TV screens small enough to fit in front of your eyes? Yes - the idea is finally making a comeback. It’s hard to believe that more than 12 years have passed since wearable video displays first appeared to be ready for mass-market sale, a concept advanced most aggressively by video game makers such as Sega and Atari. Both companies developed “virtual reality goggles,” headsets with small LCD displays inside, positioned near enough your eyes to make you feel like you were “inside” specially designed games. After a public showing in 1993, Sega cancelled Sega VR (est. $200) in 1994, citing concerns over safety and nausea, while Atari never built the critical mass audience it needed to sell the more impressive Jaguar VR headset (est. $300) it showed in 1995. For its part, Nintendo famously failed with its actually-released Virtual Boy (1995, $180), which avoided safety issues by mounting on a flat surface and requiring you to crane your neck for viewing.

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