The game was ultimately completed by Martin Barlow as lead programmer, but the VR headset was cancelled due to health concerns.

[1][2][3][4] Virtual mode departs from the original gameplay by introducing a first-person perspective, power-ups, varied stages and bosses.

[2][3][4][5] The game is set in a country attacked by foreign nations and on a distant planet where alien forces invade human colonies.

[14][17][18] After discussions resumed in 1994, the companies announced a partnership in 1995, leading to the production of a VR headset for the Jaguar based on Virtuality's technology.

[12][22][23][24] Missile Command became part of a series of arcade game revivals from Atari, a strategy initiated by producer John Skruch after the release of Tempest 2000.

[11][15] Brownlow also acted as co-designer of the "Virtual" mode alongside James Tripp, as well as artists Mark Brown and Scot Jones.

[11][15] Despite his initial skepticism towards adapting Missile Command into virtual reality, Brownlow eventually agreed to take part in the project.

[11] Near the end of the project, Skruch wanted a type of missile similar to a MIRV that would target the player's bases and said to call it "SWIRV", but the name was changed by Brownlow to "Unknown".

[11] Brownlow found it difficult to develop for the Jaguar hardware due to its limited GPU memory, as well as a bug in the blitter processor.

[36][37][38] In 2022, Missile Command 3D was re-released for the first time as part of the Atari 50 compilation, porting the game to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows PCs.

[45][35] Game Zero Magazine criticized the mode's frame rate, while German publication ST-Computer noted crashes and instability on European Atari Jaguar consoles.

[8][50][51][52] The Atari Times' Bruce Clarke felt that the Virtual mode showed off the Jaguar's capabilities, comparing it favorably to contemporary games for the PlayStation and Nintendo 64.

[53] Retro Gamer called it "a worthy update of one of the greatest arcade games of all time", while PCMag found it fun to play.

[8][52] In contrast, neXGam commended its three distinct modes and graphical effects but criticized its sluggish controls and poor gameplay variety.

[11][60][61] In 2023, video game programmer Rich Whitehouse implemented VR support in Missile Command 3D for the Atari Jaguar emulator BigPEmu, allowing use of modern headsets such as the HTC Vive.