Blogging Blogging Blogged 2013: Here I am!

Dear Johnny/Molly/Henry/Willamena Fredericka II/Bubba Adelbert,

My apologies for the multiple names.  You see, you’re still too far away to even be a twinkle in my eye, and in my Disney-youth I princess-dreamed all the names I’d have for my future kids, so I thought I’d start with those (p.s. the II to Willamena is because I already have a Willa-dog. I love her desperately, so don’t take the “second” title as an insult. On second thought, I’ll budget for therapy, just in case).

Anyway, I digress.  Dear future muppet-of-mine,

I’m writing you now, well in advance, about a few things that worry me about the current state of our youth online.  Seems like an odd topic, right?  Yes, well, I figure that about the time you’re old enough to start using digital tools (funny thought: zygote = z-iGote), I may have Wendy’ed myself right out of the nursery (Peter Panreference), and (dare I say it) lost my knowledge of the younger generation (this may seem an impossible concept for most of the people around me, particularly your grandparents, who still don’t quite understand how I found a career that encourages my interests in cartoons and toys).

Read More:
http://metaversemodsquad.com/an-open-letter-to-my-future-child-who-doesnt-exist/

LOOKIE LOOKIE, WHO’S BLOGGIN’, COOKIE.

Ok, so more developments. In December of 2012, I finally took the much anticipated leap of joining my friends Amy Pritchard and Regine Weiner (amongst others, Mike, Rich, etc) at Metaverse Mod Squad.  For years, I had been a client and a friend to MMS… it only seemed natural to join in on the fun ;).

So, I’m now the Director of Digital Strategy & Engagement.  I really like titles that are a mouthful.  The longer the title, the more giddy I am.  The best part of this gig?  Instead of wrapping myself around ONE project, I now get to wrap myself around any number of projects!  I get to help many people – yay!  [sales pitch accomplished in a very covert way, now add the contact digits: izzy at metaverse mod squad dot com].

As for my beloved blog, which is growing to be quite the latch key pre-tween [epic fail, izzy]. I am happy to say that I’ve been part-time blogging for Metaverse Mod Squad’s blog (as seen in the quote above).  For a period of time, I stopped blogging here due to commitments elsewhere, followed by lack of content (or doubling up of rants).  We all know, I always have a rant shoved up my sleeve, but they’ve been in short bursts, and much more acceptable within the Twitterverse.

Overall, in regards to kid entertainment – I’ve not been impressed.  Movies have been “ok,” cartoons have been “ok” (exception: Adventure Time is amazing), live action shows have taken a turn downward, and the toys “over baked” or “over sexed” (what’s new there? le sigh).  Digitallly speaking – there’s definitely been a few highlights here and there.  Some interesting stuff on the horizon, but it’s a tough time for kid-based digital properties.  Even when awesome kid-based interactive experiences pop up, there seems to be low cash flow, or complete ignorance and misunderstanding on the high-exec level of what it means to have a kid/family based property (and how the monetary growth happens).

Sometimes I get weary of “pouring one out” for your fallen homies (RIP, my virtual world friends).  My bitter sweet sadness is temporary, I still have the faith!  I think we’re going to see an uptick in kid experiences in the next 2 years… I’m just waiting to get excited about something juicy & innovative & fun.

I will say – Youtube has DEFINITELY changed the game for digital entertainment & IP creation.  For the last year I’ve become obsessed with watching trends rise out of Youtube… and even when they’re “for teens” or “for adults” -> the early adopters tend to be the 9 – 12 year olds who find and share this content first.

Note: Kids in social apps are booming (and I’m not talking the apps created for kids).  The new social world for pre-tweens, tweens, and teens? Comments left in UGC (Vine, Instagram, Youtube comments, even comments on app rating pages in iTunes) – and don’t get me started on the smart phone tween empire… lawdy!

I have a bunch of rock star clients now, and I’m having fun playing in new playgrounds (general audience social media, large scale game companies, smart phone app strategy… you name it, we’re rockin’ it!).

