ABSTRACT
This chapter is about consumer-oriented virtual reality (VR), which in the early 1990s includes a handful of commercial entertainment experiences such as Virtual World's BattleTech™ Center, Virtuality's mall-based science fiction games, and FighterTown's™ military simulators. Other start-up companies are working to open their own VR entertainment centers in malls or amusement parks. Museums will be another source of VR experiences, offering entertaining educational content. Virtual travel centers will allow people to visit (and shop at) faraway places. Health clubs will offer workout programs and physically challenging virtual games in exotic virtual environments. Eventually schools and even homes will have VR technology, and interactive distribution of experiences will occur over phone and cable lines. Virtual communication environments will bring friends and strangers together for communication experiences.
