It will soon be possible to inhabit a virtual world, even while out and about in the real one.

Computer game company Artificial Life has announced that it will launch a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) for third generation (3G) phones before the end of 2005.

The game will let players assume a virtual persona and travel through a futuristic cityscape, the company says. They will be able to chat and interact with computer-controlled characters as well as other human players and tackle puzzles that can be solved more easily through cooperation.