Five Places in SL To Explore With Your Friends

By Cyfir (Cyfiremmerich)

So you and your friends are bored? Looking for something to do in Second Life? Just want to run around and have a good time? Well, I have the article for you! Below are five places that you and your friends should check out in no particular order.

----

Montecito Bay

Full Disclosure: Montecito Bay is a sponsor of the Second Life Newser, but it really is a great place to go with friends. Montecito Bay in some ways reminds me of the city of Fox Haven before it shut down. There’s plenty to do and plenty to explore. There are little fun easter eggs laying around if you can find them, a ferris wheel, and even segways you can ride around the city or mall. Montecito Bay is also home to a dozen or so clubs. For more information on events there, check out the SL Cubbin’ section of the Second Life Newser.


http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Montecito%20Bay/18/128/26

Ravenlock

After a year absence, the crew at Ravenlock are finally back from their long overdue break. They’re still renovating and getting things ready, so don’t rush there too hard on them, but you can still explore what they have to offer before the grand re-opening. Ravenlock is a Pokemon inspired sim and as far as I know they are the only sim to get the greenlight from Nintendo. Once everything is set back up, you and your friends will be able to catch wild Pokemon on this sim again.


http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Ravenlock/115/162/229

Pixel Hills HD

Want to run around in scenes from your favorite video games? Pixel Hills has you covered. Pixel hills features many areas inspired by classic video games. It’s a fun place to relive your nostalgia without spending a fortune on old consoles and games.


http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Pixel%20Hills/175/198/1002

Paris 1900

While the real Notre-Dame de Paris may still be under reconstruction and closed to the public, you can still visit the one in Second Life as well as the rest of Paris, France. All the usual sights are there including the Eiffel Tower which you can actually go to the top of as well as a large ferris wheel.


http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Paris%201900/26/147/24

Palmwood

I’ve written about this place before but it really is a great place to take your friends and explore. There is an arcade, roller ring, and a whole retrowave inspired city to explore as well as live DJ events!

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Palmwood/163/149/29

----

So there are five places you can explore with your friends. If anyone has any suggestions for a future article on this topic, my ears are always open. Happy exploring!

Cyfir

Five Fun Places in Second Life

By Cyfir

Second life is full of great places to explore and have fun. Below I have compiled five such places that I have discovered over the years. Whether you’re bored, want to explore, or want to take that special someone on a date, one of these sims could be just the experience that you were looking for.

Kowloon's Gate Reborn

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/kowloon/148/83/24

This is a Japanese/Chinese themed sim with tons of crazy things to discover for those who love to explore. There are also plenty of shops with very unique avatars and mods as well as entertainment venues. This sim was created by the Japanese PlayStation game maker Kouki Inoue who created a game on the original PlayStation of the same name. Go here if you want a unique experience.

Pixel Hills

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Pixel%20Hills/89/121/26

A video game inspired sim featuring a sandbox and a mall. There are also plenty of classic video game related experiences to discover that will tickle your nostalgia bones.

Memento Mori

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Chouchou%20V/86/128/1090

A very abstract experience created by a Japanese music duo. There’s not much else to say here. It’s pretty. Great place to feel like you’re in a dream.

Winter Moon

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Winter%20Moon/40/71/21

Speaking of dreams, this next sim looks like mine. This sim is absolutely beautiful and a perfect place to take someone on a date. Want to chill out and get away from everything in a peaceful setting? This sim is the perfect place for that as well.

Disney Tribute

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Bracket/250/126/27

Want to go to Disneyland but don’t have the money to? Take a walk down Main St. in this loving recreation of the historic park. There are rides, shops, and plenty to explore, which is nearly like the real thing. There’s even a monorail!

Cyfir

Blast From The Past - Bleu Ruse Cafe

By Cyfir (cyfiremmerich)

Back when I used to work at Fox Haven, there was a little cafe called the Bleu Ruse Cafe which was owned by Arcee Redclaw. It was a nice place to sit and chill and a great alternative to the bumping night-life of the club on the same sim. There were live performances and DJs, but it was much more relaxed than your typical Second Life club. The hosts were actually bartenders. The decor and atmosphere reminded me of a southern restaurant or bar and the staff were very hospitable. It all had a southern hospitality vibe to it. I loved hanging out there and I missed it so much that I asked Arcee to put a mini version of it on my current parcel. The cafe itself went through many alterations over the course of nearly three years and at one point there were two of them; one at Fox Haven and a bigger version on the emergency responder roleplay sim called Rochester.

