1 Second Life: Game or No Game? Timothy McCann Lehigh University 07’ Instructional Gaming

2 Interesting or Not?  A little background on Instructional technology  As Instructional Technologist our goal is to work with technology (which in modern times has been mostly the computer) as a means to solve educational challenges in the classroom, workplace, and in distance learning environments.  In the simplest of terms we take technology, mix it with theory (in the broadest sense) and attempt to educate.  Second Life the Game…

3 What is Second Life?  As described in a presentation by founder and CEO of Linden labs, Philip Roesdale Second Life is is a fully user created 3-D online virtual world. Built, programmed, sculpted, designed, and lived in by its residents.  Second life opened to the public in 2003  Users participate and interact in this digital universe though a user created avatar.  Introduction Introduction  Second Life create, interactcreateinteract

4 What is Second Life? (continued)  Statistics  Total residents: 4,802,291  Logged in during the last 60 days 1,570,532  Avg. per day 30,000  91 different countries  25% International  43% female  Avg. Age 32  Advances of Note  Currency Exchange system 300L=$1  5 million U.S. dollars a month  Streaming media  SOON: voice chatting  Business Models  Education Models  Off Shoot- Teen Second Life

5 Misconceptions  Previous Schema  Media/ societal misconceptions  Article RSS feed from MSNBC- If Second Life isn't a game, what is it? If Second Life isn't a game, what is it? By Kristen Kalning, Games Editor.  Game experts are working to formulate and answer that very question?

6 Is Second Life a Game? My Attempt at Analysis  Based on Salen and Zimmerman’s definition. A game is a system in which players engage in an artificial conflict, defined by rules, that results in a quantifiabe outcome.  No Second Life is not a game based on this narrow definition.  It is questionable on multiple levels.

7 Is Second Life a Game? My Attempt at Analysis (continued 1)  But is it a game?  Certainly is PLAY  Could argue that it falls into the game category of “limit case” discussed in the class textbook.  Like RPG’s quantifiable outcomes could be based upon the frame  If you look at it as a whole there may no be a single, overriding quantifiable goal.  But if you consider the session to session play you could say that if the participant has a personal goal, there is a quantifiable outcome.

8 Is Second Life a Game? My Attempt at Analysis (continued 2)  But that doesn’t explain the other aspects of the definition.  System?  Players?  Artificial Conflict?  Rules?

9 Is Second Life a Game? (My Attempt at Analysis)  Conclusion  In my opinion Second Life is not a game.  But instead a forum or platform where in the user can participate in open ended play.  Meets many of the criteria for a social networking tool.  MMORPG

10 User Created Content  The basis for Second Life is for users to create the world around them.  Participants use creation tools to construct objects and object behaviors.  Participants are then given intellectual rights to their creations. (Buy and sell = basis for the economy).  This fosters a very open-ended creative atmosphere  Has be come a forum and engine for creating all types of things

11 Second Life Games  Content creation tools in Second Life have become a game creation engine.  In 2005 Second Life hosted its first game developers contest LINKLINK  Space Rocks of Death Space Rocks of Death  Second life games WIKIWIKI  Casinos

12 Instructional Technologists Perspective  From the perspective of instructional technologist this virtual world has a lot to offer.  As Instructional Technologist our goal is to work with technology (which in modern times has been mostly the computer) as a means to solve educational challenges in the classroom, workplace, and in distance learning environments.

13 Educational Environments  Interactive museums  International Space Flight and Planetary Museum International Space Flight and Planetary Museum  NOAA Island NOAA Island  Digital Colleges  Ohio University Ohio University  Harvard Law

14 Educational Environments  Classrooms  Presentations  Multimedia Presentations  Darfur Conference Darfur Conference

15 Second Life Instructional Games  The best of note could be a game created by Wells Fargo. The companies instructional goal was to create an environment within Second Life where young people participate in activities during which they learn about financial responsibility and money management.  With increases in the popularity, technological development and learning theory related to second life there are sure to be new games and educational environments.

16 References and Links            4&ei=5070      