Virtual Bosphorus

In geography, the Bosphorus bridges Europe and Asia via the country of Turkey. In Second Life, the Bosphorus is where new Turkish residents come to Second Life.

“We started off by being a Linden Lab community gateway sim, for Turkish Orientation.” John Zelnik, whom owns the sim, explained to SL Newspaper. This was in April 2007. The sim at one time had a replica of the Bosphorus Bridge, but later took on a different look, “We have teamed up with the football club Inter SL. It is actually authorized by the real club to use the naming rights, etc, in SL. We have been working with them for about a year now. But they have been around since 2007. We decided to bring forward virtual soccer and make it our sim's main attraction.“

“The Inter players take this very seriously,” John continued, “It's no different to real soccer for them. They train every single day, a few hours every day. They use special huds to actually play the games. We also have a Football academy which we teach residents to play virtual football. It’s a bit of a change from the club scene. We are getting more and more females who are interested in playing as well.”

John explained over time a total of “a few hundred” players entered Second Life’s soccer league through Bosphorus, “It is not widely known within SL apart from certain cultures who have teams. There are national teams which we conduct national championships. We have one due in June.” John explained Argentina won last year’s tournament, “There are a few teams in Second Life created by residents. However as we are the official inter-team, there are not many like us, with authorization from the actual club itself.

John went on, “This is only one of the real life/Second Life interactions we have. We have also now made an arrangement with one of Turkey's most famous artists to have her gallery here in Second Life also. Hulya Kupcuoglu who has had many showings in Europe and Turkey, we will show case her art work here at Virtual Bosphorus. Another real-life group we work with is “Remove the Barriers.” It is a Turkish movement which we are the official sl representatives of, an organization for raising awareness for people with disabilities. Their aim is not to collect donations, but it is purely to raise awareness and change simple living conditions in Turkey for those who are living with disabilities who can not get around due to the infrastructure, etc.”

Eve1209 Qunitessa, whom helps John out, commented, “Don't forget to tell him about our live concerts too, John.” John smiled, “Yes, we do have live concerts here every week.” Eve added, “The soccer field actually converts to a concert stage” John offered to show, and heading to the soccer field, a large white stage appeared, bluish lights shining down, and covered with a half-dome in the pattern of a soccer ball.

Eve brought up, “Oh, also the shopping: we have some of the best designers in Second Life here. No freebie stores. ... We have some big names like UK Couture and Myth.”

“We are not a sim with 75,000 traffic with bots,” John commented, “I have a allergy to things like that. ... I prefer to keep things real. I'd love to see this place buzzing one day, because we have put in a lot of effort, time and money. We aren’t funded by bigwigs, nor am I one. I’m just a little man trying to make a difference, with the great people around me.”

Eve pointed out, “If you zoom up, and look at the soccer stadium, it's shaped like a heart. John does this sim with his wife.” John smiled, “Ahh yes, my one and only Second Life wife, who is also my fiance in real-life. ... I don't look at things here as just a game. Real people, real projects, real goals.” Eve, “That’s what makes working with John and Princess (Dikes) so special to me. Just like this heart shaped stadium - they've both put their hearts into this place.” John answered, “Thanks Eve. The way we see it this is not just our sim ... This is the sim of everyone who comes here whether it is the store owners, the visitors, the players, the newbies. We have faced a lot of challenges to keep this sim up and running, both financially and emotionally. But our dream remains the same, to share this place with Second Life residents.”

Bosphorus was recently remodeled, with a grand reopening ceremony on April 1, John saying, “Yes we changed the entire sim, renovated, and what you see now opened on the 1st. But this sim itself has been around for over two years.”

The sim has it’s own website (still being worked on) at http://www.virtualbosphorus.com , and also it’s own Facebook page.