Anyway – check out my blog post above for Metaverse Mod Squad!  You may see a bit more insight on where my brain is at these days (in regards to kids online).  🙂

xoxoxoxox I shall be back.

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Meh: Learning & Rambles

Okay, so I learned a lesson today.

Was in the CyberSafety panel today at SXSW. The panel posed a question regarding: how do we project cybersafety in the world- education? websites?

I stood up and found my sealegs (I quake when I stand by microphones apparently… i should only sit) and then found a soap box to speak regarding businesses acting as role models & the inherit responsibility to their customers. Well, I started throwing out different ideals about this particular safety space – one of which was alluding to cyberbullying through youtube. My point was — the horror of parents within this cyberworld directs mainly to myspace, but no one pays much attention to youtube these days, particularly the example of that 14 year old kid on youtube who rates movies and gets heckled by adults… someone has to take responsibility for this space and I think companies are one piece of the pie… and a might big piece too, aside from education. Seeing as that was a rather sticky tangent, I went back to U13 brands & sites reacting towards their audience.

Well, apparently my entire point was overshadowed by this youtube comment. Le sigh. A gentleman reporter who works in the gov/educational site of cybersafety completely misconstrued what I said based upon his own issues with the issue, and then stood up after me to address the panel. He sadly offended me twice (making allusions to the fact I don’t know anything about ads, etc, or my audience user patterns, again le sigh) and then asked his own question which had nothing to do with my point.

Apparently, as I learned after the panel, he thought I was asking a question. After some re-explaining on my part, we both realized (him more explicit and harsh than I) that perhaps my use of the youtube example was distracting and that I’m an idiot. Nice. So then, with a small mic in my face, I re-stated my point, touching a little more appropriately on cyberbullying and auditing youth, and a whole bundle of other topics regarding cyberbullying that I haven’t addressed that much lately.

He tossed a few names in my face of people I should talk to (i tried to tell him I blog on this stuff as someone who works on the front lines of this market and my comments come from hands on experience), and then he mentioned that he can’t promise that his article would be nice and that the tone would be kind. And…. heart sink.

I LOVE this industry. There so many creative alternatives for things, and I definitely think if we just push ourselves and own up to what we have, could do, and will do– we could really have some seriously future-improving awesomeness on our hands. When I raise points about worries regarding safety, etc, it’s because we’re a smart group of folks dedicated to making kick arse things, and we’re working with our world’s future population (who will be taking care of us in the future, don’t forget)… I was raised by an insurance agent father who told me to avoid the pot holes you see coming, and a teacher mother who taught me to give the best to improve things for the future. So… if you see an issue, raise it to the community, figure out how to side step it yourself, and then point it out for others. I don’t have the answers (which is what I repeated several times today), I just have to deal with the problems constantly. Mis-step and it’s a black mark.

Well, my willy-nilly comment in a panel might just turn out to be a black mark. It’s kinda ironic that this gentleman’s post/radio show, etc, could eventually turn out to be not-so-friendly comments that can be audited back to me, and ironic that we spoke mainly on the content of cyberbullying & auditing.

I have learned my lesson about tossing wide, multi-tipped points into a public setting — keep it short & to the point & realize that not all people within the room have the same intentions & understandings.

Anyone else have something like this happen to them? Love to hear comments about it…. might make me feel less like an idiot at the mo.

p.s. with the exception of this learning experience– i have to say, I have had (and continue to) a great, great time at sxsw. Met loads of great people and learned some wicked things! woot.

Ramble: Why I’m Enamored With Club Penguin

Okay. Honesty here. I used to despise club penguin. I won’t really get into it, but let’s just say I couldn’t understand why boy & girl tweens would be interested in something that seemed to young.

That was quite a while ago. Now, I’m in awe of the community manager/strategist/PM… WHOMEVER it is over there making that gem of a world. Why????

SIMPLICITY. And Imagination.

There seem to be quite a few things in life that make me giddy. GIDDY. I think I’ve established that in the past. But I’ll tell you what– it’s uber-hard to trump how giddy I get when I see kids living out their imaginative play– uninhibited and free-flowing. It makes me proud to be in this industry– whether or not I have a bloomin’ thing to do with the project. Why? Because people like me are attempting to offer quantities of similar opportunities.

