A few years ago, I ventured onto Second Life (during its late infancy) and was truly impressed with the freedom of expression, thought, and frankly, polarity that was expressed there. I'm sure it's changed quite a bit technically, since then, mostly for the better, I expect. Although it is not a game, per se, in that there is no objective for winning (kinda like the real game we call "life"), it did deliver on the promise of its name, at least to me. It provides an opportunity to live a second life, more than vicariously, but less than physically, where you can build your own talents, make lasting friendships, communicate freely in an environment where opinions are more readily accepted, and in some way, experience things that you had never had the courage, time, money, or opportunity to before.
I went there fairly regularly for about three months, but stopped after I came to realize that it was filling a need for verbal expression that I was avoiding in my First Life. Once that realization struck me, I found that this tool was no longer needed by me, and I began addressing that need through my first life. So for me at least, it was a very positive experience and a tool that was actually part of my path that lead me here, but I no longer participate in it.
For those that haven't had the opportunity to explore this world, you may want to check it out. But be warned, it can be quite addictive, especially for those that tend toward isolation, but long for social connections. It can also take a moderate amount of time to get established, especially if you want it to be a free hobby, which is how I did it. I suspect this is still possible, but it can be time consuming to find ways to earn money to help you get established. You can easily find it through your favorite search engine or by going to the web site that you'd suspect. For those familiar with virtual gaming, it will be largely intuitive.
For those that have explored Second Life, or other similar virtual worlds, I'm interested in hearing about your experiences, likes, dislikes and thoughts. Aside from the graphics and openness of the architecture which allows almost limitless opportunities for creative expression, I was also impressed with the freedom that it provides everyone to express their true selves, be it in how they look, where they go, what they do (within certain fairly loose limits of socially acceptable behavior), and what they say. I also found that with the abilities to communicate telepathically, create thought forms, fly, etc, it was like a step toward a clumsy, virtual type of 4D experience.
Do any others have experience with Second Life? What did you think? Was it an overall positive, negative or neutral experience? Did it help you in your first life, or did it cause problems? Would you recommend it? What you change about it if you could? Do you feel that games like Second Life are useful tools for student of the LOO? Was it involved in your path toward LOO? If so how?
Any thoughts?
3D Sunset
I went there fairly regularly for about three months, but stopped after I came to realize that it was filling a need for verbal expression that I was avoiding in my First Life. Once that realization struck me, I found that this tool was no longer needed by me, and I began addressing that need through my first life. So for me at least, it was a very positive experience and a tool that was actually part of my path that lead me here, but I no longer participate in it.
For those that haven't had the opportunity to explore this world, you may want to check it out. But be warned, it can be quite addictive, especially for those that tend toward isolation, but long for social connections. It can also take a moderate amount of time to get established, especially if you want it to be a free hobby, which is how I did it. I suspect this is still possible, but it can be time consuming to find ways to earn money to help you get established. You can easily find it through your favorite search engine or by going to the web site that you'd suspect. For those familiar with virtual gaming, it will be largely intuitive.
For those that have explored Second Life, or other similar virtual worlds, I'm interested in hearing about your experiences, likes, dislikes and thoughts. Aside from the graphics and openness of the architecture which allows almost limitless opportunities for creative expression, I was also impressed with the freedom that it provides everyone to express their true selves, be it in how they look, where they go, what they do (within certain fairly loose limits of socially acceptable behavior), and what they say. I also found that with the abilities to communicate telepathically, create thought forms, fly, etc, it was like a step toward a clumsy, virtual type of 4D experience.
Do any others have experience with Second Life? What did you think? Was it an overall positive, negative or neutral experience? Did it help you in your first life, or did it cause problems? Would you recommend it? What you change about it if you could? Do you feel that games like Second Life are useful tools for student of the LOO? Was it involved in your path toward LOO? If so how?
Any thoughts?
3D Sunset