IBM and Palace Museum Open Forbidden City Virtual World

IBM and the Palace Museum announced the launch today of The Forbidden City: Beyond Space & Time, a virtual world based around China's Forbidden City and looking at 600 years of its history and culture. It's a downloadable application (Mac, Windows, and Linux) that doesn't look to be connected to any other virtual world, so I can't check it out right now (I'll be at the Virtual Goods Summit today and hotel broadband is what it is). It does sound exciting, though. It does sound more like a virtual world, than just a 3D environment where you walk by yourself. Users can register their own avatars, though selections are limited, go on guided tours with other users, and participate as well in a 2D social network-style community.

At first I thought the tours might be automated--you interact by clicking "yes" and "no" buttons--but it seems like that may just be away to make it easier for the multi-lingual (English and Chinese) audience to interact.

"Rather than being an isolating virtual experience, the Virtual Forbidden City allows visitors to see and interact with each other and with a wide range of volunteers, staff, and automated characters," explains the site. "To welcome the broadest range of visitors, a simple, easy to use interface guides interactions with the Virtual Forbidden City. As they explore the Virtual Forbidden City, visitors can choose to simply observe the buzz of activity, participate in activities that provide insights into important aspects of the Qing dynasty, or even take guided tours that uncover new insights into the stories of the Forbidden City."

I also don't see anything about monetization. There may not be. It's an IBM Corporate Citizenship Project where "The principal goal of the project is to provide the means for a worldwide audience to celebrate and explore Chinese culture and history."

I'll definitely be checking it out when I get home.

"The rich cultural heritage of China's imperial past, embodied in the Forbidden City for over five centuries, is now brought to life and accessible to all through a virtual world created by IBM and the Palace Museum," Henry Chow, Chairman, Greater China Group, IBM, said in a statement. "This initiative takes the online experience to a new level of innovation with rich content, educational storytelling, community and social networking features that represent the next generation of 3D-Internet applications. What makes me proud is that IBM now has opened the door to a cultural treasure and rich heritage to everyone, everywhere which in the past was only available to relatively few."

Comments

[Mike]

This is definitely a great attempt by IBM and a good validation for the virtual world market by the giant. Talking about real locations, I certainly look forward to the upcoming mirror world like www.amazingworlds.com to launch!