I had a chance to sit down with Arcee and talk to her about her previous ventures with her cafe. When asked what inspired her to start Bleu Ruse Cafe she told me that it first came about because of an opportunity at Fox Haven. “When I first joined the community of Fox Haven there were a few empty buildings which the staff offered up for personal storefronts or places to relax. I’ve always wanted to run sort of. . .a cafe or small lounge, so I took the opportunity to do so. I turned it into a small lounge where people could play Second Life instruments or DJ and it grew from there.” She says that the growth of the cafe was thanks to community involvement. The French naming scheme originated from her French background. “Bleu Renard Cafe was a bit. . .weird. . .so I went with Bleu Ruse Cafe since it rolled off the tongue better. So, in a way, it’s ‘Blue Smart Cafe’ when translated properly.” The color scheme was inspired by the blue fox avatar that she originally used at the start. She still has the avatar saved in her inventory to remember things by.

When asked what she liked most about running the cafe, she told me that it was the connections that she made. “I met many of my closest Second Life friends through them finding their way to the place or through the ones who helped it to grow and thrive. I would have never imagined meeting all these folks. Every time Bleu Ruse Cafe is brought up, people tend to have fond memories of the place.” She feels like she did her job at making a fun and relaxed venue and I would have to agree. “BRC grew in a way that was unimaginable and astounding and it was never because of the amount of funding that I put towards it or the hours I spent remodeling. It was the patrons and the staff that made the place come alive.

It was a community, of sorts. From Ace Redclaw being my Security, Midnight Galaxis being my General Manager, and Raff aiding me with the DJs; it was thanks to them and the loyal patrons that BRC lasted as long as it did. With the closing of Fox Haven as well as Rochester, Bleu Ruse Cafe closed with them, but it’s memory as well as a smaller form on my parcel lives on today.

Cyfir

Palmwood City

by Cyfir (Cyfiremmerich Resident)

There’s no denying that I love the architecture, colors, and neon-vibe aesthetic of the 80s. I especially love the way malls of the era looked. There’s something about the wood grains, neon, off whites, etc. that bring me back to a much better time. It’s one of the reasons why I love Dan Bell’s Dead Mall series on YouTube and why I think that it’s awful that the mall I used to go to in my childhood got modernized with a bland remodel. There’s something very nostalgic about the feel and vibe of that era. When I first visited Palmwood, those nostalgic vibes came rushing back.

Palmwood is a thriving furry Second Life community themed around a “retrowave” city aesthetic. There are many private and commercial rental options available as well as clubs, a mall, roller rink, and a retro themed arcade named Joysticks. The founder, Jimmy Talon, was inspired by his nostalgia for the old arcades that he experienced growing up. He remembers “the chirping sounds and the neon carpets and the flashing colorful lights and classic rock and dance pop playing over the speakers. It was very nostalgic for me growing up in the early 90s. The 80s really clung around until about 94; even longer in the pre-internet midwest.”

When asked about how it all started; “So one day I got into a sandbox and wanted to see if I could recreate my old local arcade from memory. I made a little replica while listening to some old jams and then showed it off to a few friends for fun and they really enjoyed it.” He spent about a year tweaking it for functional use. Once finished, he rented a small plot of land. The first incarnation had a parking lot out front with old cars. It took about a week for things to gain traction but vaporwave was really starting to take off at the time so people started to find the place via keyword searches. “And then, before I knew it, we had 15-20 people packed into the arcade during peak hours, playing table games, listening to vaporwave and just goofing off and feeling nostalgic for the place. Pretty soon requests for new games and activities started rolling in. We added more machines, more table games, a bowling alley. . .so we needed more space!”

He bought a neighboring plot of land and joined them to solve the issue of space but the cost was more than he anticipated. “So I asked some friends if they wanted to take over some of the rent in exchange for some little houses and we got the idea to make the land look like a little town with an arcade in the center and. . .it just kind of escalated from there.” Pretty soon requests started coming in from people who wanted to rent a place and within a year they had built an entire RPG style town modeled after an old American community which featured a town hall, a park plaza, and a mall. Not long after that, a decision was made to remodel in order to appeal more to those who were fans of the vaporwave aesthetic. This lead to the creation of what is now Palmwood City today.

