More MMO Story Stuff

I’ve been trying to come up with something really interesting for my final post on the class blog, something that would give people an excuse to procrastinate even in the face of finals week, but my brain keeps going back to the same nerdy place: Stories in virtual reality. Worse yet, I don’t have anything specific to talk about this time. Just a bunch of miscellaneous odds and ends I’ve encountered through the course of the quarter. Then again, these little link saturated posts are the best (worst?) time wasters in the world, and keeping things brief might not be a bad idea considering my own obligations.

First off, for those of you who are interested in role playing, or interested in pointing and laughing at the people who partake in it, I have stumbled across a few detailed guides on how to act out the various races in WoW. Inside you’ll find the answers to burning questions like “How strong should my broken Rastafarian accent be when I’m role playing a troll?” Even I will admit that this stuff is incredibly nerdy; just a half notch beneath lightsaber practice via broomhandle on the nerdometer, but there’s also an anthropological feel to them, given their cultural focus.

Not all role players take themselves dead seriously though. Prof. Boellstorf mentioned machinima, and there are some mildly amusing ones set in WoW.

Finally I was wondering if anyone has read ANIMA: A novel about second life? It was another one of those things I just happened on, and I haven’t had a chance to read it yet. It’s difficult to judge from the wikipedia summary, which makes it sound interesting but possibly too complicated for its own good. Given my fixation on this stuff, I’m putting together the syllabus for an independent study course next quarter examining the various fiction involved with virtual realities. If anyone has stumbled across specific articles that seem relevant to this, or know of books and movies that deal with virtual reality (aside from the really obvious ones), please tell me!

Politics in Second Life

There has been a stigma in society that "professionals" are not wasting their time on virtual worlds on online games. However, in this era of technology, I think that is changing drastically. As seen in this article, the UN is now in Second Life! And, it's really interesting to read why the UN has decided to create an "embassy" of sorts in Second Life.

The UN has set up a base in Second Life for Teens in order to spread awareness of global issues and train adolescents to be leaders. Second Life for Teens is accommodating them because the group was set up by the adolescent sector of the UNICEF's online forum. It's amazing. They've planned festivals and meetings all in Second Life so that they can have a larger target audience.

It's really interesting to note how politics have moved from merely in the physical world to the virtual world. For example, Obama's inauguration was re-enacted in Second Life, as were political rallies. However, for an international organization, especially the UN, to move even a small sector into a virtual world allows for endless possibilities. It begs the question of whether the virtual worlds will become spaces for educating instead of merely an escape from "reality."

Virtual Prostitution in Second Life

Before this class, I had never heard of Second Life. (imagine that...) So as I was googling SL to find out more about it, I stumbled upon dozens of articles discussing one of SL's most fascinating phenomenons- escorts in Second Life. I was not going out of my way to seek out the sexual side of SL, but it is apparently such a major and controversial aspect of the virtual world that even my very shallow and brief foray into researching SL brought up a myriad of articles discussing this topic.

One of the most interesting articles I found discussed tried-and-true tactics of becoming a successful Second Life escort, here.

Having just recently discovered Second Life, it was amazing to me that there was this entire developed world I had never heard of that was so complex and had even developed a sex industry. Within this industry, thousands of people (male and female) create customized avatars within SL through which they make real-life money selling digital "sex" to men willing to pay for an interactive pornographic experience.

I researched it a little further and found a CBS news report (video) detailing the "Steamier side of Second Life." At first I found all this a little disturbing, but then I realized the genius of it all. Women (and men masquerading as women), in their spare time and in addition to a full-time job, could potentially make thousands of dollars fulfilling the sexual fantasies of anonymous men, without ever having to see or meet them, all the while maintaining complete anonymity and at little cost to themselves. I say "little cost," because in order to become a desireable and quality escort, most women invest in custom-designed boobs, butts, and genitalia that can be purchased for low prices at specialty online boutiques (Come on, I had to post an example).

When all is said and done, I can't say I'm too shocked by all of this. The internet has always had a very prominent sexual side, in addition to humans being such sex-oriented creatures. Why shouldn't a virtual online world powered by the whims of its users be host to a thriving sexual industry? Not surprising at all, actually.

-S Hu