Metaversed is a group devoted to the exploration and understanding of virtual worlds. The powerful reek of Second Life coming off of just that first sentence would normally drive me off, and Metaversed is indeed based in Second Life, but in launching their new service, Grid Safari, Metaversed is doing something undeniably cool. They’re going to be providing guided tours of various virtual worlds across the web.
At the heart of Metaversed and much of the hype surrounding Second Life is the romantic notion of a 3D internet – cyberspace that we fly around to explore. Unfortunately, this dream, conceived in the minds of science fiction authors such as Vernor Vinge and William Gibson, appears to be stillborn. Enthusiasm still exists for the concept, as businesses and other organizations attempt to make the leap to virtual worlds such as Second Life, but they’re jumping on a bandwagon that might not depart anytime soon. Second Life is little more than a graphical chatroom with a heavy emphasis on sex. That being said, I’d hope my criticisms of this concept are taken more as me almost daring it to happen, because a Snow Crash or Neuromancer world would kick irrationally enormous piles of ass.
Despite the way cyberspace has seemed to fizzle, the idea of offering tours of virtual worlds possesses an appeal that even I, the jadedest of jaded bastards, can’t quite disregard. Imagine being able to get a high level vanguard to escort you to the most dangerous and exotic locations in World of Warcraft, or a highly respected Second Life player to bring you past all of the random furry sex and show you the secret enclaves of true awesomeness going on in the world, and you can get a sense of why this idea is so interesting to me. Hopefully Grid Safari will make it happen.
To get in on it, join the Grid Safari Google Group.
