Ready Player One fans call out similarities in Apple's virtual reality announcement

Apple is ready to venture into virtual reality

Roxy Simons
·Entertainment Editor
·3-min read
Apple's new Vision Pro virtual reality headset is displayed during Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) at the Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California, on June 5, 2023. Apple on Monday unveiled its first-ever virtual reality headset challenging Facebook-owner Meta in a market that has yet to tempt users beyond videogamers and tech geeks. The release was the most significant product launch by the iconic iPhone maker since it unveiled the Apple Watch in 2015. (Photo by Josh Edelson / AFP) (Photo by JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images)
The Apple Vision Pro headset has drawn comparisons to Steven Spielberg's film Ready Player One on social media. (AFP via Getty Images)

Apple's new product, the Apple Vision Pro, is being described as the start of a “new era of spatial computing” but the mixed reality headset has already drawn hilarious comparisons to Ready Player One.

The company's new product was announced by Apple at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference, where it was revealed the headset will bring the virtual reality to you.

Entering virtual reality is something often depicted in science-fiction books and films like Ready Player One, which was adapted by Steven Spielberg in 2018 from Ernest Cline's book of the same name.

Read more: Apple unveils long-awaited mixed reality headset, Apple Vision Pro, at WWDC 2023

In Ready Player One, the public escape the real world through the virtual reality simulation OASIS and the story follows lead character Wade Watts as enters the game to win ownership of the company by finding the Golden Easter egg before anyone else does.

Given the similarities to the headsets, there were several users on Twitter who felt compelled to compare the Apple Vision Pro announcement video with a scene from Ready Player One.

The video clips are strikingly similar, from the way the user is seen putting on their headset to the way in which the virtual reality comes to life around them.

Another Twitter user shared: "I'm still surprised at how Apple's Vision Pro design looks so similar to Spielberg's Ready Player One headset."

Read more: Steven Spielberg is 'a true gamer', says 'Halo' producer Kiki Wolfkill

One user said that they liked the similarities between the product and the design of the headset in Spielberg's film, writing: "Excited about Apple's new Vision Pro! It appears to draw inspiration from Ready Player One, bringing us closer to a captivating virtual reality experience. Thrilling times ahead for tech and VR enthusiasts!"

One person also shared a side-by-side image of the Ready Player One poster with a picture of someone using the Apple Vision Pro.

There was one user who joked about the forthcoming headset: "Apple’s engineers decided to take inspiration on Ready Player One and Black Mirror, and created Vision Pro. I’m not sure if the product’s terrifying or if I’m just influenced by dark sci-fi."

Read more: Tron at 40: The groundbreaking Disney flop that stood the test of time

Another person shared: "Apple Vision Pro is cool & weird at the same time. If someone is around, you can see them. Also, they can see your eyes if you're not fully immersed.

<p>Steven Spielberg moves from the earnest ‘The Post’, to the blockbuster friendly adaptation of Ernest Cline’s pop culture-heavy YA novel. Expect cameos from the Delorean and many other 80s icons. </p>
Steven Spielberg Ready Player One adapts Ernest Cline’s YA novel of the same name, which depicts a dystopian world where people escape reality through VR (Warner Bros. Pictures).

"We just stepped toward Minority Report and Ready Player One coming to life. Also, the memes will be glorious."

At £2,800 ($3,499) the Apple Vision Pro is not exactly affordable, but the idea of spatial computing is one that might have mainstream appeal. Even Mark Zuckerberg is entering the world of virtual reality with Meta's Quest 3 VR headset.

Watch: How performance capture brought the OASIS to life in 'Ready Player One'

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