Category: News-Opinion

In the press: Second Life, Tilia Inc & the Metaverse

Posted on by Inara Pey

Friday, September 3rd saw an article by VentureBeat’s Dean Takahashi – no stranger to Linden Lab, Second Life and LL – doing the rounds, entitled Will the metaverse bring the second coming of Second Life? While I personally find the term “the metaverse” to be one of the must frequently over-hyped / over-used terms in recent years, Takahashi’s article makes for an interesting read on a number of levels.

The first is that VentureBeat is a well-regarded tech news and events on-line magazine that includes the supplement GamesBeat that focuses on the world of computer, mobile and video games. Between them, they draw down some 6 million unique visitors a month and 12 million page views. That’s potentially a lot of exposure for articles within the publication, and Takahashi’s article was a headline piece for GamesBeat’s front page (although it has since slipped down the ranking somewhat).

Dean Takahashi, lead writer, GamesBeat

The initial part of the article is something of a re-tread of Second Life’s history for those of us familiar with the platform. While the ground covered may well be familiar (and the quoted numbers possibly subject to quibbling in some quarters), this re-treading nevertheless frames SL for those not familiar with it or were unaware it is still around and doing moderately well for itself.

This part of the article also helps frame Linden Lab as an “elder statesman” (so to speak) of the user-generated content frontier, having long since tackled many of the issues and hurdles that those attempting to now define and provide “the metaverse” are just starting to tackle. All of which makes for good reading and certainly helps carry the message that in this day of Facebook, Microsoft, et al trying to foist their visions of what “the metaverse” should be, Linden Lab has the right to say, “been there, done that – and still doing it!”.

However, it’s the latter part of the article that drew my focus, with its referencing of both Tilia and recent moves on the part of the Lab to develop “partnerships” to try to “grow” SL. Both of these are also parts of the article I’ve witnessed as causing some negative gnashing of teeth in some circles, which has also framed my thinking in writing this piece.

In particular, Takahashi’s revelation that Tilia has cost Linden Lab $30 million has raised eyebrows and some grumblings about what this might mean for Second Life’s future.

via the Tilia website

This needs a little context. While LL has spent what seems like a huge amount of money on Tilia, as Takahashi notes, it has been over a 7-year period, starting not long after Ebbe Altberg joined Linden Lab as CEO, and the initial expenditure was required; as Takahashi goes on to point out, for a company like LL to be able to make pay-outs to users (and generally handle fiat money on behalf of its users) it must comply with a range of US federal, state, and international regulations.

In terms of US requirements, this has meant LL had to become a licensed money transmitter at both the federal and state levels – a move more easily achieved by ring-fencing the services that handle all payment processing / transfer into an entity of their own. Had it not do so, then LL would have hit a wall in its ability to make pay-outs. Beyond this, Tilia Pay’s regulated services benefit Second Life in a number of other ways (allowing the use of credit / debit cards within services such as the Marketplace through to assisting with overall user account management and security, for example).

Obviously given a large amount has been sunk into Tilia, it is natural for the Lab’s new owners to want to leverage this expenditure. But this doesn’t mean Tilia and Second Life are, or will become, an “either / or” proposition for the Lab’s future direction.

Rather if Tilia can be made a success, it would mean that Linden Lab – after more than a decade of trying – has gained a second revenue stream it can utilise to help it remain viable moving into the future. Further, it’s long been the philosophy at LL that as long as SL has users enough to ensure it remains a healthy generator of revenue / income, there is little reason to shut it down / sell it, and I’d question this philosophy being radically altered by the success of a second product within the company’s portfolio.

At the end of the piece, Takahashi brings in the subject of Zenescope, and LL’s focus on “partner collaborations”. This appears to be part of what has been referred to as the drive to grow the user base.

It’s not necessarily a bad idea – working with organisations that have established audiences of their own and which could leverage Second Life to add a new dimension of engagement for those audiences. However, it is one that has some significant hurdles to clear: attractions have to be built-out, events need to be organised and run at a tempo that keeps an incoming audience engaged and coming back at a reasonable cadence to make the effort worthwhile, and their must be a path to a practical return on the investment made (time, effort money), and so on; to say nothing of getting people into the experience and comfortable with the viewer UI.

