To play this game you have to...

Last Saturday, I finally got a good look at the game Maple Story.

It is a cutesy 2-D sprite based platform game, that is supposed to be free to play. All you have to do is go to the website and download the client. So, despite being tickled at the 25+ year olds playing this game, I decided to give it a try. (Hey, it is FREE, and I am a gamer).

However, after an excruciationg download of 204MB, of which I initially tried getting from the international mirror instead of the one closer in South East Asia, and installation, I found out that I have to sign up as a member of another site, before even being able to sign up for the game.

Here is the catch. They needed me to provide them with a National ID number. (NRIC for Singaporeans). Me, being the paranoid person I am, used my Passport number instead, as it has less 'abusable' potential. The next page asked for my full real name and full real address. (They claimed it to be information needed in case they need to send me gifts, and that my account will be banned if I provided them with false information). There I paused again, and finally decided not to register.

You can call me paranoid, but in today's world, Identity theft is very possible. What would happen if my personal information got leaked/hacked from this company? It is just to play a game for goodness sake, a 'FREE' one at that. I am am already quite cautious with using credit cards online, but this is really asking for too much info.

Another game that I came across recently is Second Life. This is basically a virtual world like The Sims, where you can tailor made your own alter-ego from scratch and live a virtual life. The difference is, in Second Life, you can even make a living by creating/trading virtual goods, being a landlord, running a disco and myriad other ways. This game even has its own 'currency exchange rate' versus real money (in US$). If you are a heck of a designer, you might be able to make some pocket money. Surprisingly, the basic version of thie game is also free, although you need to be a paying member to lease/own virtual buildings and operate your business.

I have not attempted to sign up with Second Life, as this type of game currently does not draw me. So I do not know if they have as 'stringent' a requirement as Maple Story.

The interesting this is that the way these games generate revenue is similar to this Game Designer's Player Pyramid theory. Essentially, while the general players do not need to pay, those who wish for more privileges in game can pay to get them.

It is truly an interesting (Virtual) World out there...