“Virtual Bosphorus & F.C Inter SL welcomes all visitors to come and experience soccer in Second Life. They have provided an atmosphere to please people from all walks of life. Whether it is playing soccer in their fully functional stadium, shopping from SL's biggest and best brands or listening to live music from SL's most amazing live vocalists, Virtual Bosphorus & F.C Inter SL aims at providing a great experience for all.”

The entry point for Bosphorus is at: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Bosphorus/194/125/22

Bixyl Shuftan

M Linden Appears on “The 1st Question” Game Show

About a year ago, Second Life Newspaper took a look at Pooky Amsterdam’s “The 1st Question," a game show in Second Life shown on treet.tv someone called “a cross between having lunch with Albert Einstein and ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire?’ “ Since then, the show has continued to appear every Tuesday at 7 PM SL time, always drawing a packed audience, and having among it’s contestants a number of noted residents, some well known, some important, and a few whom were both.

On Tuesday April 20, the contestants included one of the more well known residents of the metaverse: M Linden, aka Linden Lab CEO Mark Kingdon.

The other contestants were Sydney Caramel (real-life journalist Boonsri Dickinson), FutureGuru Haiku, and Professor Springflower. But all eyes were on M Linden. The center of the room had been circled with “M”s as well. So the question on our minds was, would the CEO come out on top, or end up getting his tail kicked? A couple people in the audience joked that a Linden loss would result in the sim suddenly disappearing.

The sim was packed more than usual, with 66 residents in the place at one point. This caused lag and other complications. Some residents crashed and were unable to get back in, including Sydney Caramel. Co-host Hydra Shaftoe later commented he should have capped the avatar limit at fifty or fifty-five. So it was up to two other contestants to stand up to the head Linden.

But with the first few questions, it was becoming clear M Linden was holding his own, able to answer tricky puzzles. Although the others were ahead in points at the start, M soon took the lead and held onto it, eventually winning the show. It is unclear what prizes M Linden won from his victory on the game show.

The archived episodes of “The 1st Question” can be seen Here , with the April 20th show most likely appearing on their within a few days.

Bixyl Shuftan

The Sunweaver Easter Alien Egg Hunt

Are egg hunts becoming a little too boring? Do you feel like hunts need some element of danger? Well, now's your chance. Shockwave Yareach has designed an egg hunt to remember as the eggs, and what hatches out of them, will hunt you back.

To see the rest of the story, click on Community.

Are Virtual Worlds (And MORPGs) Being Replaced by "Farmville"?

At my workplace, I’m the only one that I know of who plays Second Life. One other coworker plays a Massive Online Role-Playing Game (not World of Warcraft). What has been getting the attention of the workplace are Facebook games, such as “Farmville” and “Mafia Wars.”

Recently, the rise of these games has started to get some talk. Second Life has started to grow again recently, but only slightly. World of Warcraft, after going strong for years, has had it’s growth slow to a crawl. But the Facebook games, and other web-based games, continue to attract many more users by the month.

Fans of Virtual Worlds and MORPGs once pondered their game getting out-competed by others in their field. Now users of World of Warcraft and Second Life are pondering what was once unthinkable, their favorite online hobbies being replaced by these simple little time users. Even WoW’s owner Blizzard expressed worry in their annual report

We also compete with other forms of interactive entertainment, such as casual games like iPhone applications and other mobile phone games, and games developed for use by consumers on social networking sites. Future increased consumer acceptance and increases in the availability such games or other online games, or technological advances in online game software or the Internet, could result in a decline in platform-based software and negatively impact sales of our console and hand-held products. ... may also render products such as "World of Warcraft" obsolete.

For those used to their entertainment becoming more sophisticated over time, it would be a major step backward in digital evolution.

So why have these little webgames gotten so popular? Why are players spending hour after hour on them that one would normally associate with a MORPG or virtual world? For one, they’re not too difficult to play, normally one just needs a few minutes at most to figure out how. Second Life, movement controls can be a bit awkward for beginners, and even if you don’t plan to own land or build, it can take a while to get the hang of things, and even old timers don’t know everything.