Zenescope Metaverse a new partnership endeavour involving Linden Lab opened in August 2021, but failed to capture the imagination for me See: The Zenescope Metaverse In Second Life

There’s also the question that, even if successful in bringing an audience to Second Life, just how well such partnerships might actually convert members of the audience into engaged Second Life users – something that will be an important measure of success by the current user base, if not necessarily to LL or their partners, who will likely use other criteria to measure the success of these ventures.

In mentioning such partnerships, Takahashi’s piece open the door to broader thinking around where LL might potentially go with this idea in the wake of of the move to AWS.

For example, it’s already been hinted that at some point, LL might look to offer an “on-demand” product. Doing so could potentially be advantageous to potential partners, in they it present a way for them to offer their users experiences in Second Life at a more advantageous price that a 24/7 product that might only be used once or twice a week. Beyond this, there is the question of whether LL might consider entirely private grids for dedicated partners / clients / markets, and even white-labelling such a capability if they did so (thus essentially providing a Second Life Enterprise style of product in a manner and cost that would be far more appealing that that endeavour).

However, given these thoughts do go beyond the article, I’ll put them to one side for now, and just say that if you haven’t already done so, I do recommend giving Will the metaverse bring the second coming of Second Life? a read.

The Zenescope Metaverse in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Zenescope Metaverse – now open in Second Life (image unretouched)

I was one of many who received an invitation to preview the latest partnership activity Linden Lab has entered into as then seek to encourage new audiences into Second Life. Officially opened from 08:00 on Wednesday, August 4th, 2021, The Zenescope Metaverse is the second such experience to open within Second Life recently,  the other having been the (relatively low-key) opening of Film Threat, details of which are available within the Destination Guide.

Zenescope Metaverse has been developed in partnership with Zenescope Entertainment Inc.,  a comic book and graphic novel publisher perhaps best known for series such as Grimm Fairy Tales and its off-shoots, which recount classic fairy tales and gives them a modern twist; the Wonderland series (off-shoots of Lewis Carroll’s books); novels focused on the likes of Van Helsing (which inspired the TV series of the same name), and others, and a range of comics / graphic novels spun-off from a range of film and TV series such as Final Destination, Se7en, Charmed, and Vikings, and more.

All of which would suggest there’s some potentially tasty meat in which fingers, claws, mandibles, etc., can be dug, to provide a tasty filling of fun and Second Life. Or so you’d think – but let’s come back to that in a moment.

Zenescope Meataverse: Jabberwocky (lightly post-processed)

As with the Film Threat experience, the requested way for people to get to the Zenescope Metaverse region(s – there are four at present, plus a fifth the appears reserved for “VIPs”) is via a dedicated Zenescope Portal (In fact the two portal areas are practically clones of one another).  I’ve no idea if Zenescope themselves will be providing a gateway into Second Life from their own website (or at least to the dedicated SL Landing Page, but the portal area includes a couple of video stations that will play Strawberry Linden’s How to Get Started in Second Life video. These bracket the main experience portal, which visitors are invited to walk through to be delivered to one of the Metaverse Experience regions proper.

These regions are – as you would expect – all identical to one another. They are built around a central plaza space, which at the time of my visit was set out for what I assume might be some kind of opening event. Flanking this one two sides are Zenescope merchandise stores offering a mixed of clothing, character outfits, branded t-shirts, avatar accessories  and décor items in a pair of shops (duplicated on either side of the square). Beyond the square, through an archway is a large mansion that appears to hold promise, but outside of “hiding” a quest token, is actually “for another time”.

The quest itself is HUD-based, with the Hub close to the landing point providing the basics and the HUD itself. The idea here is to gather token that will allow your to continue on through to “Chapter 2” of the experience – this region being “Chapter 1”. Around the rest of the region are locations apparently lifted from various Zenescope series  – such as a ruined temple, Rockman’s Fast Food joint, an animated Jabberwocky, etc., which are included in the quest, together with a game of miniature golf and a trip through a maze.