But I digress: Back to the splendor of Club Penguin’s progression. About a month (or more) ago, Rockhopper (Club Penguin’s “celebrity” in-house penguin, of piratey nature) was sailing his ship through the seas. Rockhopper’s ongoing storylines have continually brought new levels of realness– or pretend play– to the world, giving kids someone to aspire to meet, greet, be like, hang with, etc. Grounds them a bit more in the surreal nature of the penguin world. You could see good ole Rockhopper sailing his ship in a low-tech flash video by climbing to the top of the lighthouse and peering through the giant telescope. Well… tragedy struck a few weeks back, having poor ole Rockhopper crash his boat. In response, CP provided PFD (personal float device) for penguins to sport around– which they did in droves. Nothing like giving cool-factor to otherwise lamish safety devices (however, that Titanic camp sound about the PFD’s always made them cool for me, and now I’ve the sound stuck in my head, lol if you know it).

Marooned Rockhopper then became a local celeb, hanging out from time to time, greeting penguins and gifting them with avatar backgrounds of himself (signed too– for extra famousness). If a penguin got this background– he/she STILL has this background. It’s a status thing now. Limited and exclusive and now unable to attain. SMART SMART SMART. Fueling the “citizenship” competition, and encouraging penguins to WANT to hang out more often (they don’t want to miss out).

Well, time has passed. They through an underwater-themed party… which they tied into Rockhopper’s tale by the addition of a submarine game for penguins to explore the underwater wreckage. That’s pretty wicked.

All of this is fantastic strategy & planning & tie-ins for the cross-world interaction. But THIS WEE GEM today floored me even more….

While exploring the temp/new party-aesthetics, I went to the ICE BERG, where the free “minors” hat was, and where I suspected the sub game to be… The “room” (iceberg area) was FULL. Took me several tries to enter. Regardless, it was full. When I finally entered I was met with this site:

 

 

(side note: I just wrote a HUGE inspiration piece about this bloody interaction and STUPID wordpress just erased it. Forgive me, but I’m IRRITATED as I just spend ages writing that…. GRRRRRRROWL)

Anyway. Background about the island: the iceberg is a STATIC BACKGROUND. There isn’t a lick of flash or movement or anything. A few months back, and for days on end, this room would fill to the max with penguins trying to FLIP/TIP the iceberg. Let me repeat: static. image. They would all stand in hordes on the edge– encouraging each other to dance or move so that it might do something to the berg. Alas, it didn’t.

Well, here we are, months later, and Club Penguin staged a themed party of “underwater” delights. One of which was the pimpin’ out of the barren iceberg & a future SUBMARINE game allowing users to EXPLORE Rockhopper’s ship wreckage. Pretty darn cool. Once again– this gives kids a sense of cause & action. This world has meaning. If a ship wrecks, one might be able to see it. So, the clever wee penguins (or not so clever, depending on your value of imagination & play) are once again trying to TIP THE BERG… this time they’ve come armed!!

Club Penguin has continuously added customizations that are action-bound. The fireman costume can spew water from the hose, and the construction worker penguin can jackhammer– complete with jackhammering animations. The users (as you can see) have collected at the bottom of the iceberg and are collectively trying to “break” or tip the berg.

“Why are we doing this?” asked a lemming penguin
“Because it’s fun!” replied four others.
“Rockhoppers ship is down there!” shouts another penguin.
“We’re going to free the ship” adds another.
“Dance or move to do something to help!”
“Get your friends!”

And they continue on– collectively pretending & hoping & interacting. Awesome

Have you ever seen a group of day camp kids @ the beach? I was a summer camp counselor for nigh on 14ish years (ten of which I spent at a day camp for the park district). It doesn’t matter WHO you are– if you’re a kid, you are welcome to join in the mayhem– especially the boys. They build and create worlds in the sand– and the waterfalls they make never stay right, so they build dams, and yell for help, and recruit bucket kids whose sole job is to run back and forth from the water, bringing in water reserves. They don’t even look you in the face, they just include you in the emotional-story-creation.

