Iris Wants to Know: Why Have You Stayed in Second Life?

Janine "Iris Ophelia" Hawkins' ongoing review of gaming and virtual world style

The more I wonder about what Linden Lab has in store for SL 2, the more I wonder what exactly has kept so many players in Second Life itself. For SL 2 to be a success it will not only have to attract new users and veterans alike, but give them a reason to stick around -- and it's not as simple as it would be for just about any other MMO. There's no level caps to consider, no end-game content, no raids, no dungeons... But SL isn't a simple thing in the first place.

So why do we stay?

To be entirely honest, the one thing that's kept me in Second Life is my writing, so I'm probably not the most useful person to ask. Writing about SL has been the lifeline that's kept me attached and invested even when the glossy veneer of the fashion and photography communities that I typically favor have worn thin. 

But what about you? What keeps you in Second Life -- or if you left, what was the final straw? As always, leave your responses in the comments below!

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Janine Hawkins (@bleatingheart on Twitter, Iris Ophelia in Second Life) has been writing about virtual worlds and video games for nearly a decade, and has had her work featured on Kotaku, Jezebel, and The Mary Sue.

Comments

[Arwyn]

I've found things to do. It's not the same thing for me every day. I'll go through periods where all I do is stay on one sim and roleplay constantly. There are other periods where I won't log onto my adult avatar for months, or where I blog and blog and blog some more. SL isn't one thing for me, it's a multitude of things that I could do. There are times I get tired of SL and take a break for a few months, but I always come back.

[Arcadia Codesmith]

I come to Second Life to do things I (mostly) can't do in any other virtual world. Listen to live music. Create things as I envision them, not as some art director dictates. And sometimes to be a little naughty... or a LOT naughty.

I do drift away for long stretches, sometimes very long stretches, but I always drift back.

[Roslin Petion]

I'll be hitting 9 in December. I've stayed mostly for the opportunity to express my creativity. When I have periods where I can't create, I log in a lot less. 2nd and 3rd place for reasons why I stay would be socializing and enjoying the creativity of others.

[Thaumata Strangelove]

I've been in SL since 2005. Lots of things have changed, my skill set has changed, my interests have changed. But the one thing that is always the same is that SL is full of geeky, creative people who appreciate beauty and enjoy socializing. That's always what I come back for.

[ALazarin]

I've stayed with Second Life because ut works for me as a musician. I can perform my music live in Second Life with a minimum of fuss compared to the logistical and administrative headaches involved with real-world gigs.

[Anya Ohmai]

For me the biggest reason I stay is really the creativity I see in Secondlife. I wasn’t expecting it initially especially how often SL is advertised in the past, or seen in the past as a dating virtual community. But the longer I stay, the more creative people I’ve met and the more inspired I’ve become.
I find it so fascinating that when I walk through sims or homesteads, everything I’m surrounded by was created or made by a particular person somewhere in the world that had absolutely no hand in creating the original ‘game’.

My creativity only thrives if I’m surrounded by others who share a similar passion and drive to create. Secondlife provides a venue/world for creators who perhaps aren’t brave enough or fortunate enough in real life to create whatever they can dream of. You can do pretty much anything without laws of gravity, or huge financial investments, it’s… the creating platform for underdogs in my eyes. I’ve taken breaks when I’m overwhelmed or have a lack of inspiration, but whenever I come back, I get inspired and everything feels brand new again. I’ve gone through several creative hobbies in my life, but nothing quite as ever changing as Secondlife to me, and that’s kept my interest for a very long time.

For me, if SL 2.0 provides the same amount of freedom in real time content creation - I think the more likely i’d like to migrate over and continue to grow as an artist.

[Val kendal]

1) Socializing with interesting people from around the planet, many of whom you would never meet otherwise, 2) exploring and seeing what creative people can do with the tools available to them in our world, and 3) having a place to escape to where people shout 'Val!' when I walk in the door.

[Faenzo]

Definetely creativy, I joined SL in 2007 and I never thought I would become what I've become with it, and now it is part of my life, it's my income. Recently I feel like sl isn't as fun as it used to be and there's not much to keep me here aside from my friends and my store who gives me the possibility to work with something I love. But still, sl is a workplace for many of us, and a place to escape from the real world, live beyond limitations and express yourself.