Zenescope Metaverse: a not-so-subtle hint to touch the bunnehs!

There are also freebies to be had for those that mouse around – some obvious, some not so (e.g. the duck you “follow” through the maze, and which sits on the far side. There’s also at least one diversion to another setting, and a couple of points that – like the mansion – are apparently “for future use”, with the Zenescope folk promising “tons of new stuff over the next few months”. And it is with this that I had some problems.

A promise of things to come is always good – but it is the here and now that most people are concerned with; and in this regard, I have to say that exploring the environment as it currently is, left me entirely underwhelmed. OK, so I’m a long-term SL user, so something like this is bound to have a “been there, done that” feel to it. But even trying to put myself in the mindset of an incoming new user familiar with Zenescope and attracted by something “new” to the brand, what is presented here feels empty, and far from the promise of the promo video (embedded at the end of this piece).

Zenescope Metaverse: did I drink from the bottle, or slip into fee-fih-foh-fum land?

Zenescope  clearly has a richness of narrative that could so easily be mined: Grimm, Van Helsing, et al. But outside of the merchandise and a handful of static places in the region, it’s not unfair to say next to none of this is present here. Even the quest comes over as a damp squib: gather you tokens, find the portal to “Chapter 2”, and then discover its promise is – wait for it – “Coming Soon”. Bleah.

And while there is a “reward” for gathering all the tokens, the fact that it is a folder of very mildly amusing signs an avatar can hold isn’t really that rewarding – or really related to anything Zenescope (although they could obviously find use elsewhere). But why not a Zenescope t-shirt or some other trinket of merchandise as well?

Now, in fairness, the set-up could be the result of constraints placed on LL by Zenescope Entertainment. In which case, they are more the fools; because in trying to wear the hat of a Zenescope reader, I have to say that were I entering a 3D world that promises the chance to explore the places I’ve read about, experience becoming a character I love – then frankly, this experience really doesn’t cut it at present. Even the region’s EEP settings (apparently chosen so as not to over-tax incoming users’ machines) is, frankly, bland. Why not something just slightly darker or unusual?

Zenescope Metaverse: the (largely) “for another time” mansion

Of course, some of this may come with “Chapter 2” and beyond. Again, fair enough; but while hanging everything with comments that it is “for another time” and “Coming Soon” might well be a way for Zenescope to test the water, it also runs the risk of invoking a “meh” reaction in their readers and – equally importantly – if they want to attract established SL users to their brand, then that “meh” reaction risks being repeated – as a non-Zenescope reader, I admit I was hardly rushing to find out more about them. Which perhaps isn’t the best of results, either way.

This is made all the more unfortunate, because elsewhere LL have gone the extra mile: there is the dedicated Zenescope Second Life Landing Page mentioned earlier, supported by a dedicated Welcome to the Zenescope Metatverse Second Life community page that is clearly geared towards those coming into SL for the first time. All of which might come to be an under-utilised effort.

But that is just my view; and God knows, I’ve been wrong before! 🙂 . In the meantime, the Zenescope Metaverse is now open, so you can drop in and take a look for yourself, and I’ll just leave you with the promo video.

Related Links

 

 

 

Lab announces the ending of gacha machines in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
via Linden Lab

In what is going to be seen as a highly unpopular move, Linden Lab has announced that the use of gacha machines within Second Life must be discontinued by content creators by the end of August, 2021.

