Video games present us with a wealth of futuristic and fantastical technology, some more practical than others. The potential for this tech in the real world could be limitless. Scientists and engineers: These are your future goals!
Things you may expect that didn’t make the list: The gravity gun from Half-Life 2, the Portal Gun from Portal, Metal Gear Solid‘s Stealth Camouflage and…The Portal Gun again.
6. Pokéballs
These hand-held spheres can capture, contain and release Pokémon of any size or weight at the whim of the user. How do they work? Nobody knows!
Does it cryogenically freeze the Pokémon? Does it shrink them? Do they have a little apartment in there with a tiny couch and very-mini-fridge?
Do Pokéballs work on inorganic matter? That would explain how trainers can carry a bicycle in their backpacks.
Either way, think of the real world implications of the mysterious transport devices for zookeepers or for shifting furniture!
5. Independantly discerning turrets
It’s not an exaggeration to say we’ve seen these in thousands of games. I wanted to exclude tech based around warfare, but you’ve got to realise just what a big deal these would be – we could win the war if we dropped a bunch of these into Afghanistan.
I mean they’re turrets that can differentiate between allies and enemies with 100% certainty. They don’t need to be remotely controlled, they don’t need to be plugged in and their inclusion in Bioshock proves they can be cheaply made with 1940s era technology.
I mean look: it’s just a machine gun and a torch strapped to a chair with Some Other Stuff. That last part is all you need to figure out, engineers of the future!
4. Zombies
(I would be remiss to talk about video game zombies and not link to the song Re: Your Brains by the very talented Jonathan Coulton of Portal fame.)
Whether it was the T-Virus, the G-Virus or any other experiment gone horribly wrong – zombies in video games often have man-made causes. Let’s be honest, we’ve all thought about what we’d do in the zombie apocalypse and it’s about time we actually had one.
All science has to do is invent a way for infected humans to die, rapidly decompose, rise up from the dead to shuffle around craving the taste of flesh with a bite that passes on the virus.
Oh and be able to withstand the loss of blood, limbs or vital organs, except the brain which somehow sustains the entire body and un-life.
Is that so hard, science?!
3. Super suits with regenerating health
While not as ubiquitous as turrets, you’ll probably recognise super soldier suits and their holographic visors from your Metroids, Crysises (Cryses?), Halos, etc.
The super suits usually offer an armoured defence, possibly augmented strength, a holographic display that keeps track of equipment and sometimes – regenerating health.
Excluding the way the visor would be a quicker way to check if you’d forgotten my keys, a suit that regenerates health has the greatest every-day possibilities. Throwing it on when you need to get over a cold, after a car accident, or even have your health bar race against cancer!
Small caveat is that it needs to have all this while being lightweight and flexible. Y’know…For running and those pesky platform sections.
2. The Enertron
The Enertron is an invention hailing from the 2300AD ruins in the world of Chrono Trigger. You climb in and within a few moments it grants all the benefits of a full night’s sleep. Even if we forget the standard JRPG benefit of healing all wounds, this has incredible practicality for the real world.
Exam tomorrow? Can’t sleep? Haven’t studied enough? Get a nights sleep in mere minutes and stride into the exam fully refreshed and wide awake, with an extra night’s worth of revision.
Holidaying in a new country, arrive in the morning horribly jetlagged? Pop in the local Enertron!
Just need to get more stuff done but need sleep for work in the morning? Enertron! It is the answer to everything!
…But you’re still hungry.
1. Jetpack
Because come on!
They’ve been a pop-culture staple since the 1920s or something and people have been working on making them work for about 50 years.
How on earth have are they not advanced enough to be available as personal transport yet? It’s not like anything could possibly go wrong with that!
Grimly Enthusiastic 
2 Comments
The bikes that Pokeymans trainers use are folding bikes, THAT’S how they get them in their backpacks, and if you read the descriptions of items properly in the games you would know this too ;D
I really want a super soldier suit, and maybe an Enertron. In fact I probably really need an Enertron.
And there’s one personal Jetpack in the world apparently, some guy from the south of England made it in his garden shed, and James May had a go. (I also want a jetpack … Hel;l just make and give me everything on the damn list )
Yes, The Enertron, yes.
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[…] Credit for most of these quotes goes to IMDB and Gamefaqs. Perusing them for these games was like a trip down memory lane. In a jetpack. […]