[Tracy RedAngel]

I like SL photography and fashion. I enjoy styling different outfits. I enjoy working on my Pose making business as well. I'm not as social in-world as I used to be in SL. I have a lot more Second Life friends on Facebook and flickr, than I actually have on my friend's list within Second Life.

[Iggy]

Why stay? Supporting colleagues for my main avatar. My alt is a pirate, thief, liar, scoundrel, and fop.

One of the two does things I do not do IRL.

[Montecore Babcock]

For me it's for the hockey league I created 6 years ago and keeps running today. It's been a great way to spend time and meeting new people and providing entertainment. I also stay because my partner of mine (soon to be rl) met here. Finally I love the music community who I have met through rl meets. It will be hard to pull me away when my family and friends in both worlds are in SL.

[Pussycat Catnap]

A large interconnected world with medium-high concurrency.

There's always something going on somewhere with somebody in SL. The world is linked together so I can find it, and the people are here to enjoy meeting when I get there.

I can be a representation of how I feel in SL. My little African Rasta Neko is just not offered as an option by the competition.

I can carve out a space as my creative space here. And I don't have to do it in an isolated bubble. I do it in the context of a community.

[Rusalka Writer]

Money. If it weren't possible to make money I wouldn't have stayed a month.

[Adeon Writer]

I'm here because it's enjoyable making scripts and I like my avatar.

For the past couple months it seems my core hang-out crowd has either left or moved on to other areas, so, for the first time in 7 years, my SL is mostly a solitary experience. I'll probably never leave, but for the moment, I'm just waiting.

Not sure for what yet. Whatever's Next(tm)

[Cube Republic]

I found SL just as I was diagnosed with a rare pain disorder, reputedly the most painful a human can endure. Creating in SL and living a fantasy helps me forget the reality of my existence, which is painful. I can work around my condition and make money to boot. I have a lot to be grateful to SL for. I learnt 3D, first prims, then sculpts and now mesh through my engagement with the platform. I really hope SL2 lives up to my hopes. I consider this now my life's work, and I hope my work makes other people happy.

[Sweet Valentine]

I stay in SL cus of the diversity it has...I have learned so many things here...I love the art, the music,the schools,the events,the community,the crazy fun people from all over the globe...I have loved watching artists/designers and creators develop over the past 9 years of my SL....it is amazing to see how far many have come...I also stay to supplement my income as it is my part time job...I will stay til I die or they kick me out ...lol

[Kitty Revolver]

I stay for expression. When I first logged (techincally the second av) in I was in a terrible place. I had mentally "collapsed" due to hyper-isolation at my first college. I moved from being highly dependant my parents on one coast and then moved to the other on my own. My bright California personality wasn't received well and in the major I was in I was the outsider with the "popular" acting crowd. Anyway, SL allowed me to be social and creative without lots of issues. I credit sl as the thing that brought me back. Today I come back to express my creativity and as a zone of relaxation from school, which now I'm doing my masters.

[Amanda Dallin]

I've stayed in SL since Nov 2006 for friends and socializing. No one else has the number of people or the connected world that SL offers.

I also sail. Sailing lead to fighting pirates. Games don't combine the game elements and socializing as well as SL does.

[Blaze DeVivre]

SL is my second life, an immensely creative safe harbor. I have the chance to create on a level that fully engages me on a level that no medium has ever grabbed me through live dance performances. I have found great friends from all over the world, a second family. Live music, dancing to great DJs, exploring, styling, shopping, basking in others' creativity and generosity, you name it, I love it all!

[Motoko Henusaki]

I stay for the creativity, whether to create things myself or to look at things that were created by others.

[Pim]

I'm with Arwyn. I stay for lots of things. Many people have multiple accounts. While that may skew the population census, it does open SL up for great diversity. Diversity and creativity are what make SL.

[Arcadia Codesmith]

Pay attention, Linden Lab. Creativity... creativity... creativity... creativity... now, have we got some idea where the focus should be in the next world?

Oh yeah, and tracking down Iggy's alt. Arrrgh!

[Sansarya]

Partly because I'm a shopaholic, partly for nostalgia (I met my rl husband and friends in SL), partly because I'm attached to my avatar and her life (which mostly involves shopping, role playing and decorating houses), but mostly because I love the community of SL. Nowhere else in the world does a community like Second Life's exist. It's a completely unique thing, and I've been happy to be a part of it for the past nine-plus years. I'll keep logging in as long as there is an SL.

[Marianne McCann]

First and foremost, the people. The community. Then, the creativity. The places, the things, and a glimpse inside every person's brain.