To avoid and misrepresentation of the Lab’s decision, I’m reproducing the official announcement below:

Due to a changing regulatory climate, we’ve had to make the difficult decision to sunset a very popular sales mechanism for content in Second Life.  It’s widely known as “gacha”, and is defined by a chance-based outcome as a result of a payment.  
We know that creators plan their content releases far in advance and will need to re-tool their products, so to mitigate the impact to those affected, we are giving a 30-day grace period, until midnight SLT on August 31.  After that time, selling content via gacha machines will no longer be permitted in Second Life.  Enforcement won’t start until September 1; after that date an Abuse Report for “Gaming Policy Violation” will be the preferred method of reporting this content to Linden Lab.  
We will continue to allow any sales where a payment is given for a known item, which means that items that had been purchased as “gacha” will be allowed to be re-sold as long as the buyer knows in advance the item and quantity they will receive. We will, of course, still allow fatpacks, and any other currently-allowed distribution mechanisms. 
We did not make this decision lightly and we understand that it will impact creators as well as event organizers and certainly the shoppers! We look forward to fun creative ways of engagement that will come instead.

While the decision is going up upset some content creators and disrupt certain sales events, the likely cause of this change is due to countries increasingly regarding the use of loot boxes (of which gacha machines are a form) as a means of gambling, and introducing regulation and legislation regarding their use. In the United States, a number of states have also introduced legislation on the use of loot boxes and similar over the last 2-3 years, and a proposed federal bill on the matter expired at the start of 2021 – which does not mean federal, as well further state-level legislation, will not be forthcoming.

Those with questions / concerns about the decision, can voice them via the official forum thread on the matter, which the Lab has indicated it will monitor and attempt to reply to questions raised.

 

Updated to add a missing “proposed” from the penultimate paragraph.

Poking at the new Welcome Islands

Posted on by Inara Pey
The new Welcome Islands

Update: Keira Linden indicated as well as A/B testing against the Learning / Social Islands, the Welcome Islands are also being compared with throughput via the Firestorm Community Gateway. you can find more on Keira’s comments on the Welcome Islands and the Guidebook in my July 7th Web User Group meeting summary). 

Following my recent look through the new Guidebook that now forms a part of the official Second Life viewer (and is filtering its way into TPVs), and which is aimed at helping those get started on the platform, I’ve had the opportunity to take a poke at the new Welcome Islands that are designed as an arrival point for incoming new users, and which leverage the viewer’s Guidebook.

Before getting down to some of the details, it’s worth pointing out a couple of things:

  • The new Welcome Islands and Guidebook appear to be in A/B testing alongside the existing Learning Islands / Social Islands that are in use.
  • This means that should you opt to create a new account to try-out the new Welcome Islands, you may not actually be directed to them, but are instead directed to one of the existing Learning Islands / Social Island (reviewed here).
Arrival: the Guidebook opens at the first page, and a path directs you around the island

Given this, I opted to use the Guidebook within the viewer to get me to the new Welcome Islands rather than creating a new account and relying on pot luck to get me delivered to them via the on-boarding process (when I might easily be routed to a Learning Island).On arrival, I found the Guidebook had opened itself at the first page – much as I would expect it to do for a new user on their arrival at the Welcome Islands. As with other new user experiences, Welcome Island presents a path for  arrivals are to follow, one that meanders through a park-like setting built around a water feature. The latter offers an interesting view of the Second Life grid – as a planetary globe, canted on its axis and spinning gently, its watery surface dotted by the Mainland continents, mini-continents and private estates / islands.

The Avatar picker area displays a selection of start avatars, all of which are animated in their display area

Along this path can be found the three main stations referenced within the Guidebook for interacting with objects,, changing / customising an avatar and gaining familiarity with avatar attachments, all of which sit relatively close to the landing point. Beyond them are two more large stations – a bar and a café, each with interactive food / drink givers – and a number of open-air seating areas offering the chance for social interactions – if there are sufficient new users on an island who wish to mingle.

Also to be found on the islands is a sign directing all those who wish to move on elsewhere in Second Life to use the Destinations tool bar button. However, what the sign fails to indicate is that if it is clicked, it will (via a dialogue box) offer to open the web search at the Destination Guide, which can then also be used to locate places to visit.

Two new arrivals work on avatar looks – or try to(?)

These islands are a simple in design, easy-to-explore settings with some nice touches (e.g. seats that actually offer poses, drinks and refreshments trays that attach objects to an avatar in order to help new users gain familiarity with interacting with scripted object) and sits well with the Guidebook.  However, part of me does wonder if it is a little too minimalistic in approach in order to satisfy all incoming new users.

