Video Games: Virtual Reality vs. Physical Reality

The idea of video games and the persona of those who love them have never appealed to me. I have sat idly by, watching people ignore their own reality in place of one that is presented in Dolby Surround Sound and a flat-panel television. Growing up I remember watching my brother and his friends sit for hours playing video games in our living your: I never felt the need to join in. I guess I would rather be taking part in physical activity with my friends. But still, there are millions of people spending the better part of their day tapping buttons and interacting with a computer program instead of another human being.

This semester we were assigned to play the online game, “Second Life.” This game is a simulation that has been created as a network that spans the globe, connecting people from every culture, or at least cultures that have high-speed Internet capabilities. While most of the features of the game did not interest me, I find the appearances of the avatars to be interesting. I seemed to take a fantasy approach to my avatar. I created a character that looked nothing like me, and then I continued to alter her appearance, sometimes making her quite outlandish. However, I it found interesting that many others in class were trying to make their avatars resemble them. In fact, some people even named their avatars after themselves. This got me thinking about the need to represent our physical selves in virtual reality.

In the past people were content taking on the role of an Italian plumber or a speedy hedgehog. However, nowadays with advancements in gaming technology people are able to put themselves in the game, by creating characters that resemble them. The newest addition to gaming technology, the Wii, even advertises a feature in which you can create your character and use that character for various games. Interestingly enough, in the commercial the people playing the game create characters that look like them. While “My Space” and “Facebook” are not video games, I would still consider them as part of virtual reality. Even within these online networks people still feel the need to be connected to their physical selves. Members of these communities often post a picture of themselves to represent their physical selves in this space. I guess my question is: is virtually reality becoming so integrated into our everyday lives that we are no longer satisfied with fantasy, and we feel the need to make a connection between virtual reality and our physical reality?