Why Do People Use Second Life?
A question often asked by those that have never entered a virtual world is “Why would anyone spend their time in such places?” Rather frequently that question is followed by a comment like “They should stop working on their Second Life and get a first one!” or some other variation on the theme.
So why do people play Second Life? Why do they play World of Warcraft? Why do they enter into any virtual world at all? Isn’t the real one enough for them? Or are they just loners, scared of real human interaction?
The main reason anyone enters these worlds is a social one. Being in these worlds is a very social experience. I know, this seems to fly in the face of perceptions, right? I mean, those of you that do not play are probably picturing a pasty troll sitting in his basement, never seeing the light of day, just killing orcs and never talking to anyone except, perhaps, the pizza delivery guy.
Yet this perception is false. The reality is that being a part of these worlds has a massive social aspect. These worlds do not work, in fact, without this social structure.
First, let’s look at games like World of Warcraft. The idea of “soloing” – or playing the game by yourself – is not unknown. But it is difficult, if not outright impossible, to get through the more difficult aspects of the game without a team. To this end, players can team up with other players in order to face a far more difficult challenge than they could on their own. These teams are not usually random either. Really good teams are made up of diverse “classes” of characters that can each bring something different to the team. For example, one class might be the team’s healer. The healer won’t fight any creatures, but will stand a little away from the fighting and heal his or her comrades while they do the fighting. Other classes are warrior classes, they will obviously do the fighting. But not all fighting classes just raise a sword and hit something. Some might cast spells in order to do damage from a distance because they cannot get hit much without “dying”. Others fight hand-to-hand, and can take more damage, so they stay close up so that their spell-casting friends can avoid being hurt.
The scenario above is a simple one too. Teams can get every complex, with each team-member assigned to do a very, very specific thing in each fight. This level of teamwork would be envied in the real world.
So how do people find teams to fight with? One way is to join a guild. Guilds are very large groups of players (sometimes hundreds of players) that come together to share resources, to find people that want to team up and to just talk -because the game isn’t always about fighting. Sometimes people become friends during the course of the game and so spend time in guildhalls or other meeting places just to chat. After all, if you make an in-game friend who lives on the other side of the earth, seeing them in person is not a likely event.
The result is a massive world full of wizards, warriors, evil goblins and … a massive social network.
Second Life, on the other hand, is a little different. There are no battles of good vs evil. Second Life is modeled after our first lives. There are shops, cars, homes and more. So why be in Second Life if it is so much like the first one?
In this case the social aspect of it is the whole reason it exists. People are in Second Life to interact with other people. That interaction could come in the form of a conversation, a sales transaction, teaching a class or just about any other way you can imagine. However, while you might know some people in the town you live in, odds are not everyone shares your interest in, say, cats that wear sweaters. Yet in Second Life you can find lots of people that love cats in sweaters. You can even argue with people from a rival group of some kind. Say, people that love cats in hats.
Others use it for more serious purposes. Like IBM. IBM has multiple “private islands” on Second Life where they can hold events for their employees. They even have meeting centers where actual business meetings happen. This allows for IBM workers located around the world to “meet” in the same room. They have found that doing this is better than a simple conference call because after the meeting ends, people stick around to talk to their colleagues, just as they might do in a real-world meeting.
Should these virtual worlds act as a social replacement then?
No. Consider it an enhancement. It is fantastic for those that live far apart. They can interact in many more ways than the phone, e-mail or instant messenger allow for. Yet it is not a replacement. There is still no facial expression. There is no chance to shake someone’s hand. Huge parts of what we consider “human interactions” are missing in virtual worlds.
Yet you cannot think that everyone that spends time in these worlds is a loner. Odds are they have many, many friends in the virtual world. It is just that instead of their names being “Sally” or “Fred” the names are “Jabberwocky281” and “GoblinKillah.”
Now, there is a huge thread that does connect Second Life and World of Warcraft together: they are, in the end, entertainment. When you watch TV you see the people on the screen act out their lives and are entertained by this. In World of Warcraft you can actually be the character. You can write their story yourself and interact with others writing their tale of adventure and heroism (or of villainy if you are so inclined).
Consider the joy in that – have you ever watched a TV show and wished you could be part of that world? Or that you could at least write an episode or two? If so, than these worlds might be for you. In Second Life you can create a sitcom of your own design. You can have your character, or “avatar” as they are more commonly called, do just about anything you want. The result is that you are making your own entertainment, not just letting Hollywood dictate the entertainment to you.
Right now with the writers’ strike going on, perhaps there has never been a better time to check out these virtual worlds. Who, after all, is better at writing a story you would like to see than you yourself?
Besides, isn’t an interactive form of entertainment better than a passive one? Television is about as passive as you can get. I love television, don’t get me wrong. I am not condemning the medium. In fact, I really want Chuck and Pushing Daisies back on the air soon! C’mon people! Settle the strike already! However, as wonderful as TV can be, other, more interactive forms of entertainment can be better. Reading is more interactive since you must picture the settings, the people, everything, in your mind. Online entertainment allows you to take some of the pictures in your mind and express them right there on the screen in front of you.
In the end, we all have our ways of both interacting with people and entertaining ourselves. No one form is better than the other (unless you really do put sweaters on cats). So next time you are lamenting that new episodes of Heroes are not forthcoming check out an online world. You might be surprised at what you find there.
Note: this was written by me and originally posted on the Rising Tide blog.