The grid as a globe within the new Welcome Islands

Certainly, there is a strong contrast between this somewhat contextual approach and the more tutorial-oriented Learning Island / Social Island approach. There are strengths and weaknesses to both, so continuing with them on a side-by-side basis even beyond A/B testing is likely not a bad idea, so it will be interesting to see what happens down the road.

What I will say is that, whilst loitering in the Welcome Islands I was delivered to, several people dropped in as well. Those who responded to me indicated they had just signed-up (although looked like they were coming back to the “Welcome Back” Island where I was hiding, rather than being “brand new” users”), and further indicated they were finding the Guidebook useful – although this obviously didn’t stop questions! – although one who had managed to find their way into inventory did admit to getting somewhat confused and wanting more information on have to change looks without having to pick an entire new avatar, and what was the difference between WEAR and ADD.

I’m not sure we’ll be given any clear insights into how well the new Welcome Islands perform when compared to the other routes into Second Life, but hopefully it will contribute not only to getting people into SL, but also giving them the level of information they need to keep on visiting – and exploring.

Looking at the (award-winning) Second Life video ad

Posted on by Inara Pey
A still from Children of Creation, Linden Lab / Leverage Media

During the Lab Gab special on Monday, June 21st, that featured board member and Executive Chair Brad Oberwager (Oberwolf Linden) and the SL leadership team of Grumpity, Patch and Brett Linden, a “commercial break” was taken to show – I believe for the first time – a complete advertising cut of the video filmed for Second life as a collaborative project between Linden Lab and  Levitate Media.

I’ve extracted the video via timestamps and embedded it at the end of this article so it can be seen without the interviews that come on either side of it, and during the show, Brett linden revealed more about it:

  • The overall project for the video has the internal title at the Lab of The Children of Creation.
  • The version shown (and embedded below) is one of several cuts of the recorded film, and is specifically geared towards teasing out the ideas of freedom of expression and imagination taking flight, hence the emphasis on flying.
  • Other cuts of the video (I believe from Brett’s comments) emphasise Second life in other ways, some offering a “considerable amount” of Second Life footage, and a “directors cut” that does not really show the virtual world, but acts as a teaser.
  • The ad (as seen here) was entered into the 2021 Telly Awards for artistic achievement in video advertising, where it received the following adjudicated awards:
    • Gold Telly winner – Online Commercials Craft-Visual Effects.
    • Gold Telly winner – People’s Telly General-Online Commercials.
    • Silver Telly winner – Online Commercials Craft-Music/Jingle.
    • Silver telly winner – Online Commercials Craft-Directing.
  • The video is regarded as a “concept  ad” and has not as yet been widely deployed as a part of any advertising or other campaign. However, there are plans to discretely test some of the edits (including the “director’s cut”).

You can list to Brett’s comment on the ad below:

Personal Viewpoint

From a purely personal perspective, I think the advert as shown works pretty well; the images are well-matched to the narration, and the overall impact is the idea of liberation and freedom of expression. The intercuts of changing avatar appearances particularly underscores this, as do more subtle elements (take the still used as the banner image for this article, for example – the person / avatar flying away from the bright “Hive” sign, alluding to escaping humdrum, unified thinking and moving to new horizons). There is also a good sense of mystery to the ad that present the encouragement to go find out more about what it means

However, I have to caveat this by saying the phrase “if you’re travelling beyond this life” perhaps doesn’t sit as well as it might, given that terms like “beyond this life” are often using in reference to people passing on. This and other phrasing in the video might push uninitiated ears towards thinking the add is about some kind of cult or similar, rather than promoting a digital world; perhaps “beyond this world” might have been a better choice of words.

I’d be curious to learn how well the ad (and variations thereof) sit with assorted audiences, and maybe we’ll find out in time. For now, however, here’s the ad as shown during Lab Gab.

