Photos: Inside the Entropia Universe

Virtual world Entropia Universe is 'more than a game', according to its creators at Swedish company Mindark.

Offering participants a hybrid between the Second Life environment and the game-like World of Warcraft, Entropia is a virtual world with a real cash economy.

During a recent Q&A with silicon.com, Mindark CIO Marco Behrmann said Entropia is "quite different" from Second Life as it has a closed framework for the cash economy and a basic storyline so participants can take part in forming the virtual society.

The Entropia virtual currency - called Project Entropia Dollar (PED) – even has a fixed exchange rate with the US dollar, letting participants transfer any accumulated virtual money back into real world funds.

Pictured above is Zychion Citadel, one of the virtual world's growing cities.

Photo credit: Entropia Universe/Mindark