Call for Papers
Special Issue on European Virtual Worlds:
Applications and Best Practices for Human-Centric Intelligence Amplification
Virtual Worlds (VWs) are interactive environments grounded in 3D and eXtended Reality (XR) technologies with varying degrees of persistence. They facilitate collaboration via human-machine interaction with complex systems of systems and the real-time blending of physical and digital worlds across a range of applications and devices, including head-mounted/-worn displays, tablets, smartphones and watches, as well as smaller ubiquitous and embedded computing devices. In this context, XR is adopted as a neutral umbrella term for a range of experiences that extend, augment, or merge physical and digital realities, such as Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Virtuality (AV), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR). It is noteworthy that the meaning of MR shifted from the classic Reality-Virtuality Continuum to a broader understanding as the blending of the real and the digital, as we now use it for VWs. Concurrently, over the past decade, the terminology in this domain has been increasingly influenced by the marketing strategies of companies such as Microsoft and Meta. This dynamic may have contributed to the growing adoption of XR as a more neutral umbrella term, while more strongly branded concepts are used more selectively.
Virtual Worlds represent a transformative convergence of physical and digital realities, creating environments in which users can interact, work, learn, and play in unprecedented ways, spanning both visually immersive interfaces and more distributed, context-aware, and ubiquitous computing paradigms. With the establishment of the Virtual Worlds Partnership between the European Commission and the Virtual Worlds Association (VWA), Europe is advancing a comprehensive strategy to position itself as a leader in the development and governance of Virtual Worlds. The VWA’s Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) sets out the main priorities, challenges, and expected impacts in terms of research and innovation for the virtual world’s industry. In parallel, Artificial Intelligence is becoming a key enabling technology for Virtual Worlds, supporting intelligent agents, generative environments, semantic understanding, adaptive interaction, and new forms of spatial, contextual, and embodied human-AI collaboration. Against this background, this special issue invites applied, experience-based, and research-driven contributions that examine how Virtual Worlds can be designed, implemented, evaluated, and governed in alignment with the SRIA.
This special issue of the i-com Journal of Interactive Media seeks submissions that explicitly position themselves within the research and innovation priorities outlined in the SRIA of the VWA. Contributions must address one or more of the SRIA’s application domains and/or cross-cutting themes currently addressed within the VWA Working Groups. While grounded in the current SRIA structure, the special issue also welcomes contributions that may inform the evolution of future research priorities and emerging domains for European Virtual Worlds ecosystems, including areas such as agriculture or space. Relevant application domains include:
- industry and logistics,
- healthcare and well-being,
- media and entertainment,
- arts and culture,
- education and training,
- security and defence,
- and cities and public administration.
Furthermore, submissions are expected to discuss their results with respect to the SRIA’s technological, socio-economic, and contextual dimensions, such as enabling technologies, AI integration, governance, infrastructure, interoperability, accessibility, sustainability, and human-centric design (see the Virtual Worlds SRIA for further details). Authors are additionally encouraged to reflect on implications for future implementation pathways, interoperability needs, useful standards, governance approaches, deployment scenarios, and broader research and innovation priorities for European Virtual Worlds ecosystems. We particularly encourage applied contributions reporting on deployed systems, prototypes, pilots, case studies, or real-world experiences. Submissions should therefore go beyond conceptual discussion by reflecting on the implemented use case, user experience, technological architecture, platform choices, file formats, data governance, interoperability, and the role of open, sovereign, or scalable infrastructures in enabling future Virtual Worlds ecosystems.
All submissions must be in English and should represent the original work of the authors. Improved versions of papers previously published in conference proceedings are welcome, provided that no copyright limitations exist. Submissions should be made electronically via https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/icom using the formatting instructions that can be found there. The length of an article should be 7000-9000 words.
Important Dates
- Submission Deadline: 28 August 2026
- Notification of acceptance: 15 October 2026
- Submission of camera-ready copy: 17 November 2026
Please contact the special issue editors for further questions
- Leif Oppermann, Fraunhofer FIT
- Krzysztof Walczak, Poznań University of Economics and Business
- Mariano Alcañiz, Universitat Politècnica de València
- Julien Castet, Immersion