One of my favorite campers ever– a nine year old named PAYTON decided one day that she HATED this plastic baby toy truck she found on the beach. She and her 4 friends decided to bury it, all the while spewing their wrath on the poor toy, building story lines about the infamous “Farmer Brown” who was painted as the driver of the truck. Oooo, that Farmer Brown! So, I came along, checking in on her and the girls, and they told me of the burial. I suggested that we build Scotland on top of the buried Farmer Brown and then we could have a proper funeral afterwards. So, that morning we spent nigh on 2 hours building mountains and lochs and valleys, etc. We started with six total ‘builders’ (myself included, naturally). When we finished we had forty-three children working with us– some were just locals, not even campers. We each made up folktales about the wilderness and how Farmer Brown was attached to the story. Oooo that Farmer Brown. When it came time, I gave the sermon of Farmer Brown’s funeral. Payton gave testimonials, as did a few others who wished to join in, and then we all… and I do mean all, gave the most faux-miserable, loud-sobbing version of “Amazing Grace” one could ever hear. At some point during the “service” we attracted a HUGE crowd. I couldn’t give you numbers– parents, campers, public, etc. And they laughed and cheered and faux-cried along.

Afterwards, the kids set to “destroying” scotland by trampling it, as a uber-sandcastle should be trampled. I went to grab lunch. When I came back– all the kids were at it again. Burying Farmer Brown & getting into the stories & history of it.

Basically– kids want to be included on the magic, they want to build empires from scratch, they want to emotionally invest themselves in seemingly-silliness, etc. It’s fun. It’s a release. It’s escapism– all the while feeling included and excited.

I see this play pattern/behavior all the time on Club Penguin. From “snowball” wars (which are much more fun in the making then the actual war part, which is why “retreats” are so much fun too), to parties in the igloo (again, much more fun in theory and planning and rounding up than the actual dancing part). Club Penguin provides tools… triggers… that allow the users to “go to town” — making up their own rules & play. Club Penguin tries to support by facilitating pieces of storyline — just enough of a taste that the users will run away with the end.

The staff gives real credit to the power of their community, and the innovative nature of this demographic, and I just dig it. Other Virtual Worlds you see out there have to hard-sell all the brand elements, and try to “knock you out” with their high tech awesomeness. I “get” that in regards to catching enough attention to even COMPETE in this market these days– I do. But, Club Penguin… man, they get a WHOLE LOT out of very little (at least in regards to flashiest of the flashy). It reminds me of the good ole days– a large cardboard box, time, and loads of imagination. I’m not sure anyone could really compete with Club Penguin’s level of simplicity & community any longer because it’s all about the differentiating of “big sells” and catchy 2.0 intensiveness or beat-head-with-education that the corps peeps are looking for– and no longer about the simplicity of the play…

But in the now: Bravo, Club Penguin Staff. I salute you proudly.

Future & Pre-Beta Virtual Worlds

Okay… I’m trying to mock up a list of all these VW’s for tweens/twids that are not live yet, or exists in early Beta. Please add more in the comments, thanks!