[CronoCloud Creeggan]

I just turned 8 a couple of weeks back, having my actual rezday party tonight.

For me it's the Shoes, dresses and hair. Lots of Shoes, dresses and hair. I always need more shoes, dresses and hair.

Also the people who make shoes, dresses and hair.

And the people I show off my shoes, dresses and hair to.

But really it's the people and the creative and fun things they do and make. Flying an airship above Caledon, Down in the habitrail in the Deep, hanging out with friends. Throwing together prims to do something. Taking lots of pictures that never get uploaded to the flickr.

And having the ultimate dress up doll for play, Better than Barbie, better even than Tyler Wentworth!

Did I mention the shooooooes?

[Jo Yardley]

Time travel.

SL allows me to rebuild and explore the past and share my passion with people from all over the world.
It is mostly creativity, it is and remains awesome to build something in 3D, but to then recreate an entire neighbourhood from the past and then immerse yourself in it remains magical, even after 5 years.
Being able to share that with an amazing international community is the cherry on top.

[Ananda]

I don't know any more. Because I'm used to it? Why do people live to 90 or 100 either? Habit, really, and uncertainty of whether they'd make a go of it in the next thing.

[Rose Mackie]

To be honest, I'm beginning to wonder why myself.

Content creation has moved beyond my skill set. Just when I was beginning to learn mesh here comes an announcement that everything I've created for the last 8 years and will for the next 2 years will be so many excited electrons and trash.

I'm not in the music scene, although I know so many people enjoy it. I need to be doing something so sitting and listening at my desk isn't enjoyable to me.

It used to be because of friends, but everyone seems to involved in their own interests. At social events people tend to chat privately or voice within their cliques.

[Maddy Gynoid]

For me, SL is a little bit of everything. I like to explore places of other residents, I like using vehicles of all kinds, I go to live concerts, I visit exhibitions and I love the big SL events like SLxB, RFL or BURN2. If I have too much time, then I also build something, or I write a LSL script. And very rarely I go dancing in a club.

In addition, I am also interested in the technical development of SL. I follow the server and viewer development and I try out new features as they become available. Since I logged-in for the first time in 2007, SL has changed so much that it never got boring.

[Shockwave yareach]

Because my virtual home, friends, community, and stuff are in SL. It would be too expensive and difficult to start over elsewhere. Sheer inertia coupled with desire to not simply throw ten years of building and buying into the bit bucket.

[Aliasi Stonebender]

RP, avatar building, socialization, live music.

[Connie Arida]

Because there are no no level caps to consider, no end-game content, no raids, no dungeons... :)

[AvaJean Westland]

I've been in SL since 2007. The reasons I've stayed is that first, nowhere else can I get the buffet of visual stimulation borne out of personal creativity that I do here.

Next, the social interaction. I have met people from all over the planet, that I would NEVER have met on Facebook. I have no desire to be part of a clan or role play (though there is nothing wrong with that). But I get to change my avatar, go shopping and wear outfits I would never get away with in real life. SL has allowed me to tap into that creative diva side of myself.

And lastly, to create. I am an actor/writer in RL, so now I get to act, write in theater and machinima. This adds to my resume, yes, but it adds richness to my life. I get to see a project from beginning to end with very little cost. Plus I have access to talent from all over, not just in the circle of actors that I know.

As Linden Labs creates the next incarnation of Second Life, they will have some hurdles to climb in terms of SL's undeserved reputation. Thank God for people like Drax who've made it their mission to show that SL was NEVER just about virtual sex. The possibilities are endless in terms of what a virtual world can be used for and to NOT think of it as part of future is short sighted. I just hope that people outside of SL will see it as we have.

[Fauve]

Many reasons but first is to network and do projects with (you guessed it) other creatives. I love living where I do in RL and there are many advantages but it is a relatively small and out-of-the-way place that and neither the populous nor the area afford me the opportunities to collaborate on creative projects on the scale I crave. SL effortlessly does. Other reasons? Playing with my avatar styling, learning new things, shopping, taking photos, cultural and arts events, exploring new SL places by indulging my virtual wanderlust, seeing the magical 'impossible in RL ' kinds of things I've seen in SL.

My SL interests have all influenced and bettered my RL in one way or another, it's a good fit. :)

[Kat Alderson]

I'll turn seven next month, and that's kind of a shocker for me. It's flown by, and I know why: I learn something new every single time I log in.

