SCIENCE! Immersion In World That Doesn’t Exist Leads To Buying Stuff That Doesn’t Exist

Game developers are often keen on the idea of "immersion". Often, this is used interchangeably with the term "realism". But it doesn't have to be the case. "Immersion" is simply a measure of how involved the player is with a particular game.

A recent study suggests that there may be a link between immersion and virtual buying habits. The study was conducted as a collaborative effort between First Planet Company and Florida State University. First Planet Company are the developers of Planet Calypso, apparently the largest real economy massively-multiplayer game in the world. So they're doing something right, it seems.