Although I'm not a games player, I occasionally come across an article on gaming and virtual worlds that fascinate me. Of particular interest is how these virtual worlds affect our own world or vice-versa. Last November there were a number of stories in the UK media on how a "real life couple" were getting divorced due to an online affair.
As salacious as this story was, it was the side story that really grabbed my attention - the story of how the couple involved were chased down by reporters from within Second Life. After some unsuccessful attempts to gain access to the parties, reporters from South West News went virtual to get their scoop. It was even suggested that South West News might create an online bureau in Second Life due to the success of this approach.
Then there are the online gaming economies that spawn billion dollar businesses. This was highlighted in the excellent article "The Decline and Fall of an Ultra Rich Online Gaming Empire" in Wired Magazine in December.
Although this was not the first time I came across the idea of people buying virtual items on sites like ebay, it’s still incredible the amount of money that is generated through such exchanges. It was back in 2003 when I first read about Virtual Economies in "The Unreal Estate Boom" and I still remember being completely astounded by statements like "The 79th Richest Nation on Earth doesn't exist".
Given the current "Real World" economic collapse and ecological meltdown that bombard our news headlines, I wonder will these virtual lives hold more appeal as time goes on.