Wave goodbye to split-screen gaming with this high-tech multiplayer display

As fun as online gaming is, it will never be able to match the sheer joy of playing games with people in the same room. 

But the biggest problem with local multiplayer (well, aside from getting four people into the same place) is having to put up with a split-screen that carves your beautifully large TV into four tiny sections, one for each player's perspective. 

The MirraViz MultiView Display System could be the answer to our prayers. It's a panel that's able to play multiple video sources at the same time, and you'll see a completely different screen depending on where you're sitting in the room. 

Directing the photons

MirraViz claims the screen works by directing the panel's photons (read: light) towards specific points in a room, rather than blasting light across a wide angle. 

This light is directed by a series of projectors which each user would then sit near in order to see that specific image. 

The obvious use-case for the technology is multiplayer gaming, but it could also be used to allow people to share a TV for multiple reasons. Two people could watch two different movies at a time, or one person could catch up on a TV show while another games. 

This isn't the first time a company has tried to solve this particular problem. Previously, the technology that allowed 3D TVs to show a different image to each of your eyes was used to show different images to two different people. 

However, the difference here is that this system is entirely glasses-free, making it potentially much more user-friendly - even if the system does rely on you mounting multiple projectors around your living room. 

All this technology doesn't come cheap with screens starting at $699 for a 55-inch screen, but if you constantly find that people are fighting over the biggest screen in your house then you could find that the set pays for itself. 

Jon Porter

Jon Porter is the ex-Home Technology Writer for TechRadar. He has also previously written for Practical Photoshop, Trusted Reviews, Inside Higher Ed, Al Bawaba, Gizmodo UK, Genetic Literacy Project, Via Satellite, Real Homes and Plant Services Magazine, and you can now find him writing for The Verge.

Latest in Televisions
Google Chromecast 2
Google is finally rolling out a fix for broken Chromecasts – just as new bugs appear on the Chromecast with Google TV
Sony UBP-X700/K shown from the front
Sony launches new version of the best cheap 4K Blu-ray player that drops the streaming tech – but the price looks odd
Samsung, Roku, and Hisense TV screens
I review TVs for a living, and here are the 3 best budget TVs you can buy today
Eight Samsung TVs mounted to the wall showing different basketball games
Samsung is offering you 8 new TVs in one bundle for March Madness, in case you want to watch all games at once like a Bond villain’s lair
OLED Philips Roku TV
The new 65-inch Roku OLED TV is already under $1,000, and that's a price I can get behind
close-up of soundbar mesh with Sonos branding
Sonos reportedly cancels its streaming video player, but I hope it resurrects one part of it, because it could be huge
Latest in News
Image showing detail of the Leica D-Lux 8
Still can't get a Fujifilm X100VI? This premium Leica compact costs less, and it's in stock
Man using iMessage on an iPhone
Apple will finally enable encrypted RCS messages between iOS and Android, and it's about time
Jason Sudeikis' Ted Lasso pointing at someone in Ted Lasso season 2
Believe it, baby: Ted Lasso season 4 is officially in development for Apple TV+ and Jason Sudeikis will reprise his role as the titular soccer coach
Quordle on a smartphone held in a hand
Quordle hints and answers for Saturday, March 15 (game #1146)
NYT Strands homescreen on a mobile phone screen, on a light blue background
NYT Strands hints and answers for Saturday, March 15 (game #377)
NYT Connections homescreen on a phone, on a purple background
NYT Connections hints and answers for Saturday, March 15 (game #643)