Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction : rethinking virtual places -- A potted history of virtual reality -- Dead, dying, failed worlds -- Architecture : places without people -- Theories of place and cyberspace -- Rats and goosebumps : mind, body, and embodiment -- Games are not interactive places -- Do serious gamers learn from place? -- Cultural places -- Evaluating sense of place, virtual places, and virtual worlds -- Place-making interfaces and platforms -- Conclusion : dwelling, culture, care.

"How would the humanities change if we grappled with the ways in which digital and virtual places are designed, experienced, and critiqued? In Rethinking Virtual Places, Erik M. Champion draws from the fields of computational sciences and other place-related disciplines to argue for a more central role for virtual space in the humanities. For instance, recent developments in neuroscience could improve our understanding of how people experience, store, and recollect place-related encounters. Similarly, game mechanics using virtual place design might make digital environments more engaging and learning content more powerful and salient. In addition, Champion provides a brief introduction to new and emerging software and devices and explains how they help, hinder, or replace our traditional means of designing and exploring places. Perfect for humanities scholars fascinated by the potential of virtual space, Rethinking Virtual Places challenges both traditional and recent evaluation methods to address the complicated problem of understanding how people evaluate and engage with the notion of place"-- Provided by publisher.