Delve into the origins of virtual worlds.
Early Beginnings
Discover the early days of virtual worlds and understand their trajectory through years of technological evolution.
The “Metaverse” has been a term since 1992. More recently the concept has become mislabeled, overused, and misconstrued. Our Museum Director Julian Reyes believes that the Metaverse is not here yet and that “Virtual Worlds are the Seeds of the Metaverse”. We are currently tracking its evolution and simultaneously plan to catalog the emergence of Gen AI prompted worlds.
By creating a Timeline and utilizing a 3D visualization approach, we will generate a first-of-its-kind mapping system that will provide a more intuitive and comprehensive understanding of the scale and future interoperability of the Metaverse. This would allow stakeholders, investors, and world builders to identify areas for improvement and track progress over time. In this project, we aim to map the immersive platforms that currently host avatars in virtual worlds.
Technological Evolution
Explore how virtual worlds evolved within Web2 and WebXR technologies, and most recently AI world creation is on the rise.
Why it’s Important to Map the evolution of immersive worlds and Interoperability
Companies have been mapping virtual worlds in list form for some time. We saw the value of creating a representative 3D model as essential given that immersive worlds exist in 3D digital space. This system could also help to monitor the development and implementation of standards and protocols related to interoperability. We can understand what interoperable strategies work and which do not.
The global history of virtual reality (VR) captivates millions, showcasing its profound impact over the years. Through our dedicated research into virtual worlds, we are poised to develop a comprehensive timeline that illustrates the dynamic evolution of immersive platforms, highlighting significant milestones and advancements.
50BC
The concept of virtual worlds significantly predates computers. The Roman naturalist, Pliny the Elder, expressed an interest in perceptual illusion.
The Allegory of the Cave, by the Greek philosopher Plato.
Tales of "other worlds" had existed in even before the Chinese, aborigines, and ancient Egyptians.
Avatar is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, or spirit on EarthThe relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearance" is sometimes used to refer to any guru or revered human being.
1958
"Tennis for Two" demo by Brookhaven National Laboratories (1958)
"Spacewar!" MIT (1961)
The Sensorama (1962) machine is one of the earliest known examples of immersive, multimodal technology. By Morton Heilig, this is considered one of the earliest virtual reality (VR) systems.
Videoplace by Myron Kruger (1970)
Pong (1972; Poole 2000; Herman 2001; Kent 2001)
D&D Gygax and Arnerson (1974)
The creation(s) of MUD (1978) Multi-User Dungeon
1986
Lucasfilms' Habitat (1986)
"Avatar" term incorporation into virtual worlds lexicon.
LambdaMOO (1990)
"Metaverse" Neal Stephenson (1988). Snowcrash book published (1992)
The Palace, OnLive/Traveler, Active Worlds.
Meridian 59 by 3DO (1996)
Ultima Online (EA) 100,000 players at its peak
EverQuest (1998). Whyville (1999)
Anarchy Online (2001), The Sims Online (2002), There.com (2023), EVE Online (2003), Yohoho! Puzzle Pirates (2003), Second Life (2003), World of Warcraft (2004), City of Heroes (2004), Club Penguin (2005)
Global revenues for massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPGs) exceeded half a billion dollars in 2005.
Minecraft (2009)
2023
Partial list of Virtual World Platforms: Decentraland, The Sandbox, Hyperfy, Substrata, Voxels, Somnium Space, Spatial, HYTOPIA, Netvrk, Arrival.Space, BUD, Croquet, Dreamwave, Etheral Engine, FrameVR, Nowhere, Oncyber, Openvoxels, Overte, Ozone, MetaVRse, Portal, RP1, Stageverse, Thirdroom, Viverse, VRLand, Upland, Upstreet, Substrata, and more.
Roblox over 202 million MAUs.
Second Life's 20th birthday celebration
The evolution of Web3 blockchain worlds, WebXR platforms, and Generative AI virtual worlds continue to evolve. MetaTr@versal
Generative AI world building tools, Lovelace Studio
The Virtual Worlds Museum Crowdfunding campaign launches.
