Some interesting links passed our way via our sister blog GameSetWatch that are virtual world related enough that we feel we should repost them here:

Metaplace - Community Spotlight - Virek Online by Fredriksson – As Simon Carless states over at GameSetWatch, this is a good example of the kind of real thing that is being constructed in the community/MMORPG maker Metaplace – a "folk music RPG."

Ai Sp@ce First Impression – Japan isn't one of the first places you think of when you think "virtual worlds" (despite their mastery of the video game space otherwise) so this is a unique insight into one of their entries into the market -- a surprising cross between the traditional Japanese dating sim and virtual worlds, which reminds us of…

Japanese Girl Sensation: Virtual Boyfriends (Webkare) – a recent TechCrunch article on the popular cross between social networks and dating sim Webkare, that's interesting as look at another format for the "dating sim" game design within the social world context.