A `.VRL` file is usually a VRML world file written in plain text that describes a 3D scene much like HTML describes a webpage, and you can confirm this by opening it in a text editor to check for a `#VRML V2.0 utf8` header and keywords such as `Transform`, `Shape`, or `IndexedFaceSet`, since some tools use `.vrl` instead of `.wrl`, and once identified you can view it with a VRML/X3D viewer, edit it in Blender, and avoid display issues by keeping textures in the same folder, while a binary-looking file may mean it’s compressed or not VRML at all, in which case 7-Zip or the file’s origin usually provides the clue.

When you open a VRML/VRL file you’re looking at a text-driven scene graph built from nodes that specify how a 3D world is organized, drawn, and interacted with, and you can usually follow the intended layout as objects are placed and given materials inside `Transform` groups, with repeated items linked through `DEF` and `USE` to keep the scene lightweight while reusing the same geometry in multiple spots.

A VRML/VRL file shows its visual elements through `Shape` nodes that combine geometry and appearance, using primitives or mesh types like `IndexedFaceSet` defined by coordinate data and index lists, and surface style comes from `Material` values or texture references in `ImageTexture`, so losing the referenced image files leads to a flat gray look even though the model itself still loads.

In VRML, world setup nodes like `Viewpoint`, `NavigationInfo`, `Background`, `Fog`, and lighting shape the overall look even though they don’t represent objects, and interaction comes from sensors, timers, and interpolators linked through `ROUTE`, enabling effects where user input or timed events cause objects to move, rotate, or change color dynamically.

For more sophisticated effects, VRML/VRL introduces `Script` nodes that run JavaScript-like code to manage calculations and event handling beyond the reach of basic sensors, while its `Inline` and `PROTO`/`EXTERNPROTO` mechanisms allow pulling in separate VRML files and defining custom node types, making scenes modular and reusable.