As I've been logging into Second Life (when time permits, which isn't often), I can see more and more applications for a tool such as this. Beyond just the "fun" associated with gaming, 2L provides what I feel is even more important, which is a way to connect with other people on a psychological level (both good and bad). When I initially stepped into the game, I felt really vulnerable, even though it was a virtual world with virtual people. For some reason, the physical 3-dness of the game creates a place where even though you are virtual, you also feel real.
There is an interesting article on www.wired.com that talks about the uses various people or groups have made of the 2L realm, from entrepreunerial practice to helping abused kids integrate socially (for more: http://www.wired.com/news/games/0,2101,67142,00.html). In fact, as I was reading each blog that classmates wrote about 2L, the same information that Jennifer shared about the reaction to her virtual body was something I found interesting as well. Is it true, even in games, that we react more readily to people who are beautiful/handsome and physically fit? If so, does it give people who aren't as fit a sense of what it would be like to be one of those people? The other thing the author of the article mentioned was the group that has Cerebral Palsy and uses this environment to do things they normally wouldn't be able to. Really a cool concept. I think the possibilities of this particular type of game are only just at the surface right now.
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