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Metaverse Launched?

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the unreal-estate dept.

jlouderb writes "Following in the heels of Worlds Inc. Blaxxun Interactive and Linden Labs, super-stealth project There Inc. launches Wednesday at CES. ExtremeTech has a preview of the world up, which is characterized by expressive avatars that look like idealized humans. Backed by a long list of notables, including Halsey Minor, Trip Hawkins, Jane Metcalfe and Louis Rosetto, it's an ambitious effort. But will the target market of Wal-Mart moms show up? Who knows, we all laughed at AOL too. You can sign up for the public beta and find out for yourself."

4 of 278 comments (clear)

  1. SO let me get this straight... by Anonymous+Custard · · Score: 5, Funny

    So... it's just like a MMORPG, except when some kid pisses you off, you can't murder him?

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    1. Re:SO let me get this straight... by kien · · Score: 5, Funny
      So... it's just like a MMORPG, except when some kid pisses you off, you can't murder him?

      Right! You just shoot him with a paintball gun...it's much more humane. :D

      Paintball guns don't kill avatars...avatars kill avatars....errrr...

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  2. ANOTHER brave new world? by ianscot · · Score: 5, Funny
    Because There focuses on non-tech geeks, and because communication and chatting forms the core of the world, the company limits you to normal, human looking avatars.

    So, what, we can't make ones that look like us in real life?

    Shooting daggers and a very Mario-like floating heart convey deeper emotions.

    "Deeper" being a relative term... How many times in one day do you wink at someone?

    There expects its audience to skew more towards women than men, at least at first. Why? Well according to CEO Tom Melcher, "men will go where the women are, but the reverse isn't true."

    The logic there doesn't quite work. Why not just say "The company behind There has figured out what drinking establishments have known for several hundred years"?

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  3. Not quite so by CrystalFalcon · · Score: 5, Funny

    The book describes in detail that while some people hang out and expand the Metaverse with their own code, most teenage girls are happy to go to Wal-Mart and buy an avatar in one of three pre-packaged breast sizes; "improbable", "impossible", and "ludicruous".