"Second Life", the precursor of the metaverse where creators are kings

• Large tech companies, including Meta (ex-Facebook), want to develop a metaverse.

• Since 2003, that of

  Second Life

  welcomes thousands of residents every day.

• In this ultra-customizable universe, creators are kings.

Imagine a world where you can fly or teleport.

A world where you can take on the appearance of your choice, and constantly evolve it – from your clothes to your face to the shape of your body and the appearance of your skin.

A world that you can change to your liking, and whose objects, places and appearances are created by people like you.

This world has been around since 2003, and it's called

.

This 3D virtual universe peaked in popularity and media coverage around 2006, before declining.

However, it is still active – Linden Lab, the publisher of the open source computer program, claims 1 million connections per month, and 200,000 daily active users.

It's not much compared to the giants of social networks, but enough to form a solid community.

What, perhaps, arouse renewed interest as the metaverse returns to the table.

Virtual, alternative and persistent

This concept borrowed from science fiction has been an obsession of the tech world since the 1990s. A metaverse is a virtual and alternative world, which is superimposed on the physical world, accessible in a computer way, and persistent - it continues to exist and evolve when the user disconnects.

Mark Zuckerberg's company, renamed "Meta", intends to develop its metaverse, as do other digital players - for example Epic Games, the publisher of the game

.

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Meta, Microsoft, Roblox... What will the metaverse of the future look like?

… Kind of like

.

At nearly 20 years old, it is undoubtedly one of the longest-lived metaverses.

It all started in 1999, when entrepreneur Philip Rosedale created Linden Lab.

The initial goal of the company is to produce material used to immerse oneself in a virtual world.

But the equipment being too heavy, she turns to the creation of a software, Linden World, which will give way to

.

Philip Rosedale specified his vision of this universe in 2006: “We don't see it as a game. We see it as a platform which, in many aspects, is better than the real world.

The users, called “residents”, themselves create and enrich the world in which they evolve: buildings, objects, animals, plants, but also animations and sounds.

And most importantly, the appearance of the avatar – usually humanoid in shape, but not necessarily – down to the details of the skin and the shape of the limbs.

As for Linden Lab, it is mainly in charge of the management of the servers, the connection and the graphic rendering, as well as the five great original continents.

"The metaverse should be created and managed by the people who live in it"

“We are simply playing the role of facilitator, deciphered in October 2021 Anya Kanevsky, product manager of

with the Journal du Net.

(…) I don't see how creating different games that would be connected to each other could be similar to the metaverse.

In my view, this is content created by companies for users.

For the metaverse to exist, it must be created and managed by the people who live there.

»

Let's rewind to 2005.

is making the buzz in the American media, and appears conducive to commercial exchanges.

In June 2006, the ready-to-wear brand American Apparel opened a store there, followed by others.

Institutional actors set up there: universities offering online training, embassies of very real countries… The buzz reached France in 2007: several teams of candidates for the presidential election invested the universe.

The media coverage is sometimes more negative: 

is accused of hosting child pornography content, in particular.

From 2007, the brands are already closing their stores.

The 2008 banking crisis leads to a banking crisis in

.

Universities and politicians are moving away, and the metaverse is gradually depopulating.

But it does not disappear.

Some people have been going there for over a decade.

Like Ayako Takahashi, 34, met at the Voodoo Club, a

club dedicated to electronic music.

Her nickname does not indicate it, but Ayako is French;

she has been a “resident” for 13 years.

“What I love here is the ability to create and experience whatever you want to experience.

I was role-playing and I quickly found a game universe. Now, I'm more in the hobby and discussion with a small circle of friends.

»

Peak of activity in containment

The duration of "life" in

is displayed next to the nicknames of the people you meet there.

Within the Voodoo Club, some have been there for 8, 10 years;

others arrived a month ago.

In 2020, “the platform experienced a peak of activity since many people felt the need to maintain social ties.

(…) We also observe these people returning to Second Life, even if they spend less time there”, explained Anya Kanevsky to the Journal du Net in 2021.

It is easy to understand the pleasure that can be found in visiting

in full confinement.

The places to socialize are open at all hours, and the possibilities for exploration seem endless.

Even if, by teleporting to a random place, it can happen to fall into the void.

