The Netflix series 3 Body Problem showcases cutting-edge VR technology, causing viewers to speculate about the potential of such advancements.

In the Netflix series 3 Body Problem, characters use a remarkably lifelike VR game, prompting viewers to question whether such technology could exist. 3 Body Problem is based on Cixin Liu’s book of the same name. The Netflix show was adapted from the Hugo Award-winning Chinese book by the creators of Game of Thrones, David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. 3 Body Problem‘s story revolves around the consequences of Ye Wenjie’s fateful decision in the past.

A group of scientists is then forced to confront the upcoming threat to humanity’s future while also grappling with challenges in the present. The cast of 3 Body Problem brings to life a world with various advanced technological elements, like navigating sophons, a particle accelerator, nanofibers, and VR headsets. The VR headset depicted in the series offers users an unparalleled level of immersion, sparking speculation among audiences about the potential reality of such technology.

How The VR Game Works In 3 Body Problem

A Wireless Headset Is Used To Access The Game

In 3 Body Problem episode 1, Jin Cheng attends the funeral of her friend Vera Ye. During the funeral, Vera’s mother, Ye Wenjie, mentions that her daughter had been using a VR headset in the weeks leading up to her death and gives the headset to Jin. When Jin puts on the headset, she is immersed in a hyper-realistic world set in the Shang Dynasty, which gives her goosebumps due to its lifelike sensations. However, when Jack Rooney tries her headset, he is continuously killed and can feel his neck getting slit each time he enters the game.

However, when he is formally invited to play the game, he is transported to his own immersive experience set in Tudor England. This indicates that the headset recognizes the user and removes those who shouldn’t be in the simulation. The simulation offers a multisensory experience, allowing users to taste dirt, smell body order, and feel their surroundings and other characters. Once the VR headset is activated, it establishes a neural connection with the user, tracking their brain activity and immersing them in imagery and experiences similar to lucid dreaming. Within the game, players must unravel the mysteries of the world and save its inhabitants.

What The Point Of The Game In 3 Body Problem Really Is

Players Must Solve The Mystery Of The World

Initially, the objective of the game is to solve the mystery of the world, with the players advancing to the next level as they make discoveries. The inhabitants of this world experience both stable and chaotic eras, which impede their societal progress. To ensure survival, they undergo a process of dehydration during chaotic periods and rehydration when stability returns. Players work to find a way to predict when these cycles will come so that society can advance without being destroyed.

In the first level, Jin establishes the superiority of science over mysticism, and in the second level, she uncovers the fundamental structure of the three-body star system. Jin says, “If our planet revolves around one of the suns in a stable orbit, that’s a stable era. However, if one of the other suns snatches our planet away, we wander through the gravitational fields of all three suns. That’s a Chaotic era.” In the third level, Jin realizes that the point of the game is not to solve the three-body problem, but to save the people on the planet.

By the fourth level, they learn that the three-body problem is unsolvable, and every civilization on that planet is destined for chaos. The only hope for survival lies in abandoning their planet to find a new home. It is revealed that the VR game was created by the San-Ti, an advanced alien race, who are working to recruit the Earth’s best scientists to their cause to help ease their arrival to Earth.

How 3 Body Problem’s VR Headset Scenes Were Filmed

They Had To Create An Immerse Experience That Still Felt Like A Simulation

In an interview with Inverse, Derek Tsang, the director of the first two episodes of 3 Body Problem, discussed the challenge of bringing the VR world to life. He explained while filming 3 Body Problem‘s VR world there was a delicate balance of putting the characters in a highly advanced immersive experience, while still having it register as a simulation at the end of the day. They did not shoot outside or against a Volume, which is a technology used in film and television production that uses LED panels to create a virtual world.

Tsang explained that their focus was on ensuring the lighting reflected the presence of the three suns on the actor’s faces, which would have to be done on camera. Their solution involved utilizing a “low-rent AR wall” composed of thousands of LED panels, which gave them control over the light’s movements to simulate sunrises and sunsets. Once they figured out the lighting with the close-up camera work, VFX took care of the background environment. Actress Jess Hong, who plays Jin Cheng in 3 Body Problem, discusses the filming process for the VR scenes with Virgin Radio UK.

She described how the actors had to rely on their imaginations during scenes featuring VR headsets. Hong spoke about how there would be days when she would enter the studio and there wouldn’t be anything, but other times there would be half of a castle that she could interact with. Using the various technical elements and minor set pieces, the show achieved a lifelike VR experience without veering into hyper-realism, which brought the three-body problem game scenes to life.

Is 3 Body Problem’s VR Headset Technology Possible?

This Technology Would Have To Interact With All The Senses Without Wires

A burning question from the show is whether it’s feasible to develop VR technology that fully engages sound, smell, touch, taste, and feeling all by putting on a headset. In a Netflix interview with physicist Dr. Matt Kenzie, the science advisor for the TV show 3 Body Problem, he shared his thoughts on the subject. He states that the possibility of a headset of 3 Body Problem‘s caliber emerging in our lifetime is doubtful. According to Dr. Kenzie, achieving such an advanced immersion experience would have to disrupt brain functions.

While VR technology today allows people to see and hear the virtual world around them, having it affect all senses seems to be a challenge for the foreseeable future. Dr. Kenzie suggests that for a headset to allow users to experience all senses, it would need to manipulate neurological signals in the brain. Although scientists can induce sensations of touch and taste in individuals during experiments, the wireless ability of the 3 Body Problem headset remains beyond the reach of current technology. Despite the awe-inspiring depiction of immersive VR in 3 Body Problem, developing a wireless headset capable of such feats seems unlikely.