Goodbye red eye: play Nintendo’s Virtual Boy on Google Cardboard
Virtual reality OG respawns on your smartphone
Forget Oculus Rift and HTC Vive – the real granddaddy of virtual reality was Nintendo’s Virtual Boy.
The bulky red and black headset was hardly a phenomenon, though. In fact it was a disaster, never making its way beyond North America and Japan.
It’s practically a collector’s item now, commanding obscene prices on eBay, but you don’t have to break the bank to try it out – thanks to a clever hack from Reddit user The-King-of-Spain.
He’s found a way to make the Virtual Boy play nicely with Google Cardboard, giving you the VR experience without the 20-year-old plastic headset. Sorry, iPhone owners – this one is strictly Android-only right now.
You’ll need to download thew RetroArch emulator, make a few settings changes following The King of Spain’s guide, and slap your phone into one of google’s Cardboard VR headsets.
Under the hood, RetroArch takes the Virtual Boy’s anaglyph 3D image and splits it into side-by-side stereo, which works beautifully on Google Cardboard.
Basically, it means you can get your game on with a Bluetooth controller, and reportedly without the mothion sickness that could rear its ugly head when playing the original console.
The best bit? You don’t have to worry about searing your retinas off with ungodly bright red images. The emulator can swap it out for a less painful colour instead.
Naturally none of this has been given the Nintendo nod of approval, and getting hold of Virtual Boy ROMs is legally dubious, but if you’ve ever wanted to see why the Virtual Boy was such a short-lived flop, this is probably your best chance.
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Tom Morgan-Freelander
Deputy Editor 
