Oculus Rift meets the 2014 Toyota Corolla

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If you grew up in the 90's, chances are you have fond memories for a lot of things—Pogs, Ecto Cooler, and Super Soakers, just to name a few. Remember visiting arcades and playing every single racing game there was? Cruisin' USA, Ridge Racer, Sega Rally Championship...the amount of great games (with equally impressive 3D environments, or so we thought at the time) seemed endless.

Those were certainly the days, and Toyota seems to have gotten a kick of that nostalgia recently, too. They tasked Ogeeku, a team of game developers, to re-create those memories using the Oculus Rift tool, a virtual reality headset for gaming. However, unlike most racing games where the goal is to accelerate as fast as possible, they wanted the emphasis to be on what it feels like to actually drive a car. To accomplish that, they modeled everything after the driving experience of the all-new, redesigned 2014 Toyota Corolla. The end result? A retro yet futuristic simulation they're referring to as "CorollaCade"!

The team put everything together in just under a month. Take a look at the video below to see how they did it-

Besides the amazing trip down memory lane, the other great news about CorollaCade being built is that Toyota hopes to make additional machines in the future (likely with more resources and development time) that the public could use to get the experience of a virtual reality test drive.

Think the CorollaCade takes four quarters to play? What Toyota should they feature for their next virtual reality simulation?

What's Up With This Prius?

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If you're the type of person that likes to stand out, this polka dotted Prius would definitely be up your alley (otherwise, you may want to stick with the original). The one in the front reminds me of a mushroom, and the black/white one is like a dalmatian. My only guess for the red/green one in the back is Christmas. As for the black and pink, I've got nothin'!
Seeing as how Japanese culture likes to emphasize cuteness, I wonder if that's the intention they were going for, or if these were modified for a specific event.

Would you drive a car like this that's designed to get attention?

Why does the drive back always seem shorter?

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If you've taken multiple road trips, you've surely noticed a few quirks from your travels. For example, the more people in your car, the harder it is to drive without stopping for constant bathroom breaks. I personally consider it an achievement if my entire party can make it without having to stop, though my success rate is pretty lackluster. As the character Brian Fantana from Anchorman famously put it, "60% of the time, it works every time!" (I've probably gotten this particular achievement one out of every five trips I've made).

However, the biggest phenomena we experience during our road trips is on the drive back. For some reason, it always feels much shorter than the drive there. I make several trips from St. Louis to Chicago every year, and each time, the drive there always seems like this long, adventurous process, whereas the drive back feels like smooth sailing, with less reliance on pod casts, counting farm animals, or playing word games with friends to keep ourselves entertained!
So why is that? Are we speeding? Maybe time traveling? There's got to be an explanation.

Turns out, there is a scientific reason for why road trips seem shorter on the drive back! Unfortunately, the reason the drive back seems shorter is that it's all in our head. At the most basic level, because home to us is a very familiar place, it is represented in our brain as this rich, visual place that we look forward to getting to. In comparison, the drive to your destination is less mentally familiar, so you only get the sense of having arrived when you are physically at the location you want to be. When driving home, we get the feeling as if we're almost already there, which is why time seems to move slightly faster on the drive back from a road trip, as opposed to the drive there. Are you sufficiently confused yet?

What's interesting to note though, is that the more times you make a road trip to a certain city, the more familiar it will eventually become to you, and you may be able to bridge some of that time gap that your brain tries to trick you with!

Do you get the same sensation when you take a road trip or long drive? Do you think any other factors may be at play, such as the vehicle you drive? Comment or tweet us @LouFuszToyota !

The Incredible Hulk takes a road trip...in his Yaris?

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We can usually expect certain things when viewing a car commercial - professional driver on a closed course, beautiful scenery, some sort of pleasant music playing in the background, and a voice telling us about the newest features of said car.

Can the same be said for the Toyota Yaris? No, no, not at all. It's about as far from ordinary as you can get, in the best possible way.

Take the newest web series, for example. Toyota has teamed up with Marvel to produce a stop motion video featuring the Incredible Hulk going on a road trip in his Yaris with some friends!

What superhero/famous character and Toyota vehicle would you like to see in a future web series?