Also, webgames are pretty cheap, people able to log onto them for nothing. Although one can play Second Life as a free player, getting Lindens through contests and jobs, more often people find it quicker to go ahead and put some real money into their virtual experience. And for those whom want to own land, the costs can add up to a lot.

Developers are attracted too. The little games don’t take as much time to make as virtual environments. And even if it’s just money through ads, investors can expect quicker returns.

... while there is plenty of energy being put into new kinds of alternate-reality games, interactive narratives, and other so-called "transmedia" productions, none so far, at least, offer what was available as early as 2003. ... Second Life is [pretty much] the last man standing when it comes to full 3D robust virtual worlds.

So is our number up? Are we going to have to resign ourselves to a future of “Farmville” clones, the days when we could build virtual forests and castles as far as the eye can see a thing of the past?

Not necessarily.

Virtual words and MORPGs have been around for a while, Second Life will be celebrating it’s seventh anniversary in a few months. And as good as they are, none of us can refute they have had their share of bugs and problems. So the less enthusiastic might be inclined to take a break.

The global recession has been particularly hard, some predicting the United States and other countries will experience a “lost decade” as Japan did in the 1990’s. People losing their jobs, and accepting new ones that offer only a fraction of their old pay. And for those who still have their old jobs feel the pressure to build up a cash reserve just in case. With this economizing, the $15 a month for WoW, or a larger amount for a plot of virtual land and home in Second Life, like other forms of entertainment cash, they become targets for the budget chopping block.

Then there’s the audience of these little games. Much of it is young children and teenagers, the latter whom are too young to be playing Second Life, and the former too young to be playing games as intense as WoW.

Eventually, those taking a break will be inclined to come back for more, perhaps sticking around if the things that bugged them the most happen less often or are gone. Like all recessions, this one will end, and people will have more cash to spend for their online entertainment. And the kids will grow up, and be looking for something more sophisticated.

The question is, will Linden Lab be innovative enough to take advantage of the new demand when it happens, or will it simply lumber along, and allow young new competitors to take the lead and leave it behind.

But somewhere, we’ll be able to have our castles and forests.

Bixyl Shuftan

Sources: CNet, Activision/Blizzard Annual Report

Man Arrested for Plundering Runescape Online Game Accounts

Britian’s Police National e-crime unit announced in a statement, “A 23 year old man was arrested in Avon and Somerset on the morning of Tuesday 24 November ... on suspicion of a number of computer misuse offences.” The target of the crime: the accounts of Runescape players.

Jagex, the company that created and owns Runescape, stated that it was likely to be the first of several arrests, “We have pinned down and identified the handful of ringleaders.” It is believed they gained access to the accounts by “phishing” emails, then once they gained access sold off the items then plundered them. The virtual cash can be sold for real money. Two million in Runescape gold can sell for about ten US dollars in the Internet's "underground."

Jagex stated it was working with the British police and FBI to find and catch those stealing from peoples’ accounts. The arrest on the 24th “was one result of a long-term investigation “of those behind the attack that struck, “a few thousand Runescape players.”

Selling Runescape gold has been against the rules of the game, “and Jagex has made many changes to it’s underlying code to stamp out gold farming.” A Runescape official thought these efforts may have led to the thefts.

Before, the worst offenders could expect was a canceled account. Now, they face real time in a real jail for their theft of virtual cash and goods.

“Players invest years of time and effort into developing their Runescape character, so the theft of a Runescape account shouldn’t be treated differently to the theft of any other valuable possessions, such as a games console, television, or car.”

Sources: BBC News, Casual Gaming.

To Call Second Life a “Game,” or Not?

In Community, a little tale of some friends and I talking about what exactly to call Second Life, one of whom had a rather interesting way of describing it to a friend and getting him interested in joining.

To read what happened, click HERE.

