Virtual worlds have a plethora of uses in new media. Some examples are: entertainment or enjoyment to more pragmatic uses such as therapy for those who have social or psychological issues. With virtual worlds, people can finally be open without having to be open in real life. It can help people adjust to the real world by simulating it virtually and helping to adjust to it after some time.
The pros of using virtual worlds is that it can be used to simulate the actual world in the event that you would not be able to enjoy fully (if at all) in real life or if you just live too far away (Itzkoff). In the article on the New York Times by Dave Itzkoff, he mentions how he prefers to walk around the lower east side of Manhattan virtually in order to get away from the foul smelling neighborhoods in and the menacing bouncers guarding the clubs in real life. He also feels safer not having been exposed to the night time dangers of New York such as crime (Itzkoff). However, it comes at a cost or cons as Itzkoff explains that there is a lack of excitement and the lack of actually being at the location to take in the fun.
Another pro of using virtual worlds is to create their own world in their own image using programs such as SecondLife (Saidi). In an article by Nicole Saidi, a man named David Savill has Asperger's Syndrome created a virtual world for himself and other suffering from mental disorders. By creating his own virtual world in SecondLife, he is able to have memorable and intimate connections with friends and loved ones. This helps him to communicate with others with relative ease whereas having to communicate in real life would have been a problem for him. The drawback in this case is the wanting to continue to interact with others in the virtual world and not leaving to actually interact with people (Saidi). Thus, in reality, people are even more isolated and introverted and in the long run, this man ultimately hurt the person as he does not engage in the human experience.
I think that the future of the virtual world is bright. I believe that it will continue to grow especially with the advent of Virtual Reality goggles such as Oculus Rift. This can also spur progress for new media to find ways to immerse the virtual world into the real world. Even though there is concern for those who do not want to leave the virtual world, I feel that the expansion of the virtual world will not be hindered in any way or form. If you have any thoughts or questions, feel free to post them in the comments below.
Sources:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/06/arts/television/06itzk.html?pagewanted=2
http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/conditions/03/28/sl.autism.irpt/index.html#cnnSTCText
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