Virtual Worlds

Virtual Worlds are an interesting facet of the gaming community.  Their allowance of play without competition, objectives, or prescribed stories give users that would have otherwise ignored most online games the option to engage with others of the same mindset.  Often people can be deterred by the linear structure of games or the content that the promote (often violent, rarely creative) and these communities give them a means of role playing that they need.  It has been noted in studies before that some role playing is actually healthy for the human psyche, and programs such as Second Life provide this without diving head first into war or fantasy.  They instead provide a more "normal" avenue of role playing that mimics everyday life but in a more idyllic setting.