A week ago today, I was sitting on my couch watching an episode of “The Big Bang Theory.” The show is mediocre entertainment at best. I enjoy it because I identify with the nerdy eccentricities of the main characters. Although, if I have a choice between watching The Big Bang Theory and October Road, I’m going to choose October Road every time (more about October Road in a later entry). Nevertheless, here I was, mid-afternoon, hunkered underneath my fleece Harry Potter blanket (nerdy), pushing my glasses back up my nose (nerdy), drinking grape juice (nerdy), and laughing at jokes only nerds can really laugh at. In this episode the main characters are having a World of Warcraft party in the living room, and all four men (adult boys) are furiously pressing keys on their (of course) fancy-schmancy Dell XPS gaming computers. (No envy here - by the way, that was sarcasm. Actually, my eyes are turning green and I’m sprouting branches out of my arms and leaves out of my fingertips.) After completing a hard fought ogre battle together, the friends decide to break for the day. And then, much to my detriment, one of the characters suggests that they play “Second Life.”

For the record, my Xbox 360 is broken and I haven’t had a chance to play the only game I truly care about at the moment, LOST Via Domus. I know its available for the Playstation 3. I know the graphics are probably better on the PS3. But, I can’t reason playing a game on the PS3 that I could be earning achievement points for on my 360. That’s just sad if you think about it. I’m sure you know where this paragraph is headed, so let’s just go there now. I know that claiming my Xbox 360 was broken as the sole reason I was suckered into “Second Life” is sort of well, fallacious. I would have enjoyed Second Life with or without the death of my 360. Am I slightly ashamed of this fact? Yes. So, I will continue to look down at my keyboard in a sullen fashion for the rest of this entry. Lets just say there was an opening in my gaming schedule and this allowed Second Life the opportunity to weasel its way into my first life?

I had actually heard about this PC game a long time ago, but the information fled my short-term memory like a leopard on crack. In the life of a gamer, there are so many environments to explore, so many objectives to complete, and so many stories to share that its difficult to remember every single title available for every single system. Furthermore, I’m ten times more likely to play something people have exuberantly discussed in online forums than to walk into my game store and purchase a game I have never heard of. Now, the question is, since millions of people play this game and are addicted to it.. where were these people in the online forums touting the customization features and socialization aspects of Second Life? See… its not just me. Millions of people are embarrassed to admit that they play this game. Second Life is like the bastard child of the gaming community.

At the mention of Second Life in The Big Bang Theory I paused my television set, headed over to my computer, and Googled the game. To hell with the online forums, I thought as the Second Life homepage sprang into view, the game is free. Its a good day when you can explore a game and formulate an opinion about it without dropping a single penny. Truth be told, I’m not sure Second Life is really a game. Its like Facebook and Myspace because its a socializing network. Yet, it has a lot of the same functions and concepts as the best-selling PC game, The Sims. One of the reasons I fell in love with The Sims, and then The Sims 2, and then every expansion pack made available for them, is because I enjoy customization. Honestly, one of my favorite aspects of a sports game is the ability to create unique players with unique skills, or to build and create new uniforms. Perhaps this is the more feminine side of myself? To create is to explore possibility. Its one of the reasons I enjoy video games and reading, and thousands of other activities which require me to use a part of my brain. Possibility is what makes real life so infuriating, happy, sad, depressed, excited, and any other numbers of emotions - and we are the creators of our own possibilities.

But, there’s something about Second Life that makes the creation of possibilities a lot easier and a lot less controversial. In Second Life you can be whoever you want, do whatever you like, and interact with people as you see fit, without consequence. (As long as you’re working within the confines of the Terms of Service Agreement.) Truth be told, it really is a second life. You can go shopping, hang out at night clubs, buy land, build a home, setup a store, participate in discussions, or just “chill” like you would in your own living room. The fun part of Second Life is that it allows you to be someone you’re not, and grants you the permission to socialize in ways that might be unfamiliar to you.

For example, in Second Life, I play a man. (I usually play a man in most video games. You’re not about to see me in high hells… yes, that says”hells”… or a skirt any time soon.) There is something about being a man in Second Life that is very different from being a woman in real life and, oddly enough, these stereotypes mesh with the stereotypes present in the real world. I should know, because my partner now plays as a woman, and the difference in socialization is incredible. So much so, that someone should write a psychology paper about this game. One of the things I first noticed upon playing Second Life as a man is that you are expected to begin and end all conversation with the people around you. This largely includes women, who act about as timid as a cat who’s paw you ran over with the car a week ago. Its odd, because I am unaccustomed to the power of “dictating”, if you will, conversation. My partner’s character, being a female, is bombarded with requests to chat by all of the men standing in the room. (We think this is hilarious.) So it would seem that in Second Life, men are supposed to flirt or “ask first” and women are supposed to stand around and wait to be asked. It reminds me of Leave It To Beaver in a weird sort of way, because the premise of this socialization seems so outdated. Yet, I have so many girl friends who admit to being shy when it comes to men and prefer to be asked out on a date rather than to be the askee. Its this sort of strange social mechanic that makes the virtual world of Second Life full of possibility to actually live and create a true second life.

Apart from the differences in socialization, I’ve had a great deal of fun shopping for furniture and building my own home. Lets face it, if I could live in my Second Life house instead of my First Life apartment, I’d move into my virtual home any day of the week. Only in Second Life can I have beach front property, four fireplaces, a hot tub, and hundreds of other appliances and knick knacks that would break my bank should I buy them in my First Life. You should know, if you decide to download and play this game, that purchasing items in Second Life does require cold hard cash. Some of the environments in Second Life, such as Freebie Island, allow users to download various hair types, skins, eye colors, clothing, furniture, etc; for free. But, most of the quality goods, as usual, will cost you a couple of quarters to purchase. Money in Second Life is called Lindens and you can exchange US Dollars for Lindens on the Second Life website. Today, I bought $15.00 USD worth of Lindens, which came out to about 3,850 Linden dollars. In other instances, if you’re in need of some fast Lindens you can seek out employment in the virtual world or you can fill out surveys. Surveys are a pain, but I’ve gone that route when I didn’t want to use any of my own money to fund purchases in the game.

So, for now, Second Life has me hooked in between its giant muddy claws. Yesterday I learned how to make and design my own shirts. Who knows, maybe today I’ll learn how to run my own store. The possibilities are endless…

Take a well deserved break from your first life and go create a second one.

FYI: The tutorial for this game takes a good 30 minutes to complete. But, you won’t regret it. The tools in Second Life can be a tad bit frustrating to learn how to use. Its like The Sims in that you have to play with every aspect of it in order to understand how it works.

Tags: Bang, Big, customization, Dell XPS, Gaming, Harry Potter, Life, LOST, October Road, Second, Sims, Theory, Warcraft, World