Earlier today, we reported on a new video from Do you know how to play games? that sheds light on the Virtual Boy F-Zero spin-off Racer number 0was supposed to be just a bunch of screenshots but seems to have been completed in its entirety.
The source is former Nintendo of America production associate, Jim Wornell, in the same interview, discussed the rather harsh testing process for the Virtual Boy console itself:
When they were checking people out for Virtual Boy, they showed us this… have you ever seen the movie Clockwork Orange? The scene where the person is pinned down in a chair, and their eyelids open? That’s like testing Virtual Boy. They’ll dilate our pupils, they’ll let us sit with our heads in something like this, and they’ll shine a light in our pupils. They’ll have these plastic rods, they’ll just touch our eyes – and they’ll say ‘it’s okay, no matter what, don’t blink for a minute.’
They put us through the weirdest tests, just to make sure I guess to make sure the thing is safe to use. They would blow air into our eyes, they would ask us to play a Virtual Boy test suite for 10-15 minutes, then we had to rest. Then they will open our eyes again. Two or three rounds of these bizarre, inhuman torture tests just to make sure this thing isn’t going to kill me, blind me, or whatever.
But um… yes, it’s interesting.
In case you didn’t know, A Clockwork Orange is Anthony Burgess’ 1962 book, which was made into a movie by the legendary Stanley Kubrick in 1971. Set in turbulent England, the book and film focus It focuses on Alex’s character unruly and the government’s attempt to cure his level of bluff violence with an experimental aversion therapy known as the “Ludovico Technique”. In one scene, Alex’s eyelids are forced open and he has to watch scenes of war and conflict, eventually becoming nauseous with the scene and “curing” his aggressive nature.
While Nintendo’s methods may sound a bit extreme, it’s probably right to be cautious with the Virtual Boy. The system is notorious for causing headaches after prolonged use, and when Reflection Technology – the company that makes the imaging technology that makes the system possible – ran into problems. Sega before selling it to Nintendo, there were some problems.
Former Sega president Tom Kalinske explains:
A big problem is that children get sick, vomit or fall while using this device. We couldn’t take that chance.
However, at least Virtual Boy has a famous fan.
You can read more about the amazing history of Virtual Boy this.
