtual Boy was more of a novelty and should not have used the Nintendo name so prominently.

In February 2016, Tatsumi Kimishima said Nintendo was "looking into" virtual reality but explained it would take time to understand the technology. In February 2017, he stated the company was "studying" VR and planned to add it to the Nintendo Switch once it was clear how users could play for long periods without discomfort. Nintendo later introduced a VR accessory for the Switch as part of Labo, a set of cardboard toys that use the console's hardware and Joy-Con controllers. In this case, the Switch's screen is viewed through goggles with special lenses.

Hobbyists adapted the Virtual Boy to other displays. Emulation allowed the use of modern 3D goggles like Google Cardboard, Samsung Gear VR, and Oculus Rift in 2016. In 2018, a hobbyist named Furrtek created a board that replaced the Virtual Boy's display circuitry, enabling it to be played on a VGA monitor or television. On February 25, 2024, a homemade Virtual Boy emulator for the Nintendo 3DS was released, called "Red Viper," allowing Virtual Boy games to be played with 3D visuals.

Nintendo has included references to the Virtual Boy in other games. For example, in Tomodachi Life, a trailer for the game shows Mii characters humorously worshipping the Virtual Boy. In Luigi's Mansion 3, Luigi uses a device called the "Virtual Boo" to access maps and game information, following earlier devices that referenced the Game Boy Color and first-generation Nintendo DS. The device uses a red and black color scheme, and Professor E. Gadd claims it would "fly off the shelves." As of 2024, Virtual Boy merchandise is available at the Nintendo Museum in Kyoto, Japan.

On September 12, 2025, Nintendo announced it would re-release Virtual Boy games through the Nintendo Classics service, available to subscribers of the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack. The system uses two side-by-side images to create a 3D effect and requires the Switch to be placed inside a case or a plastic mount based on the Virtual Boy's design. The Labo VR goggles are also compatible. The first seven games were released on February 17, 2026, with 17 total games planned for the service over time (16 in non-Japanese regions). This includes previously unreleased games like Dragon Hopper and Zero Racers. A future update will allow the games to be displayed in colors other than red.