Second Life Mobile Update: Latest Version Fixes Android 13 Issue -- And Now Allows Access to All SL Sims of All Maturity Ratings (UPDATED)

Update, 9/12: Added some additional background around Maturity rating access and App Store rules at the bottom of this post!

Pretty big update to the Second Life mobile app project posted by Linden staffer Bridie recently. First off, support for the app on Android iOS 13 has been restored, a problem that popped up (reported by "0xc0ffea") last week. 

Even more notable, notes Bridie: "Premium Plus, Premium, and Plus members now have freedom to explore ALL of Second Life -- including regions across all maturity ratings!"

So that's something! Here's the direct downloads for Premium users:

• Second Life for iOS on the App Store.
• Second Life for Android on Google Play.

As for the recent problem with Android 13, my guess the previous build had some kind of compatibility issue that was updated?

Anyway, the all region access is quite notable:

In closed Beta and at launch, app users couldn't access the Adult-rated sims in SL, mainly to comply with Apple's fairly restrictive rules around violent and sexual content in its App Store. But apparently that's since changed, at least for Android users? (I'm reaching to the Lindens for clarity.) 

I haven't been able to check this out myself yet, as my  iOS 11 is being kvetchy with the app (could just be a Me Problem), but if you have the app, let us know what sims you're able to access.

As I've noted often before, vast swathes of Second Life land are rated "Adult", even if the overall theme isn't pornographic/violent in nature, because many landowners mark their land "A" simply so they don't have to worry about being penalized for, say, Impromptu Pixel Penis popping up in public. Then there's the many roleplay sims like Crack Den, where the possibility of sex/violence is part of the impromptu improvising -- read my Patreon journal to find out how/why.

Update, 9/12: Looking into App Store regulations further, my understanding is an SL mobile user's Maturity rating preferences are carried over from what they've already opted into beforehand on the desktop version of Second Life. So by default, an iOS user won't be able to access M/A regions -- unless or until they're already done so in the PC app. Compare for example with content settings in the X/Twitter app -- a very popular iOS app -- which requires users to go to the external browser to activate access to sensitive content.

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Comments

[xXSkyla26rXx]

when will it accessible to other Non-SL members that wanna play on their mobile device???

[Luther Weymann]

Over the 20 years I've been in SL I've paid 10s of $1000s of dollars for regions, half regions, marketplace and in world products, Premium Membership, and so on. A lot of money spent on SL. Since this NWN website started I've visited almost every day to see what was new. Now I can't even try the new SL mobile app, not because I have not spent well over $50K supporting SL, but I don't have premium membership anymore because I'm on Chung land the largest landholder in SL. And now NWN has a paywall and I can't even read what he writes anymore. I thought all these folks in the Bay Area were liberal, but I'm finding out they are all hard-core Conservatives with their approach to customers. Everyone will hate what I wrote, so go ahead and flame me.

[Wagner James Au]

There's no paywall here, Luther!