Meanwhile Back in Azeroth: Third Expansion Planned for WoW, and Other Changes

It’s been several months since I got World of Warcraft’s third Expansion, “Wrath of the Lich King.” It took a while to get to the top. A couple months ago, I got a character, my bloodelf hunter, to Level 80. Besides that, there was a particularly memorable quest chain, "The Battle for Undercity,” helping to retake it after a sinister plot resulted in a coup. So the hunter ended up fighting alongside two of the most powerful NPCs of the game, Warchief Thrall and the Banshee Queen, the group slowly making it’s way to the royal quarter and beating the powerful demon that had taken over.

After that, still finding things to do, friends to chat with and hang around. Like Second Life, WoW looses a lot of it’s charm if there’s no one to talk to (at least for me). Blizzard recently added the Argent Tournament, throwing in some new action for my Lvl 80 character. Gameplay has also changed slightly. The spices I once needed to cook food are no longer needed. While using one alt, the special quest once required to get a higher cooking level wasn’t there and the alt was freely able to progress. Easier, though I miss having to go through the fancy cookery a little. My Rouge alt’s Poison-making skill is now gone, buying them instead of making them through ingredients. He also no longer needs flash powder to use Vanish to make a quick ninja-like exit from a iffy fight. It’s been a little while since I used him, so not sure how long ago those changes were made. Druids can now have the looks of their bear and cat forms changed for a more unique appearance. The level requirements for riding mounts, once at Lvl 40 for basic and Lvl 60 for fast mounts, are now Lvl 20 and Lvl 40 respectively. Basic flying mounts and druid flight forms can also fly faster.

It’s also possible to change a character’s race, or even faction, after paying Blizzard a fee of course. Considering the names some give their characters, there may be a few paying an additional fee for a name change.

Recently, Blizzard announced something big, plans for a Third Expansion: Cataclysm. The plot, the “corrupted Dragon Aspect Deathwing” returns to Azeroth, and quite literally tears the place apart. Areas long familiar to seasoned players will be greatly changed, the Barrens for instance is described as being torn in two. Two races will be available as player characters, Goblins for the Horde, and the werewolf-like Worgen for the Alliance. There will be a new skill available: Archeology. The top level will be raised to 85. Flying Mounts will now be able to be used in Kalmindor and the Easter Kingdoms, which have been unusable to them since their introduction. There will also be new race/class combinations available (video available HERE).

Reaction has been mostly favorable. The announcement was made just in time for Blizcon, and the few people I chatted with who went loved what they saw. Of the complaints, a few worried that in the PVP servers lower ranked characters would never be safe alone outside the cities as higher-ranked players could supposedly easily swoop down and clobber them. Others wondered about plotholes as Goblins were in charge or a big presence of many neutral towns. But the big talk I noticed was around the two races introduced. Of the Goblins, reaction was split, “Sweeeet! The best engineers in Azeroth!” “Bah! Who needs a Horde version of a gnome?!” The Worgen, the Alliance were happy to get them, a number of Horde were disappointed, “Werewolves in the Alliance? What the hell? I thought they hated Horde because they were too far from human?” A few Horde commented they would be creating an Alliance character for the first time just to try out the wolves.

Blizzard explained that they felt the Horde could use a short race, like the Gnomes for the Alliance, and there had been requests for Goblins as PCs. Of the Worgen, they wanted to bring in a more beastlike race into the Alliance, and one that the players were somewhat familiar with.

And already the jokes are starting, “Let loose the dogs of war!” “Who let the wolves out?” “The mailboxes are going to smell funky.” “Will flea collars be now part of the armory?”

And of course jokes that for the first time, a troll will be able to beat a “furry” in a fair fight, and now it wouldn’t be just in Second Life where humans and furs would be dancing with each other. ;-)

Bixyl Shuftan

The Naturo Combat System, Version 2

To those familiar with the Naturo roleplay area, there is a new combat system in development: the Naturo Combat System version 2, or NCS2.

