Dark, foreboding, and full of shredding metal, here's Erik Mondrian making a fly through visit of Cetatea Poenari, a devilishly detailed Second Life sim owned by a "family" of roleplaying vampires. From Erik's description/dedication:
Built by Vlad Drakul-Dragonash & Nazaire Dragonash and named after a ruined Romanian castle that was once occupied by the real-life Vlad III Dracula (also known as Vlad the Impaler), Cetatea Poenari defies description and seems to stretch far beyond the limits imposed by its virtual borders. From the Valley of Horses and Arefu Prison to The Slaughtered Lamb pub and Snagov Monastery—and with the magnificent castle itself keeping watch over all from above—this is a region with many different paths and hidden places for the curious traveler to find. Thanks again to Vlad, Nazaire, Rain, and the entire Drakul family for asking me to film here!
More on it here, and click here to visit in SL. A recent arts school graduate whose thesis was created in Second Life, Mondrian had some incisive thoughts on the social group based within this sim:
"I see them as sort of straddling a line between roleplay and... something more real," he writes me.
"Not that roleplay itself can't be 'real' for a lot of people and isn't valuable in many ways. I guess what I'm trying to say, though, is that I think if nothing else, they're an interesting example of how SL and virtual worlds in general can enable people to be something else, somewhere else, and still wind up forming meaningful and significant relationships that defy easy definition and go beyond what many might think of as just 'roleplaying.' There's not always as clear a separation between the worlds. People can find solace in the 'make-believe,' but on another level—and especially with close friendships and relationships—it's hard to think of it as mere fiction."
Good thoughts on a night when many of us are busily dressing up to roleplay as fantastic creatures, so we can better socialize with our material friends and neighbors.
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