• Bella Sera: Card game + virtual world based on horses/horse play
• MoshiMonsters: Monster virtual world based on clever gaming and monster care– easily transitions to mobile technology
• Club Pony Pals: Based on a book series about ponies, this world will be for the pony pet care
• Dizzywood: A creative, fantasy virtual world to create adventures and inspire
• Planet Cazmo: A virtual world based on gaming and MUSIC
• Freaky Creatures: A virtual world for boys regarding monster/creatures
• Build-a-Bear: Based on the popular brand, build your bear and play with it online in a virtual world. It’s LIVE now.
• FusionFall: Cartoon Network’s MMORG, based on Cartoon Network brands & exploring the worlds within the network (i’m looking forward to this!)
• Little Big Planet: Okay, okay– I know this will be a video game… but it’s community/world appeal are just too awesome to NOT mention.
• Lego Universe: It’s lego. It’s community. It’s gonna be amazing.
• Panwapa (it’s live, and been online longer than some previously mentioned): A preschool VW brought to the world by Sesame Street folks. It’s multicultural, it’s unique, it’s going to be the next big VW phase in like 1 year (preschool/kid VW’s)
• Adventure Rock: The CBBC/BBC’s robot-y virtual world
• Zibbies: A product based VW (dolls that kinda look like a mix of webkinz & Beanie Babies but with rubbery spikes for hair on their heads). Currently live in early beta.
• Pirates of the Caribbean Online: Went live a little over a week ago– this pirate existence is a downloadable app (like WOW) and currently in Beta. I love it.
• Littlest Pet Shop: Also, currently in Beta– this is kinda an exclusive experience, as they products (with the much needed code to play) are hard to get hands on. But you can demo free. No community yet.
• Wowbotz: An outerspace-feeling VW in beta-live for “preschoolers” I more or less categorize it for kids/twids.
• Mystikatz Kutties: A Virtual World for girls who like dolls dressed like colorful gypsies. Like it’s brother site “Wowbotz”, this is categorized as for “preschoolers” but I’d stick it in the kids/twids boxes.
• Magi-Nation: Based on a TV show and a trading card game, this virtual world will cater to the fantasy tweens/kids who might also enjoy shows like Yo-Gi-Oh and Pokemon and Chaotic.
• Disney’s Cars: A virtual world built on the Disney movie “Cars”.
• Mini Match: From Cartoon Network comes a MMO for casual gamers, and world roamers. It’s in UBER early beta… UBER. But so far– you can set up your avatar (promising animation, ugly avatar face/hair but that can change?, the clothing layering options = very smart indeed), but from my experience you can’t play yet. Cartoon Network seems to be treading lightly in this space– and with a good brain on their shoulders
• Pixie Hallow: Not yet in LIVE beta… but will be amazing! Loads of great rumors about this one… It’s Disney’s Fairies VW.
• T-Works (????): Looney Toon Virtual World that may or may not be launching this fall with several other Warner platforms….?
• Konstruction Zone: A new (pre-beta) VW based on cute construction characters– encourages online playtime between parents and kids.
• Papermint: another virtual world for kids– 2D art, pre-Beta (from the looks of it).
• Hello Kitty World: Not live yet, their pre-beta site offers a decent sneak peek of elements that will be a part of the world. I’m interested to find out what “in game telepathy” is– as they say in their introductory page. It’s all the bright happy bumblegum colors you come to expect from HK. I’m pumped to see what HK brings to the table.
  • I’m not sure what the safety is on this yet– Sanrio Town is NOT for U13… and the HK world will tie in somehow with the pre-existing Sanrio Town community platform. So, stay tuned…. 😦
• Dragon Play: It’s a medieval world for dragon play (like the name, clever, lol).
• Chaotic: A virtual worldish(?) experience attached to collectible card-play
• Ice Age: An MMO based upon the two movies (and third to come) slated for 2009
