Standing work · 22 entries

The Register

The reference work for virtual worlds. Every entry carries a permanent reference number, a publication date and a definition written to be quoted whole. Corrections are published as new entries; nothing is edited in place.

As at 2026-08-28 · Entries 22

§ 01

Concepts

The vocabulary the category argues in, defined once each.

REG-001MetaverseThe metaverse is the category of persistent, shared virtual spaces in which people are present as avatars and can own, t…REG-002Virtual worldA virtual world is a simulated space that multiple people occupy simultaneously and that continues to exist between thei…REG-003Persistent worldA persistent world is one that continues to exist and change while you are not in it. Persistence is the first precondit…REG-004Virtual real estateVirtual real estate is land inside a persistent virtual world, held as property and enforced by the platform or the chai…REG-005FootfallFootfall is the number of people who arrive at a location inside a virtual world for their own reasons, independent of t…REG-006Spatial commerceSpatial commerce is selling goods inside a three-dimensional space rather than from a page — a storefront a customer wal…REG-007In-world businessAn in-world business is a company whose revenue arrives when someone is present inside a virtual world — entry to a venu…REG-008Virtual economyA virtual economy is the system of production, exchange and pricing inside a virtual world. It becomes an economy rather…REG-009InteroperabilityInteroperability is the ability to carry an asset, an identity or a balance from one virtual world into another. It is r…REG-022UGC platformA UGC platform is a virtual world whose content is built by its own users under a publisher's licence — Roblox, Fortnite…

§ 02

Worlds

The platforms themselves, with what each one actually offers an operator.

REG-010DecentralandDecentraland is an open virtual world in which land is an Ethereum token that the chain enforces and the operator cannot…REG-011The SandboxThe Sandbox is an open virtual world with a voxel aesthetic and a creator toolchain, in which LAND is a token holders ow…REG-012RobloxRoblox is a user-generated content platform whose players build the experiences other players visit. It has by a wide ma…REG-013Fortnite CreativeFortnite Creative is the user-generated layer of Fortnite, in which creators build islands that players visit inside the…REG-014Somnium SpaceSomnium Space is an open virtual world with on-chain land, built with a stronger emphasis on VR presence than its peers.…REG-015OthersideOtherside is a virtual world whose land — Otherdeeds — was sold in the largest land mint ever conducted, before the worl…REG-016VRChatVRChat is a social virtual world in which almost everything — avatars, worlds, behaviours — is made by its users. It has…

§ 03

Spatial and AR

Where the virtual layer meets the physical one, and what changes commercially when it does.

REG-017Augmented realityAugmented reality is a virtual layer anchored to the physical world rather than replacing it. Structurally it is a virtu…REG-018Spatial computingSpatial computing is computing whose interface is the space around you, containing augmented, virtual and mixed reality …REG-019Mixed realityMixed reality is the case in which virtual objects are not merely overlaid on the physical world but registered to it — …REG-020Digital twinA digital twin is a virtual model of a specific physical thing — a building, a machine, a city block — kept in correspon…REG-021AvatarAn avatar is the body a person occupies inside a virtual world — the thing others see, that carries their identity withi…

§ 04

How the Register works

Permanent references

Every entry has a number of the form REG-nnn. Numbers are assigned once, never reused and never renumbered. A citation of REG-004 will resolve to the same claim in ten years.

Corrections are new entries

An entry is never edited once published. If we get something wrong, the correction is a new entry that supersedes the old one, and the old one stays reachable with a pointer forward. This is the discipline that separates a reference from a marketing page.

What the Register does not define

It covers virtual worlds and the commerce inside them. It does not define Web 4 — that belongs to GDA Group — nor the four-condition framework, which belongs to 4.ventures. Where an entry uses those terms it links rather than restating them.

Every entry cites a source

Primary where one exists. An entry with no source outside this group does not ship; a test enforces it.