Here's How Alpha Map Support for Mesh Could Change the Face of Second Life Fashion in 2015

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

If you're looking for a new Second Life feature to root for in 2015 look no further than BUG-8100, a.k.a. Alpha Map Support for Mesh. In a nutshell, this proposed feature would allow for alpha maps similar to those that can be layered over an avatar to "cut" parts of it away to be used over mesh objects.

Why does that matter? Well consider mesh avatar bodies...

The most advanced mesh bodies can have different options to remove sections of the body to better fit mesh clothes, but even in the best cases there's still a bit of clipping here, a bit of poke-through there. That's because these options are put in place by body makers and generally not the people creating clothing as a sort of one-size-fits-most solution. There's no way for a clothing designer to apply an alpha map specific to their design, for example, the way a skin designer can apply their skin textures to a mesh body.

It might seem like a small thing, but it's among the most significant hurdles facing one of Second Life fashion's fastest growing markets. This little feature addition could open the door for even bigger and bolder innovations in SL mesh fashion than are currently possible.

You can read more about alpha map support for mesh and show your support on the Second Life Bug Tracker.

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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 Paste, Kotaku, Jezebel and The Mary Sue.

Comments

[Tracy RedAngel]

This NEEDS to happen