Vampires undergoing NBA Orientation
Tateru Nino's weekly take on mixed reality...
Nothing says NBA-in-Second Life like a vampiric vampire hunter chasing herself in circles with a stake. So far, that's the oddest thing I've seen at NBA's new Second Life presence, unless you count the unusual and specialized language that the basketball fans seem to speak.
We'll see if we can have a ball at the NBA, along with a dose of mixed reality happenings after the fold.
One look at the NBA islands on the map said 'Electric Sheep' to me. There seems to be some formula at work. Certainly when you arrive at the NBA Orientation Island (direct link), Electric Sheep's signature work almost seems to overshadow the NBA theme. That won't bother the new folks who come in through NBA's registration portal though.
The orientation stations follow a straightforward, simple and logical formula, though perhaps a little bit of proofreading might be in order. Move, use camera, communicate, select a template appearance, customize it, get a HUD.
Definitely pick up one of the NBA toolbar HUDs from NBA Orientation Island. They don't seem to be available elsewhere and you'll need one to interact with the NBA games. It is useful for more than just getting NBA sports news and live score feeds from NBA games in progress.
NBA Jam Session - Colorful and entertaining.
The NBA Jam Session (direct link) sim features four video lounges and two game courts. It's bright, colorful and distinctive, and should be very satisfying to fans of the NBA, and of basketball generally, though it may take a little while to load in your viewer. The seating around the area is detailed, plausible and decorative, but as with previous version-one Sheep builds, lacks sit-targets, so is not very useful. The Sheep usually sort that out on a second pass.
The NBA toolbar HUD is very slick work, with top notch production values. The toolbar provides three games that you can play on the jam courts or in the arena (Horse, Crash The Board and Shoot Around), and a trivia game that you can play anywhere, anytime. The games, while they require some practice, are surprisingly good and fun - of course Second Life physics lets things down a little, but doesn't detract all that much from the sheer fun factor.
The NBA Arena (direct link) features a recreation of the physical T-Mobile Arena, an NBA store that sells team jerseys and accessories for your avatar and a recreation of the Larry O'Brien Trophy room.
Honestly, I've never heard of any of these being that I'm on the other side of the world and not a fan, but an unscientific poll of basketball fans tells me that it is "kick ass".
Exploring the Great Pyramid of Khufu
Mixed Reality Happenings
- Tomorrow (Tuesday May 8) students from Trinity University virtual worlds promotion class will be presenting their findings from 8am to 9:15am SLT (Pacific). If you are interested in attending, send an e-mail to [email protected] or send an IM to Carbonel Tigereye in Second Life.
- French media and event agency Carre Bleu Marine opens an exhibit on the Great Pyramid of Khufu (aka Cheops) in Harmonia (direct link).
- Reporters Sans Frontieres have opened a bureau in Second Life (Second Life Insider).
- An exhibit of the work of Photo-artist Chris Jordan opens, displaying his latest series Running the Numbers (3pointd).
- STA Travel opens virtual dormitories (3pointd).
- Dr Dobbs Life 2.0 summit (website) occupied the attention of many from April 28 to May 4.
- The DV8-Live Cyber Festival (Second Life Insider) is coming up on Saturday, May 12.
Got a mixed reality tip for Tateru? E-mail her at [email protected]. And visit her blog.
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