“Our combat system is known as the NCS2, reason being the Naturo community started with the first NCS,” Bioblaze Payne, one of the design team, told me, “The creator was banned by Linden Labs, so he lost his HUD along with much more. We restarted the project, for NCS2, to be a revamp and revision of the first system. It looks nothing like the first system, in both look and internal design.”

“We have strictly followed the manga and Anime down to the T. We have designed our internal code just for that purpose. So as our Jutsus, items, and fan base grows, so does the HUD. We built in several modules ... to incorporate this way of thinking into the items, terminals, and other things we created for this combat system. As well as our way of building our sim. ... We have completely covered a good number of the clans and we plan to do so with every single one. We have taken baby steps in that reguard, the popular ones to the least, each having the same care and consideration, so not to allow anyone to be over-powered. First clans we plan to release, Uchiha, Hyuuga, Kaguya, and Senju, followed by three more every month until all the clans are fixed.”

“One of our major things is inter-sim missions ... where other sims can be sponsored by our combat system to hold additional missions and quests. For instance, you may get a quest from Hidden Sound to kill this person in Hidden Cloud. Everything is interlaced in that aspect.”

Bioblaze suggested begining fighters, “Practice on Taijutsu dummies and stay within training areas. People will always want to fight, but working on your character is the best way to go. Always remember to enhance your Taijutsu a little first. It’s going to do a lot of damage and not take a lot of Chakara. Then go for your first and secondary elements. If you’re worried about Genjutsu, stay within the limit, always add at least 1-2 points per level to it. It helps when someone hits you to break your Genjutsu. Not only that, it shortens the time that the Genjutsu will effect you.”

“New users should stay close to the mission areas. The PvP areas such as the Forest of Death, are rather big and people sit there looking for fights. If you want to stand a chance, focus on your main element, and hope they don’t have the same element as you. ... everyone of course levels their character in different manners. If you get someone with the same element as you, depending on his level or his element stat, he may have more of a resistance than you do. Where your normal attack would do 150 damage, with that person it may do 70, depending on how much of the same element you have.”

As one’s character gains experience, “Not only does your level increase, but you gain more stat points. The more stat points you get, the more you can up your character’s level and such. Not to mention you’ll gain more access to missions and specialized Jutsu. ... Focus on your way of fighting. No one’s way is the right way or the wrong way. It all depends on the character. Really, it does.” Bioblaze explained they made an effort to make the combat system easy to use.

The NCS2 comes with three attachments, which are simply worn, a pouch, a HUD, and a headband or armband, depending on what you choose when you first put them on and are asked which you prefer plus some other questions for your character in the RP. There are also a few combat gestures included (more given as you progress in the game). The main HUD shows how much health and Chakra you have (a previous version had two bars over your avatar for all to see). To see whom else has the NCS2, press the “check” button. Pressing the pouch on the HUD will open it, as well as triggering an animation to make the avatar appear to be reaching inside the pouch attachment he’s wearing. The pouch itself holds a variety of ninja weapons from smoke bombs to cover a retreat, to throwable knives, to paper-bombs, to caltrops to cover a retreat.

Activating and playing the NCS gestures will activate jutsus, which use up an amount of chakra, but will damage an opponent if you hit him/her. One can also do physical attacks, “Holding down your left mouse button gives you the ability to go into taijutsu mode. Using your arrow keys, you can perform a number of attacks. Pressing your back button with the mouse button still held down is your block feature. If you hold down your mouse button and then hold down shift hitting either the left or the right key, you do a special attack.”

Bioblaze is working with a team in developing the NCS2. Among them, Puppet Tatsu. Kegan Loon also worked with him, though concentrated on designing the sim their group is in: Kumogakure. The reason they chose that name was that it was the village described the least in the Naturo stories, so they felt they had more leeway and room in what they could do with their designs and builds there. They also started work on some “Official Training Grounds” in another sim (at the time of this article were mostly complete).

