Does Second Life suck, or not?
I felt like the king of the Internet today when I sent out a link to this Wired article that bashes Second Life, that 8-million-user-strong online world, as an errant fraud and a waste of corporate dollars.
But, no sooner had I sent it, that our Director of Client Services sent back an email with this Newsweek International article that says Second Life is a complete success! Worthy of all the praise it gets!
Well, this is the world, I suppose. Some people say one thing, others say something else. For example, Newsweek mentions that Second Life currently has 8 million residents. Man is that huge!
But then here comes Wired saying:
"
- Many people make more than one avatar.
- The number of avatars created by distinct individuals was closer to 4 million.
- Of those, only about 1 million had logged on in the previous 30 days (the standard measure of Internet traffic), and barely a third of that total had bothered to drop by in the previous week.
- Most of those who did were from Europe or Asia, leaving a little more than 100,000 Americans per week to be targeted by US marketers. "
Ouch! But then Newsweek talks about paraplegics being able to dance, and students being able to experience the life of a schizophrenic… Suddenly Second Life is a service and a blessing.
What do I know? Well, I have my own opinion to go by. And that’s a simple one: I found Second Life to be boring beyond belief. Maybe it’s my life-long love of video games, but the concept of a vast and never-ending world with no direct goals (aside from Maxis’ The Sims) is a terribly depressing thing.
And, much like Wired pointed out, Second Life always seemed so empty. Seriously, read their article, you almost have to bat away the tumbleweeds as they bounce off the description of the empty Coke pavillion. I came to Second Life, wandered around for an hour, found nothing to do, flew for 20 minutes, found a casino, gambled away all my Linden dollars, and then inexplicably got myself stuck in a wall. When I finally liberated myself from my floral patterned jail, I left the casino, passed a few porn theaters, and finally aborted the game. I cancelled my cheap membership, and never returned to that mystical plain.
But, then again, that was just MY experience. The Newsweek article talks about test driving cars, visiting your aunt who lives in India in Second Life’s "India", having sex with mermaids in the ocean, and making millions of dollars selling bits of pixels. I experienced none of these things, but some people must, right?
So – is Second Life awesome, or total crap? Maybe I’m not on either of those sides. It’s great for those who find it great, and it’s crap for those on the other side of the fence. You won’t be seeing me on Second Life, but you wouldn’t know that unless you were a member, too.
More from RFI Studios
- WTF!!! – Right Brain
- Not Another Overly Successful Viral Video – Right Brain
- Justin.tv: Just what we need? – Right Brain
- Big Fat Stupid Cheaters!! – Right Brain
- A Usability Disaster – Right Brain
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