Online gamers pay real cash for virtual objects: "Don't mess with Blyndem Denkilem. He's a Bard in the online virtual game world of "EverQuest," whose green Singing Steel Gear armor and Flameweaver sword makes him about as tough as they come. So powerful is Denkilem that his owner, 16-year-old Bill Currie, sold him in an online auction for $600....

Now, a Swedish company called MindArk is hoping to cash in on the obsession. It is developing "Project Entropia," a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game, or MMORPG, that will require players to plunk down real cash for game items: vases for the virtual coffee table, mining equipment, weapons."

Posted on behalf of Robert Loch.