Since this is a pretty big post, I’ve put it behind a link. LJ users should have an LJ-cut, Solace readers should get a “Read More” link. Image heavy, though there’s a Flikr slideshow at the end which rotates most of the culprits! Enjoy! Continue reading »

Recently, as some of you may have seen, I launched into a rant about Second Life. Something intrigued me about it, it still does. I just hadn’t found it yet. I decided to chronicle my journey as I found stuff to do and found my niche in a virtual world. My post, however, got a comment along the lines of “I’m really excited about Blue Mars”. (Cheers for that btw ;) )

Hmm, thinks I, what is this Blue Mars? What I saw took my breath away. Simply speaking, Blue Mars is a virtual world, much like Second Life. However, it’s using the Crysis engine, so everything’s really quite pretty. I immediately signed up for a beta, debating being a pioneer in this strange new world.

It is beautiful.

I quite happily spent an hour exploring one of the cities. The only reason I haven’t explored more is because my IP is a bit rubbish if it doesn’t know I’m playing a game. But if I go there in quiet times, there’s no issue. The shops are pretty awesome, letting you examine a product in detail before you go about buying it. Worlds are static, and if they change you need to patch. In Second Life, the client is always on the look out for in-world changes. The way Blue Mars handles it is like loading a level in a game. You know it won’t change. You don’t need to waste computations to check if stuff changed.

I’m excited about this. My tweets have been obsessed with it (sorry guys! xD) and I want to see the direction it takes. It looks like it’s going to be a much more “quality” product than Second Life, with maybe a slight restriction on the creative side. You need to specifically sign up as a developer, and there may be costs that it incurs. I’d be tempted though. Just to experiment.

If anyone else is playing the beta, look me up. My username’s Anakiro and my toon name is Taylea Dinzel (same as SL!). I dunno which you need to find friends, but the friends list was just implemented, so go nuts!

Here’s a quick and dirty guide for tweaking the client’s requirements! It’s for Crysis, but Blue Mars uses the same engine.

I shall be making a few posts in the coming weeks (with video and pictures, hopefully!), exploring the various areas and UI-options that exist just now :)

A little while ago, I asked a guildie on WoW “how do you get into Second Life?” She promptly spent a few days showing me the ropes, inviting me into her group of friends and showing me the best places to get cheap gear. Through this new network of friends I’ve found stuff, things to do and things to learn. As a result, I’ve decided to go ahead and make this blog, keep a record of the stuff I see and learn in Second Life and my thoughts on it.

It’s a little bit different from the first time I tried it. I wandered around the tutorial area, with that horrible waddling animation and run-of-the-mill clothes. I had no friends, and my first encounter with other people seemed to be a requisition for cyber-sex. So, needless to say, I didn’t go back. the idea itself, however, continued to intrigue me. You could use a platform like that for so many things, so much creativity.

I mentioned to my boss that I was having a go of Second Life and he started asking me questions.
“What do you do?” – I dunno.
“What makes it fun?” – Not sure.
“Does it cost money?” – It can.
“Why do you keep playing?” – …?

I really don’t know. But it keeps pulling me back.

I’m Taylea Dinzel! I live in Second Life.