A goal of world design is realism. For a fantastic, sci-fi, alien setting, this realism does not mean true to what we know as much as believability. This concept may seem elusive, but it really comes down to relying on your perceptions and the ‘feel’ of the setting. Adding magic to the equation requires a suspension of absolute realism, but if this magic is based upon certain principles and maintains consistency, it can retain the appearance of being believable while still being outlandish.

world attributes - physical characteristics of the world

world building - part of a comprehensive run down about the creation of the thematic world

religion

Geography

World design can also refer to the creation of world areas.

There are three basic domains that exist in a player's world:

The physical realm - includes their home, villages, forests.  Places that can be interacted with to store and gather.  This is the main playable portion of the RPG game.

Their dream realm - a personal realm in which some skill training and much customization takes place.  The dream realm is also access to the OOC discussion boards.  Each player's dream realm can be shaped into an appearance by a mirror of adventure points.  Dream realms are a timeout place.  Essentially, the Dream realm can include any level of meta-gaming, whether it uses avatars with stats that can adventure (such as in the animated personal realms, or dream adventures) or all discussions and even wiki editing personae.

The demon realm - is area that has been corrupted, be it dungeon or nightmare.  In terms of character, this is nearly identical to the physical realm, but some rules of reality are tweaked by the magic of the demons.

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Relevant resources:

QB 502 C77 1993