Last week I did a presentation on the evolution of virtual world and virtual gaming. I didn’t realize how diverse this topic was because I was never a big gamer growing up. Researching the different kinds of virtual worlds that are available today felt like an endless journey because there are a variety of worlds geared for different audiences and there are more in the making.
I signed up as a guest for most of these sites so I can explore the differences and distinctions in each world. A lot of these sites are free but require you submit personal information so they can encourage you to upgrade for a fee. I walked around Whyville and tried to find somebody to play a game with me. I discovered that you can’t talk to other Whyvillians until you take a communication survey, which I think is some kind of insurance that you will not be using foul language or trying to use Whyville as a dating game. Considering that this virtual world was geared toward 8 to 14, I found it interesting to see the use of slander kids used when responding to other kids’ posting on the news board.
There are virtual worlds for people to hold meetings or company demonstrations. I work for a company that provides corporate training in business and IT, and clients are demanding more “virtual” ways of going through training. We have been spending months and months developing a virtual platform and I fear that by the time it is finished, it may be out of date. By using a well known virtual world like Second Life, we would have a better chance that clients are already familiar with how to use the program and won’t have to spend time trying to figure out how to use ours.
Experimenting holding classes in a virtual world may be rewarding because some people are more interactive as a virtual character rather than in a live classroom setting. It seems that virtual worlds are more widely used for instructional purposes in Europe than in the US. Is the US resisting the use of virtual worlds or are we just one step behind? Now that the economy is in really bad shape, will there be more demand for virtual worlds for a variety of purposes?
I know that when one has a lot of free time, it is easy to get lost into virtual gaming. World of War Craft is estimated to have 11.6 million monthly subscribers. Content and graphics in virtual gaming is improving and games are released at a rapid rate. With the amount of people unemployed, I imagine the number of subscribers to virtual worlds and virtual gaming has increased dramatically. Think of the number of people who will be diagnosed with an addiction to gaming, or better yet, dual personalities! Kind of scary isn’t it? I should ask my peers who work at Genentech to see if they haven’t looked into profiting off this.Intro to Virtual World Presentation
Iteckat's Blog 
Jeff Said:
on March 19, 2009 at 6:05 pm
It’s ironic I think that so many people still feel that the Internet gives them anonymity, right after they submit their name, email address, credit card number, mother’s maiden name, the hospital that they were born in (for the secret password retrieval question, dontcha know), etc.
But, speaking as a sometimes online gamer (Trevize on Kul’Tiras, if anyone cares), I can attest to the easy immersion. I’ve been able to maintain a life IRL (In Real Life for the uninitiated), but it’s sure easy to lose a couple of hours before you know what hit you. If we could tap that immersion and that draw in an environment that taught, say, theoretical physics, we’d be building Warp Drives by 2012!