• Minyanland: A virtual environment where kids can learn about money, banking, and managing responsibilities while gaining a virtual life. Has parent/chore metagame, etc. Based on the finance site Minyanville.com
• Planet V-Tech: described as an educational virtual world for 5+
• Earth Eternal: An MMO with educational elements that can be accessed through social networking
• Speed Racer: A virtual world (with toy tie-ins) for the upcoming movie franchise
• Web wilds: A virtual environment to correlate with the puppet-dolls.
• Hot Wheels: A virtual world to correlate with the toy-cars.
• Madagascar: A virtual world to correspond with their upcoming sequel movie.
• Seapals: A product tie-in with VW, like it’s sister product Shining Stars. (It’s gotten more PR than Shining Stars, which has been live for quite some time now– it could be interesting!)
• MyLife: An avatar/world combination toy for girls to build and share profiles (Playmates toys)
• Beanie Babies 2.0: A virtual world – pet product combo. Codes. Unlock. Dolls. Yadda.
• Guppylife: An MMO for girls not yet released, and very little info.
• Lola’s World: It’s a companion community with vw-elements for tween girls based on the Lola, Think Pink, books. It launches in April 08.
• Tronji: An MMO game based around the Tronji world is currently in development to be released alongside the TV show.
• Tech Deck Live: A Virtual world skate part for tweens who like skateboarding. Subscription based. Tech Deck is a toy product (finger skateboards).
• Dinokids: An MMO (looks just like Maplestory but with dinos) for tween/kids.
• Treetures: A VW with stuffy product tie in (Russ)
• Green: A future virtual world promoting green initiatives. Not live yet, very hush – hush. Now live.
• Kaimira MMO: BBC announced their desire to create a MMO around the Kaimira Trilogy, a book series from Star Farm Productions.
• KidsWB: Warner Bros platform site meshed with Virtual worlds??? Details still coming through the pipeline.
• DC HeroZone: Another virtual world from WB that follows comics & heroes
• WarnerZone: Another Warner Bros stealth-hush hush VW coming summer ’08.
• Zoopri: A virtual world for tweens, not live yet.
• Dinosaur Junction: Another virtual world for kids based on dinos with some educational values.
• JumpStart Advanced Preschool World: a VW for the 3-5 set. Software first, world later.
• Wizard 101: An MMO/VW for the tween, teen set based on wizardry and magic and fantasy.
• Elf Island: A tween VW based on being an upstanding member and “doing good,” not launched yet.
• Topps Town: A VW for 6+ boys (only, seriously, no girl av) based on trading card gameplay.
• Muppet MMO: A little birdy whispered this one to me that the Muppet MMO is in strategy/planning phase… so take it was a wink & a nod and a grain of salt.
• AllGirlArcade: Currently a multiplatform community site, future to be a virtual world
• AllBoyArcade: By the makers of the girl arcade, this won’t be rolling until next year.
• Kiwi Heroes: A VW in pre-Beta for tweens regarding conservationism.
• Tootsville: A toy based VW with subscription too based on elephant/pet play.
• Unnamed MMO: From the folks who created Neopets. Think Labyrinth & Dark Crystal.
• Revngenz: A car MMO for gender neutral (really for boys) with licenses for gift cards.
• Avatar: The Last Airbender: MMO based on the Nickelodeon television show.
• Huri Humi: Avatar virtual world for tweens based on product to VW purchases.
• Happy Meal 3.0: McDonald’s version of a virtual world for kids.
• Action AllStars: A simply MARVELOUS virtual world for sports & tweens, currently in private beta.
• Saddle Club: VW in development for the book series/tv series (tweens, kids, teens)
• Twin Skies: An MMO for all ages from the creators of Neopets.
• Emerald Island: An MMO for tweens based on environmental issues.
• Garden Party: A virtual world for young tweens about growing plants & playing
• Ekoloko: A virtual world for tweens based on the “green” initiative.
• SpineWorld: A virtual world by Playdo based on epic adventure & fantasy

