Hold on a second – what does ‘real working economy’ mean? Some items are free but most things in Second Life cost a certain amount of ‘Linden dollars’, the virtual world’s own currency. Linden dollars are bought with real US dollars and vice versa – there’s a fluctuating exchange rate, just as if it was a real world currency. This means that if you make a particularly popular banjo, to stick with our example, and lots of people buy it, you’ll rake in the Linden dollars, which you can then exchange for real cash. It’s not unknown for people to make a living out of Second Life. So how easy is it to make things? Well, it’s easy to make simple stuff such as a hollowed out cube. An impressive looking banjo takes much more time and skill, as you have to shape three quite complex pieces (the instrument’s body, neck and head) by manipulating lots of variables that curve, rotate, stretch and so on. There’s a pretty steep learning curve to the process, although lots of help is offered to beginners – you can even attend crafting classes – and with plenty of patience you’ll be able to fashion some decent basic items. But the reality is you need to be artistically talented to do well; some of Second Life’s top house designers are architects in real life, for example. The dating and relationship stuff you mentioned before – does that include virtual sex? Yes, it does. There are specific adult-rated areas, such as strip clubs with pole dancers, and folks can get naked here and use something called ‘pose balls’ which are animations of different sexual positions. It’s even possible to purchase add-ons for your character, and yes, these can include the bits you’ll need to make sexual experiences look more realistic (or more fantastic, depending on your whim). Okay. So this isn’t a game for kids, is it? Indeed, it’s adults only, but there’s a teen version of Second Life (http://teen.secondlife.com), which is strictly for 13 to 17 year olds and obviously lacks the mature content. It’s also closely supervised. How much does it cost to play? A basic account is free, all you need is a computer and a broadband internet connection. You can sign up here and join Second Life’s resident population of 1.3 million straight away. While there are a fair few freebies for the new player, you’ll soon come across many items that require cash to purchase, and to acquire the world’s currency you’ll need to fork out some real world US dollars (converted from pounds on your credit card). How much you spend is entirely up to you. Also, if you want to buy plots of land in the virtual world, you’ll need to upgrade to a premium account, which costs $10 (about £5) per month. Oh, and if you get virtually married and want a divorce, that’ll cost you $25 (£13). Who’s betting Paul McCartney wished he lived in Second Life?

Back to page one.

Published on 22 June 2007