Kumogakure, the Hidden Cloud Villiage, is at the Kumogakure sim (129, 216, 148). One can click a box near the entrance to request a copy of the NCS2 from a staff member. There is also, a "Release Group" invitation box near the box to get the HUD, the release group has the most update information anywhere on SL about the combat system, from weapons to newest updates. As of the printing of this article, the next beta version should be available in a few days. Bioblaze says they will not be charging Lindens for the NCS's final version.

If you’re a Naturo fan, or a fan of manga in general or combat games, the NCS2 is definitely worth taking a look at.

Bixyl Shuftan

Second Life Game Show - "The First Question"

While at the Conference on Virtual Journalism on April 6th, I ran into a Pooky Amsterdam, and we had a talk. She told me she hosted a show on SLCN.tv called “The 1st Question,” and invited me on Tuesday April 28th as a contestant. It’s not every day one gets a chance to be on a game show, so I agreed.

The show's website (click HERE to go there) on describes the show as “The fast-paced, fact-based, fun hour of science related merrymaking, audience participation, prizes, wit & wisdom.” It takes place every Tuesday at 7 PM SL time in the Studio Dome over Spendthrift Island. Pooky Amsterdam hosts the show with Hydra Shaftoe as co-host, with four contestants competing to win. The show is broadcast on SLCN on compatible viewers in SL, and is done in front of an audience of a few dozen. Old shows can be seen in the archives.

I was asked to show up by 5:30 PM SL time, and did so. “You’d be surprised how many show up at 5:31 or 5:32“ Pooky told me. The other three contestants were also involved with Second Life Media in some way. PaulLevinson Freenote, Paul Levinson in real life, is a science fiction writer publicizing his work in SL, appearing with book in hand and a monocle. Chantal Harvey is noted for her work with Machinima, as well as organizing the MaMachinima International Festival in February 2009. Jackson Vantelli is the head of Q-media, an SL magazine publisher. Last, or “closest to the audience” as Pooky put it, was me. We were each briefed on how the show went, and each of our sound systems looked at to keep problems away, or at least at a minimum. Co-host Hydra showed up not in his usual wolven avie, but a black jackal in Ancient Egyptian wear.

After the opening and our introductions, first, was a little science humor. What element on the Periodic table did we think best represented us? Paul Levinson answered Mercury, though when told it was “incorruptible” joked he might have to make another choice. Me, I commented iron as that’s what newspaper typeset is made out of, “then again, some wise-guys would also say it gets rusty.”

Next was “Yea Me or Nay Me,” a series of trivia questions with yes or no answers. Then came “Mind Wresting,” in which we would each ask a question to the other contestants. I gave an American Civil War history question. Then we had to answer the following question, “You are in charge of the first newspaper at the first inhabited planet discovered. What will the name of your newspaper be?” I mentioned how in one science-fiction story, some planets were named after the first thing spoken after landing, “The Wemadeit Viewscreen.” But Chantal explained hers so well, the audience loved it best.

Before the show, I thought Paul Levinson would be the winner. Instead, it was soon clear that Chantal was the one heading to victory. Me, I stuttered and stammered a little, and slight nerves may have cost me a question or two. But at least it was a friendly audience. At the end, Chantal emerged the clear winner with Paul Levinson a distant second. Jackson and I tied for third.

I had a few lucky guesses, but what stood out was one question in the “Yea Me or Nay Me.” Although I was using push-to-talk with voice, I still had the volume a little low to keep from interfering with the others. I heard one question as “Did Alfred Hitchcock have a blue button?” That confused me a little, and I answered no. To my surprise, the question was if he had a *belly* button, and as it was removed in a surgery, I got the credit.

Once the cameras were off, Chantal was briefly taken somewhere to get some prizes, and everyone was invited to port to a nearby location to party for a while. Pooky congratulated every one of the contestants, insisting it was a job well done by all.

As of the writing of this article, the recording of the show was being shown on the SLCN.tv main website (click HERE to go there). It should be available on “The 1st Question” website (click HERE) soon.

And no, I didn’t know I sounded like that.

Bixyl Shuftan