Cyberimages, Alternative Realities: A Paradigm in Formation

After the first three ages of the image described by Regis Debray (idolatry, representative art and animated image), we are now witnessing the advent of the fourth age -- that of the environment image: cyberimages. Video games, in particular, offer this type of cyberimage, and their inhabitants (our youth), as masked beings, move and (inter)act in "value added" worlds. Cyberimages raise questions -- are they a means of escaping reality or else a vector of enhanced reality? In all cases, they increasingly influence our society and could well contribute to changing our paradigm of reality. Adapted from the source document.