Additional Links

SL18B: A look at the Linden Homes Fantasy Theme preview

Posted on by Inara Pey
The Linden Homes Fantasy Theme preview at SL18B

Note: the images here do not show the intended EEP environment for the fantasy theme. They have been taken purely to show the house designs themselves. I will have images reflective of the Fantasy homes and their new sub-continent utilising the correct environment lighting when the Fantasy theme becomes available. 

As a part of the opening of SL18B, Patch Linden announced the next Premium Membership Linden Homes theme will be Fantasy, and a preview area opened within the celebration regions, giving people a chance to see the new theme ahead of its release later this year.

Fantasy has been a common request for a new Linden Homes theme, and the new theme is to address this call. In keeping with the majority of the “new” Linden Homes themes, the houses occupy 1024 square metre parcels, and the theme appears to comprise four styles, as described below – but please note it has been indicated that:

  • The interior layouts may change between the preview and the release.
  • This theme is to include “special features” not previously seen in Linden Homes – but these will not be revealed until Patch’s Lab Gab session on Tuesday, June 22nd (unless he spills the beans at the Leadership session on Monday, June 21st!).
Amberbrooke

The four styles are:

  • Amberbrooke: a large, open-plan central room with stairs to the upper level and front and rear access, flanked by two additional rooms. Upstairs are three rooms, with the central room featuring a balcony overlooking the rear of the property.
  • Mistbrooke: a large, single-level house with central entrance hall flanked by two rooms on either side, the two rearmost of which each provide access to a small terrace / patio sitting between the wings of the house.
  • Rosebrooke: central entrance hall, flanked by a large room to the right with access to the rear of the property, and a smaller room to the left. Stairs from the hall provide access to a landing with a room to either side, each with skylights.
  • Stonebrooke: a turreted entranceway provides access to a large main room with access to the rear of the property and further access to an inner hall / room that in turn leads to three further rooms.

While it is purely speculative on my part, I wonder if these homes might also follow in the footsteps of the Chalet theme, with each style offered both with complete interiors and in a more open style variants for people to create rooms of their own.

Mistbrooke
As it is, and again given the interiors are not finalised, the Mistbrooke would appear a little cumbersome in layout – the only way to get to the rearmost rooms in the house (and indeed, access the rear terrace / patio) is to traipse through the rooms they adjoin.  Some might not find this especially enamouring, depending on the uses to which they put the intervening room. Given the hallway overlooks said terrace / patio, I’m surprised the window it contains is not actually a doorway.

In terms of overall design, the Fantasy Homes could be described as “the Cotswolds meets Lord of the Rings”. True, these are are not faced in stone (at least for the preview), but on the whole their general appearance (ignoring the skylight motif and fretwork over entranceways) wouldn’t seem too out of place if dropped into a Wiltshire village.

Rosebrooke

It is the fretwork that pretty much carries the “fantasy” theme (along with the “Linden typical” approach the the general landscaping (twisted and gnarled trees, crystals thrusting out the the ground together with giant mushrooms). This fretwork and the skylight window motif do give the houses a lean towards “elven / Lord of the Rings”, but to me on this first look – and granted I know nothing about the “special features”, so may well have to eat my words later – the overall designs feel as if they are tinkering with the fantasy theme, rather than embracing it.

Truth be told, wandering / camming the region left me asking, “where are the rounded doorways? Why not something with a little more of a fantasy edge to it such as homes with open-sided entranceways and halls leading to rooms that are somewhat more enclosed?” and so on. However, and in  fairness, I can also recall the original Linden Homes fantasy theme came under heavy fire back in 2009 for being too other-worldly (/Lord of the Rings-ish) and thus seen as having “limited appeal”, so a more staid approach might be for the better.

Stonebrooke

As it is, much of the initial reaction on the forums has been positive, and it is fair to say that in not going “all out” on the fantasy theme, these homes could find favour among both fantasy lovers and those who are not so heavily fantasy oriented, but want a home that is just that little bit different without being completely “outlandish” to their way of thinking.

Either way, the preview region will be open for viewing throughout SL18B, and I’ll doubtless have more on this theme down the road.