A `.VRL` file usually indicates a text-based VRML scene, which lays out 3D geometry using readable keywords, and you can verify this by opening it in a text editor to find `#VRML V2.0 utf8` or entries like `Shape` and `Transform`, acknowledging that some tools prefer `.vrl` over `.wrl`; after confirming VRML, you can browse it with VRML/X3D viewers or import it into Blender for conversion while keeping texture files together, but if the file is binary noise it may be compressed or entirely different, so 7-Zip or the file’s original software is usually the best identifier.

A VRML/VRL file functions as a text description of a 3D scene graph made up of nodes that define structure, geometry, and behavior, letting you read how objects are positioned, rotated, textured, and grouped, with `Transform` nodes setting spatial properties and `DEF`/`USE` letting the file reuse pieces such as repeating shapes or materials so large scenes are built efficiently through shared references.

A VRML/VRL file shows its visual elements through `Shape` nodes that tie together 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.

VRML files typically include camera and environmental settings such as `Viewpoint`, `NavigationInfo`, `Background`, and `Fog`, plus lighting nodes like `DirectionalLight`, `PointLight`, or `SpotLight`, which don’t model geometry but shape how the world looks and how users navigate it, and VRML adds interactivity through event-driven nodes like `TimeSensor` and various sensors, with interpolators animating values and `ROUTE` links wiring events so actions like clicks or proximity can trigger movement, rotation, or color changes.

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.