“A lot of places only last a certain time, either because their creators leave

, because they move, or because they create another place, explains Ayako Takahashi.

Your imagination and that of other users are the only boundaries.

»

“ 

has this great longevity because it was created by its users, there are always new cities and fantastic environments to visit”, explains to

Wagner James Au.

This American journalist has been covering

society on his New World Notes blog since the beginning of the universe.

“Most long-term users have already spent thousands of dollars on virtual content that they don't want to give up,” he adds.

Bat ride

When you arrive in

, you "strand" on a not-really-deserted island, where giant panels present various tutorials on how to evolve in the universe and residents welcome the new ones.

A ride in a bat, then in a canoe, allows you to experiment with means of transport.

You can then personalize your avatar, or discover one of the many spaces open to everyone.

Second Life

is a vast world, and a few hours are barely enough to scratch the surface.

There are many clubs, cafes and shops, art galleries, places to get free items and areas for role-playing;

but also a picturesque French village;

an autism resource centre;

international or LGBTQ+ community spaces;

or even a post-apocalyptic community.

Residents can be part of a group of users with a common goal: parties, live concerts, readers' forum… Or more “adult” concerns.

Because sex quickly seems to be ubiquitous, as

said in a report published in 2016. "The fact that

targets adults and that there are very few restrictions against sexual content has allowed the virtual sex market to thrive.

This, and calling it 'second life', invites people to experiment with activities they might not attempt in real life,” Wagner James Au observes.

Or as Ayako Takahashi puts it more bluntly, “on the surface

can quickly appear to be on the edge of an open-air brothel.

But when you dig, you come across nuggets, whether places or people.

»

Fashion and live music

These people, who are they?

"Users are mostly in their thirties, or even older, given the age of the platform," notes Wagner James Au.

There is near parity among active users, which is rare for a metaverse – it's more like 70% men elsewhere.

American users are not necessarily a majority – there is a strong presence of users in the European Union, and in Brazil and Japan.

These residents engage in a variety of activities.

“When I started, let's say that

was looking for itself, it was a bit of a mess.

But very quickly talented creators shaped the universe, says Ayako Takahashui.

Fashion takes up a lot of space, but there are no currents like in real life.

Everyone has their own vision, their own universe.

Wagner James Au confirms a change in the economy and culture of the metaverse: “Fashion shows and shopping events are very popular, along with live music and other entertainment.

»

And some make a living from it.

“1600 people earn more than 10,000 US dollars annually thanks to their content for

, recalls Wagner James Au.

Between 200 and 500 people earn enough to live on – that's more than the number of Linden Lab employees!

A payment system developed by the company, Tillia Pay, makes it possible to secure transactions between users, and to convert the local currency, the Linden dollar, into real money.

Linden Lab takes a commission, and also offers a Premium Membership with exclusive perks, like regular income.

“We knew it was going to be huge”

residents

, big announcements about the metaverse were met "with amused contempt but also a form of 'we were there first and we knew it was going to be huge' validation," Wagner James told Au.

away

.

What's funny is that we say the same thing about these new platforms as we said about

20 years ago.

The contempt is mostly directed at Zuckerberg and the others, who seem to want to exploit this space for negative purposes.

»

On January 12, it was announced that the creator, Philip Rosedale, was returning as a "strategic advisor".

His company dedicated to virtual reality, High Fidelity, will invest in Linden Lab, financially and with computer patents.

According to the specialized media

, two of these patents relate in particular to community moderation in a decentralized environment.

A subject that is of particular concern to future actors of the metaverse, while the moderation of social networks has never been so discussed.

Wagner James Au asked Rosedale about these issues.

The creator of

there criticizes the monetization practiced by the major social networks, believing that we "can absolutely make a virtual world where people do not hurt each other..."

Ayako Takahashi says she is curious.

“We're not too interested, the metaverses of Facebook and other companies are going to be places of consumption.

But I'm waiting to see what it can do – I would say that

has made a hole for it.

For Wagner James Au, while it is not certain that

"wants to make the radical changes necessary to compete with the leaders of the metaverse", this universe could nevertheless be "the standard to which new platforms will be compared - especially on the subject of creators' income, compared to that of companies in the metaverse”.

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