Final Fantasy: "Oh nooo! They've taken my Gil and my Tesco Clubcard..."
In the past few years media reports about the relentless merging of online economies with those of the real world have been difficult to avoid, with a number of sites tracking the exchange rate between US dollars and currencies such as Final Fantasy XI's 'Gil'.
From Chinese 'gold farms' to stories of death threats (some actually carried out) in response to online muggings, it's clear property that exists only on servers is at least as vigorously defended as that which you can lock up in bank vaults.
The upshot has been an expanding market in goods earned, or stolen from the corpses of foes, in a range of online worlds from MMOs like World of Warcraft to the inexplicably ubiquitous un-game that is Second Life.
Published 9th February 2007
Heard all the fuss about World of Warcraft, but not in the know? Read our beginners guide.
