Second Life reminds me of the Sims, however, I find the Sims to be more addicting. I haven't been able to use Second Life for a prolong period of time because I feel as if I have nothing to do. However, I do see how some people may play it since the world looks real and you can interact with people.
This leads me to a conclusion that people play Second Life to interact with others. I'm on the fence of what I concluded since now people are able to use facebook, twitter,myspace to connect with people. Therefore, maybe people are really enjoy meeting new people when they aren't themselves and also maybe they enjoy doing things they aren't able to do in real life.
I remember during the summer when my oldest brother and his fiance would play World of Warcraft. I had no concept of the game, nor did I care since I called them losers. Anyway, if I were to tell them about Second Life they would blow the idea away. To them, the idea of Second Life would most likely be ridiculous. But they are playing in a virtual world already so what's the difference? I realized they were playing World Of Warcraft for the fighting aspect. They weren't into the exploring and adventure that Second Life had to offer. From what I have experienced, Second Life does not have this gruesome fighting, which is not what I'm looking for. I would have played Second Life if my friends were on it and people more my age. However, if I was in an older age group I would use it to make connections and try new things.
WoW has discrete goals and tasks: "Leveling up" your character and fighting ever-more potent enemies.
ReplyDeleteMy gamer friends make fun of online engagement that is social. They say "did you buy a new shirt in SL?" and laugh.
Fighting in SL is not very common or very bloody. It's a game about making and socializing, which seems odd to most dedicated gamers.
I would also be more interactive in Second Life if I knew more people who were involved such as my friends. I believe that one day maybe this could be a good social networking device for people to keep in touch with each other as well. There are not very many addicting aspects to Second Life which is why I find it kind of odd that so many avatars seem to actually be addicted which is why I am writing about this for my final project.
ReplyDeleteI spoke to several different avatars and told them about my project for class and they were willing to answer questions. I asked my one friend who had only been a user of Second Life for a week and a day, she told me that she spends 4-6 hours on Second Life after work! I found this to be an outrageous number. I compared it to how much time I spend on Facebook and I feel as though I do not spend 4-6 hours and I even consider myself addicted to that social network.