The out of body sensations that a human being faces in a near death experience may actually help improve the virtual gaming experience if the neurologists in Switzerland have their way. The team of researchers at the Ecole Polytecnique Federale de Lausanne has been studying the brain’s reaction to the conflict of senses.

Led by Olaf Blanke, the team has been conducting experiments where a person is placed in a virtual reality setting. The volunteer is then asked to identify with a computer generated image or avatar. Then the person receives a physical stimulation like a stick touching their arm. Simultaneously something is seen to touch the computer generated avatar.

The human volunteer begins to identify with the computer generated avatar to a great extent. If the finger is squeezed of the human, but nothing is done to the avatar, the human being actually does not register the intense pain that he should feel. The perception that the avatar is the reality can become very strong.

The area of the brain which affects this “one with the avatar” complex is the same in which out of body experiences are handled. The region of the brain needs more scientific study but the neurologists say it could lead to several breakthrough treatments.