It's ironic, really. I joined Second Life to give classes on industrial and intellectual property rights, and on time management. But then, I accidentally rezzed a prim, and learned I had acquired some pretty powerful magic.

I learned to build with native prims, then sculpts. I learned to texture them. I learned how to script them. I quickly became an active and have since learned how to make my own textures, animations, sculpts, and now I am learning mesh.

In becoming an active merchant, I soon became involved in retail events, how to photography my products, and create product ads - which lead me into learning about marketing in Second life. And learning how to coordinate events of myself.

I could wax (and wane) poetic about loving the creativity and being surrounded by creative people. While that is true, it's all been said above, and probably with a deeper level of sincerity.

But of all the things I've learned, I have learned the most about people. Other people: How they interact, how they view the virtual world and the organic one, how they will insist on trying to detach the two. How they perceive themselves, and how their avatar changes their perception of themselves. And how to spot their "tells".

Being in SL and watching group chat open, or receiving an IM, isn't much different than sitting at a poker table - by paying attention to how a person types, their word choices, their sentence structure, and how both change during the course of a conversation you can learn so much!

It's riveting! In a world where we cannot rely on reading body language, and can only some of the time rely on tone inflection, we can still learn about others and ourselves.

Better still, my fellow residents have taught me humility (that doesn't stick - I seem to require frequent refresher courses) tolerance, charity and hope. In their compassion and generosity, they've taught me a lot about the person I want to be. And in their follies, they've taught me plenty about the person I never want to become.

All of their genius and all of their ignorance inspired me to go back to school in the organic world, and very recently, I obtained my doctorate in industrial/organizational psychology. I'd have never even considered it were it not for SL.

Even if it were not for the joys of creating, minding my store, exploring the creativity of others, shopping (hair and shoes for the win!), organizing events, fundraising for RFL, talking smack with Fallacy, brainstorming with Mike, or having a chance to collaborate with brilliant folks, I would log in for my learning fix.

Seven years, and I've barely scratched the surface. I am looking forward to many more happy years and learning experiences. In SL, in the next virtual world, or both!

[Caroline Resident]

I have several reasons

1. For the same reason other people are fascinated about space exploration or sci-fi movies like star track: Exploring different worlds. It is fascinating what worlds and places others create and how they interact in such a world with its own culture, its own geography and economie.

2. Re-Inventing oneself: You can be what you want and who you want in Second Life and nobody cares or limits you. I actually believe a virtual new identity is in many ways more real than ones real identity which has been , at leat partially, by our exposition to education and society.

3. The sex part is fun too and the above applies to that part too!

Caroline

[Summer]

I originally visited SL to acquire a primary source for a study on immersion in gaming and people's attachment to their avatars and quickly became delighted with this alternative universe. I was amazed at the beauty and immense creativity and the endless possibilities.

RL calls and I sometimes have to leave for a long time but I always return. Creating your avatar is absorbing and you can step into so many different role playing scenarios and learn to make content. It often feels like interactive reading but I suppose it is a new type of medium somewhere between books, film, CGI, reality, fantasies and dreams. As a means of escapism it is utterly compelling.

And there is something about the people; where geek cross pollinates with creative there is an attractive type of playfulness combined with a generosity of spirit. Despite whether your AV appears gendered there is for me, a genderless quality to your interactions with others and it feels more like the essence of who you are and that may indeed manifest itself in more than one character.

I have met some really nice humans in SL.

[Niamh]

I stayed because it's like an old tatty comfy bathrobe. It looks horrible, smells a bit, but sometimes you like to slip into it and just relax.

On the otherhand, it's ugly, laggy, crashy, and totally totally obsessed with money. Money money money. Buy sell rent money money spend money. The social aspect disappeared (along with most of the users) about six years ago.

As soon as SL2 comes out I'm deleting my account and never looking back. My hopes for SL2: ALL mesh. Better, 2015 scripting language. Free land for everyone (SL's problem is that 80% of it is empty or abandoned. They could give a parcel to every user, like "here's some land, show us what you can do". When the grid is filled with modern, alive sims, tended by people that care about them, maybe others will come back or join up.)

You know, my daughter plays Minecraft, and I get slightly jealous. Want a server? run one. Want a build? download it. Want to change *everything*? here's a thousand different versions, all free. That's what SL should have been. The minute the land-barons took over, Sl went bye-bye.