When asked what their current mission in Second Life is; “It’s really just about community I think. We never really set out to make a bunch of money or sell anything like merch or club life or anything too crazy. We’ve incorporated things into our goals mostly by request from the community because people feel kind of. . .attached to Palmwood.” He mentioned that their rentals are not even the most efficient or cost effective. However, the people who tend to rent there aren’t concerned with getting a good deal or having privacy. They tend to be more concerned with being a Palmwood citizen and love the idea of being part of a retrowave paradise city designed by furries. The sim functions more like a real functioning city with a sense of community rather than just another real estate sim.

As for the future of Palmwood, the founder is just seeing where it takes them. They pride themselves on listening to their community and fulfilling their wants and needs and making changes every once in awhile to keep things fresh. There is currently plenty of things to explore and do and plenty of people to meet there. “Everyone in our community is generally very welcoming and willing to show you around!” he says. So go to https://www.palmwoodcity.com/home and check them out!

https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Odessa%20Plains/162/148/30

Cyfir

Reader Submitted: Blast From the Past - Fox Haven

by Cyfir (cyfiremmerich Resident)

There are many places in Second Life which inspire a sense of community, but Fox Haven was very special in this regard. Many of the former members are still friends to this day, even if they no longer use Second Life. Now no community is without controversy, and the main community ultimately ended up folding long after it left the Second Life platform, but I will not be focusing on that controversy out of respect for the parties involved. I will instead be focusing on the good times and what made this community special. It was my first true home in Second Life and I was once good friends with the founder. So let’s take a ride to the past and visit what was Fox Haven!

It all started with Slavasesh. He had felt that there wasn’t a safe place for him, his friends, and others to hang out at within Second Life. He ended up renting a parcel. The early members helped to name the community and it became Fox Haven. As the community grew, he eventually used his resources to rent a sim. The sim eventually included a city in the sky level and a forest on the ground level. It’s popularity grew and his one sim quickly grew to two interconnected sims and he began renting out homes on both sims. I first found the sim through a friend named Anthony. I soon ended up renting a home there and quickly became friends with the owner. I started out my Second Life career there, picking up stray prims, doing “sim checks” every day. I slowly worked my way up to other roles such as DJ, club manager, sim manager, and eventually sim co-owner along with Slavsesh and Digimbyte.

I actually never originally wanted to be in any role of power, but I was fond of everyone there and I really believed in the spirit of the community and wanted to contribute in any way that I could. Thus, I took on any role and helped out with anything I could. All the core members of Fox Haven were close and supported each other and helped each other grow. At one point, a user named Acey had a previous partner and friend pass away. The community came together to support him and keep his head in the right place. In his own words: “Fox Haven as a whole provided me with a place in Second Life that felt safe where I didn’t feel afraid to approach people because everyone was friendly and I could almost always count on someone there to cheer me up by making me laugh with jokes or funny gestures; sharing the latest creations or gathering in their houses and watching media together. I didn’t have many real life friends at the time so it definitely contributed to a positive state of mind, knowing that these random avatars in SL weren’t just pretending, they genuinely wanted to hang out and have a good time. I felt welcome.” This was a sentiment that most members, including myself, agreed with and it’s what kept us logging in every day to hang out or do our part to keep the community thriving.

One of the biggest contributors to the sim was a pink deer named Dawny. Even when he left Second Life to focus on his real life business, he would return to donate L to keep the sim going. One of the first clubs on the sim was named after him and called Up ‘til Dawny’s. Even with Dawny not around, the name stayed for much of the sim’s life. At one point I had messaged Dawny on FurAffinity and he was surprised that the name was still in use years later. The club featured many talented DJs, a couple of which were DJs and producers in real life. I learned how to DJ and make flawless transitions between songs from one of them. The club was mainly a great place to chill and have a good time with friends. It eventually got a new name (Future Haze) and a beautiful new sci-fi minimalist building with a fish tank glass floor created out of smart objects by Digimbyte.

As time went on, it got harder to keep two sims going and Slavasesh eventually moved to just one sim. I was there at his real life house when he purchased and originally set up the new sim. However, Second Life was changing, and smaller tight-knit communities were suffering. On top of this, real life was pulling Slavasesh away and it got to a point where it wasn’t worth keeping a full sim going for a hangout spot. Despite this, Slavasesh kept the sim going as long as he could, because he didn’t want his friends to no longer have a home on Second Life. Despite his commendable efforts, it got to a point where he just couldn’t keep things going, and many logged in one day to find the sim gone. However, the community lived on in Discord, and many of the core members are still friends to this day and keep the core values alive.

Cyfir