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World Review: ActiveWorlds Gate 4.1
Main
Review
Compatible with Operating Systems:
World Status: Defunct
World Review: ActiveWorlds Gate 4.1 The ActiveWorlds codebase reinvented itself in June 2006 with the 4.1 version of it?s software (previous version was 3.6). In addition to a whole host of changes and improvements, they completely rebuilt the entrance and helpdesk world, AWGate, into something, which strived to be more than the glorified chatroom of the old. The old ActiveWorlds Gate 3.6 suffered from having no real activities for people to partake in, other than chatting with one another around the globe in the centre of the world. Since chat faded out if you drifted too far from the globe, this gave people no real reason to explore. So, has the new greeting world changed? Well, the globe is still there, but it?s not standing alone in the middle of a near-featureless world this time. All around it are hedges, trees, cum-de-sacs, statures with plaques, and dozens of interactive objects; some in plain sight, some hidden away. You can track down evil gnomes, pick flowers, and have them attach to your avatar. You can wander for hours in little paths between tree copses and find hidden rewards to click on.
This world functions as the introduction to the capabilities of ActiveWorlds for new users of all ages. As such, it has to be family-friendly, and yet try to appeal to all ages. It has to draw people in, and show its not just another chatroom. Does it succeed? Well, it seems to succeed in part. The world is the same size as before, 1.4 square kilometres of island, nestled in an endless sea of equatorial blue water. It bristles with life, with interest and with activity. There are a half dozen different interactive exploration experiences in the form of secret areas to find. A mineshaft awaits exploration, a human head, explored from inside, all the innards to be played with. A zen garden awaiting in quiet tranquillity on the surface. Other interactivity abounds in the form of vehicles. Magic carets can be unfurled and rode upon. Three anti-gravity scooters, belching fire and smoke, exist likewise. Finally, in the harbour there are jetskis, and sailboats able to take several people on each, ready to sail off into the limitless blue yonder. A huge piano keyboard sits to one side, near the globe. Each key large enough to stand on, doing so presses it down. The note sings clear over the whole world; everyone can hear how good you are with music, or how atrociously bad. Also notable, for the first time, ActiveWorlds Gate now includes links to gameworlds ? uses of ActiveWorlds purely for gaming. This is something they always used to see as a pariah, and would take the money of game developers, but never ever mention they were doing it. The existences of this area, right out in the open, marks a possible change in policy for ActiveWorlds itself.
Sub Reviews
For some, its the thrill of discovery, the freedom to strike out, to pioneer. Whether its mapping new lands, or exploring unknown fields of endeavour, to be first, to boldly go, this is what explorers live for. The world is the same size as before, 1.4 square kilometres of island, nestled in an endless sea of equatorial blue water. It bristles with life, with interest and with activity. There are a half dozen different interactive exploration experiences in the form of secret areas to find. A mineshaft awaits exploration, a human head, explored from inside, all the innards to be played with. A zen garden awaiting in quiet tranquillity on the surface.
The social life is the life for you. To chat, to roam, to gossip all day, and chatter all night. You are the heart of the party, and you are the soul. The drive to chatter, the need to gossip, stretching out, making connections, mind against mind, heart against heart. It keeps you going, it keeps you sane. The community in ActiveWorlds Gate 4.1 is pretty much exactly the same as it used to be. Mostly regulars, chatting with their friends, a mix of outside life topics and events, standard chatroom really. There is no attempt to be other than a general chat facility.
Overall, the new world tries so very hard to succeed, but it lacks the community focus to elevate it from a simple chat space back into a world again. Even to this day, you?ll find most visitors grouped about under the globe, never moving, just chatting away. To them, it does not matter what is done, its just a chat room. The challenge to the world administration is, how to bypass these people, and attract the newer ones, that this, is now truly a world.
Rating
70 / 100
Client OS:Win 2K, Win 98, Win 2K, Win 2K World Purpose: Age Suitability: |
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