The First Virtual Reality Arcade Game Is Being Reimagined For Project Morpheus

Battlezone is considered by many to be the first virtual reality game. It was released by Atari in 1980 and had vector graphics depicting tanks shooting other tanks. But what makes it part of the virtual reality canon is that it had a “viewing goggle” built into the arcade cabinet that you looked through in order to view the game – it was meant to act as if a tank’s periscope view.

That was 35 years ago. Now it has been announced that Battlezone is being reimagined for Project Morpheus on PlayStation 4 by the creators of the original game – Jason and Chris Kingsley of Rebellion, who bought the Battlezone IP off Atari back in 2013.

As the reveal trailer shows, this new version of Battlezone has full 3D graphics that retain some of the bold lines and neon glow of the original game, but adds new enemies such as flocks of flying drones to shoot out of the air. It seems to be set in a future metropolis full of towers and glassy flooring.

Interior and exterior locations are shown in the screenshots, with the former showcasing what appear to be mobile turrets and hover vehicles that you’ll no doubt have to shoot down. Other than that, all else that can be said about Battlezone for now is that it’s still played from a first-person view and the explosions have certainly been given an upgrade.