Whatever happened to virtual reality? Trumpeted as the wave of the future, its bulky headsets were supposed to plunge us into an immersive world that would make our own look drab by comparison. VR machines briefly sprouted up in malls around the country in the 1990s (to the delight of stoned teenagers, mostly), but discerning gamers never took to it and the excitement seems to have fizzled out. Will the same thing happen to the current push for 3D? Hype about 3D gaming has risen sharply with the increase in popularity of 3D films since 2009 — a trend that may be reversing itself. In the game world, the buzz hit a fever pitch this past Monday night with the unveiling of Sony's upcoming 3D HDTV, built to be compatible with the PlayStation 3. Although the price seems attractive, the silent-weapon-for-quiet-wars feature is a new display mode that eliminates split-screen, allowing two players to see totally separate full-screen images at the same time. Has Sony finally delivered the breakthrough device that will drive 3D adoption? Despite the device's promise, there are still a lot of reasons why the PlayStation 3D HDTV may not be the game-changer Sony is hoping for. Those reasons after the jump.

We know 3D glasses are uncomfortable, often heavy and expensive, but for better or worse, some people enjoy 3D content and they need extra pairs for others to enjoy it with them. Nvidia's new 3D Vision glasses start at an affordable $99, but bring back another annoyance: the wire.

Most people think filming in 3D is a simple job, but it's more than just slapping on a second camera lens and then shooting. Scenes have to be designed for 3D in order to achieve that pop-in-your-face experience. TechRadar caught up with the explosion-loving Michael Bay and hell, even he admits that filming 3D is royal pain in the rear.

A lot of people do not really like 3D movies. But with many new movies, seeing them without 3D isn't really an option. Enter 2D glasses, which strip the 3D out of 3D movies for your viewing pleasure.