bazhsw:
I have just recalled my first play by post game, possibly around 1990.
My first online games were in chatrooms, on AOL and IRC, in the early 1990s.
What's relatively new about VTTs, is the
visual element - the "tabletop" part, where you have a map, and everyone can move their token around on it. Especially now, with dynamic lighting and LOS calculations, so there's no more "can I see the creature at X" questions: if you can see it on your screen, then yes, <i>you can see it in the game, too<i>.