Second Life

Greetings and Salutations,

I was watching at my friend's place last night a show by The Fifth Estate on CBC about the internet game Second Life, which is basically a game where people can create an online persona and create whatever life they want and actually have to pay money for various things.

They featured 4 people and they ended up getting married in the online game. One woman was married with 4 children and her husband was getting upset that she spent all this time online. Another was a man who was married as well.

The married woman ended up meeting the man she married online because she wanted to see if she was in love with the real man or if she was just in love with the fantasy. I felt sorry for her family because she ended up neglecting her children and husband and was more interested in her online life.

She spent more then 8 hours a day on it and she was fortunate her husband was able to financially support her.

I found myself annoyed with her because it was obvious that she was just a lonely housewife who had way too much free time on her hands and needed to actually develop a life for herself in the real world instead of escaping into this false world. She bought her online boyfriend an island, which costs $400. How nice it must be to have that kind of money to throw around!

The other person was some man who ended up marrying in real life the woman he married in the game and he left his wife in the real world. They interviewed the new wife and she seemed to me to be a bit emotionally dependent on him. She said that she knows it sounds cliche but she said he completes her. Now I'm sure being in love and finding the right person for you must feel wonderful and comforting but I don't know if I'd feel comfortable using those words 'he completes me'. That just disturbs me. I wonder if people who are happily married for more then 10 years actually feel like that. Have I been naively believing that only I make myself happy and that finding a mate, just adds to my own sense of happiness?

Anyways, she also ended up learning some of his interests, like shooting a pistol and motorcycle riding. I guess when couples get together, if they have different interests, you probably end up learning a bit about their own. She ended up leaving her kids to marry him but they never said how old they were and I think they were older. The man has been married before as well so I think he's one of those men that don't really grasp the concept that marriage is really supposed to be 'til death do you part'.

They should do a follow up show 8 years from now as I would like to see if they are still together, which I highly doubt.

I don't really know what it's like to play the game and how you actually get to know people, but from what I saw, it seemed like people couldn't help but get emotionally involved, whether they were aware of what was going on or not.

I'm sure there has to be some people who play it and don't get so emotionally involved and just see it as a game and have an actual life to worry about. I just think it's such a big waste of time though. Why not actually focus on making your real life better?

I know when Guitar Hero came out I thought it was stupid to play because I think you are better off playing a guitar in real life but I guess playing it in moderation is okay and it can be a fun experience on its own. I guess if you don't get too caught up in Second Life, it might not be such a bad thing but I think people need to realize it's just a game and what goes on in real life is much more important.

I think playing games is good for you but I might be hesitant to try a game like that. I had my phase early on in life where I spent alot of time in chat rooms and wanting to socialize with people but I find it's too time consuming and no friendships ever really stuck. I think you won't have any lasting relationships unless you actually meet in real life and get to talk, whether by phone or in person.