BAH! I know I’m forgetting a ton– curse you, brain cloud (reference: “Joe Versus the Volcano”). Any help here? I’ll keep adding as they come.

Also for those VW researchers/explorers, here are a few oldie but goody links:

• Worthy Tween/Twid/kid Communities (and virtual worlds)
• Communties NOT for Tweens/Kids
• A Breakdown of Tween/Twid/Kid Virtual Worlds & Terminology

A Breakdown of Virtual Worlds & Terminology

Okay, so I’ve been really REALLY thinking about this for some time now– since there has been such a surge in the VW department not everyone really fits under the same expectations associated to the broad term Virtual World. As of yet, I have not seen anyone really get into depth about this, so I thought I’d share my own izzinology or izzilosopy:

(A-typical) Virtual Worlds:
You build your own virtual protagonist and explore a 3D like environment by moving your character using the mouse or the arrow keys. Contains community components where you can interact, speak (perhaps limited), and engage with others and/or the setting. You might have your own room/house/area to decorate, and perhaps a profile to express yourself. It’s a large sandbox of play– roam, play, hang out, do activities, engage, etc.

Example: Club Penguin

Lockbox Worlds:
Like the above, except there is ultimately no free will. Every option for interaction has been pre-scripted, pre-designed, no room for error. To communicate, you choose from a list of options (or no communication at all). To design your place, it is only so big to fit furniture and no room for furniture-spelling. Basically the only moderated component would be a screen name.

Example: Disney Fairies

Dynamic Worlds:
You create your avatar/protagonist, but it remains in static form– like a still photo or an avatar with limited movement (think waving or blinking). To explore the world, the user must engage in the point & click method. The world is dynamic, yet you cannot move virtually as you might in video games, etc. To engage yourself in the world you examine the map/area, find something to dig deeper in, point, and click. Dynamic Worlds are more engaging to the user directly, as they are not constantly reminding users that they’re playing through a character they have to control. Occasionally there is the drag & drop ability to affect your avatar/room. And sometimes certain Dynamic Worlds allow for a virtual chat room/area where you can actually move your avatar around the flash/chat interface.

Example: Neopets

Story/Content World:
Want more from a book you might have read? A tale you might have heard? Well, Content Worlds are basically just that– a visual tour of places from a story. Usually it’s a drop down menu with people or places. Select one and see it and read about it. It’s very “view finder” if you catch that reference. It’s bringing you the world you’ve seen before, but in another medium.

Example: Harrypotter.com (Warner Bros site)

Choose Your Own Adventure Worlds:
For the goal oriented Virtual World Explorer– this world is less like a large theme park and more like a series of quests/missions. There is rhyme, reason, and anticipated adventure waiting for eager brains. Many of the adventure worlds jump from the A-typical virtual world to the dynamic click & follow worlds, and they can fit easily in the lockbox mentality as well. Community can be involved– as users like to see others inhabiting the world (reminding them of the competition level). Community chat elements can be leveraged for gaming as well– cheat round ups, etc, but not necessary. Some Choose Your Own Adventure-esque worlds have opportunities for non-quest behavior for the bored kids that are stuck and kinda just want to be weird (I have a term for those lovelies. They are what I call the “Go Go Loners” which I will detail another time).

Example: Kingdomofloathing.com or Foster’s Big Fat House Party (Cartoon Network)

Singular World:
There are also the Virtual Worlds (whether A-Typical or Dynamic) that are one player only. The world is your sandbox, adventures await– but you’re the only free thinking element within. Several VWs coming out this year started this way– it’s a good opportunity to see community-free game play, that way you can develop early game-oriented play patterns.

Example: Littlest Pet Shop’s upcoming Virtual World (got to check it out this past weekend at the Digital Life Conference in NYC)

Virtual Dress Up World:
Not so much about the world– Virtual Dress Up (or Dynamic dress up) is more or less following the dress up play pattern. Some are drag & drop/coloring activities (like girl play avatar systems of detail). And some are a little more worldly– allowing you to virtual shop through a virtual clothing store/mall, etc, and buy clothing for your doll/model/avatar. It’s brilliantly crafted for the play pattern alone (with community elements here and there to help encourage healthy competition & inspiration, etc).

Example: Stardoll.com

And (for now, as I might define more in the coming days) last but not least… the little known…

Chat Room Virtual Community:
Not a world by any aesthetic means. HOWEVER, never ever disregard the power of collective imaginations. Blank canvesses make more things happen than any uber skilled designer/programmer. Twenty people on a similar ground of understanding (say… Star Wars location: Naboo Swamp) conversing regularly while wanting to interact in some way with the brand (Jedi-Izzy had a treehouse with never-ending M&Ms that shot staples at the annoying Fetts, while Qui had a hockey rink, and Steph had a red couch– we all watched the daily sith battles as they entered our chat, or interacted in some way with a random Star Wars wedding… YES, i know, I’m a geek– but there’s collective power in the world we built, and it was just as real as the experience created in some of these Virtual Worlds today). If you see– there are forums for major networks where fans/audience/users sit around “drinking” pop or martinis, or blogs where kids are passing “cookies” and falling in pits of “peanut butter.” The imagination is a powerful thing… and it can make virtual worlds out of text and white screens.

Example: Long Lost Talkcity’s Star Wars > Naboo Swamp