Inworld

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the day, "Warm Fall Day," by Envy Watts.

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the Day, "Say You're Sorry," by Felicity Blumenthal.

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the Day for Nov. 5, "Masterminds Week 199 - Free For All ," by Skye Donardson.

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the Day for Nov. 3, "F.v.X.," by Sileny Noel .

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the Day for Nov. 2, "Originalia - the Dock -Scottius Polke," by Nemo the Insane Jester.

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the Day for Nov. 1, "Wishing Well," by La Baroque.

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the Day for Oct. 31, "Sweet little area," by Roiben Sweetwater. Visit inworld here. Happy Halloween!

Wondering where the inspiration behind your favorite Zombie sims comes from? Want to know where they got that amazing spooky texture? Get answers from the sim creators here! Ask questions in the comments. Swap and share your favorite zombie tales, locations and more creepy stuff.

From Chainsword Audion, of The Maze:

1. What is your inspiration/where do you get your ideas?
The inspiration for the maze came from a few different sources. Megaman Legends, Dead Space, some elements from Doom (unknowingly, I had never played it). It came to me one day many years ago — so I made it.

2. Where can visitors buy the things they see on your sim? — i.e. favorite zombie-stuff creators inworld (or on Marketplace).
In the region's lobby, right smack in the middle of the landing point on the walls I sell the guns to play the maze with. Just 50L for the HUD to play — the pistol is free.

3. What is the objective of your sim/i.e. vision?
An objective is such an absolute thing. I don't rightly know where I'm going with this but it's going somewhere! You can expect to be challenged at the maze though; bring your buds.

4. Are you doing anything special for Halloween?
Candy.

5. How long have you been in SL and what is your favorite thing about it?
Late '07, friend. I ran with a rough crowd in my earlier days... *putz on very cool shades* Digital Worlds, The Bearz, 18th St. Jamels, Pool Boyz. That's all old times though. My favorite thing is reminiscing in groups. It's good to remember good times.

6. Recommendations on other cool zombie locales and your favorite stuff to do inworld?
I am quite a slow-coach in Second Life lately. I am usually at the maze checking up on things. The Hive is another zombie sim I know of an old acquaintance of mine runs though.

Check out the latest Halloween build in Second Life: Falmouth. Explore!

Happy Halloween!

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the Day for Oct. 30, "MVW Halloween Show," by  Sazzy O Miss V .

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the Day for Oct. 29, "Az 2 @ Firefly's Halloween 2011," by Rick Aucoin.

Check out the Pic of the Day for Oct. 28, "Tay Tay Halloween Costume ," by Taylor Flanagan.

Check out the Flickr Pic of the Day for Oct. 27, "DOLLCOCO ," by Kagemaru McMahon .

Behind the Scenes of Octoberville

When you visit a place such as Octoberville you think of haunted houses, mazes, hunts, Crowbar, and making friends, but there is so much more to Octoberville than meets the eye.

Beginning with a brainstorming session that usually takes place in June; we devise the continuing story of Octoberville. Sometimes, it can be quite a challenge to maintain the original sleepy, autumn feel, while adding the elements of fear and delightful frustration that Octoberville is known for.

As the project manager, it is my job to make sure that everyone is on the same page and we are on schedule to have the build completed and tested by October 1st. This can be quite a challenge as we all have real life jobs and responsibilities to balance as well. It is also difficult to motivate people to work on autumn projects when its 90 degrees outside and thoughts of swimming pools and backyard barbeques seem more relevant.

By September 1st, the main maze and general layout of Octoberville is completed, but the haunted house and the actual game still needs to be developed. With only a month left to create the meat of the game, life becomes more hectic. Everyone in the family, including our daughters, is consumed with finishing the project. After school, before and after work, during dinner, we are sharing ideas, arguing points, and putting the pieces together that will soon become many fans’ favorite Second Life event.

By the middle of September, nerves are on edge and we, too, are counting down the days until October 1st. While Nathan is finishing up the code to the hunt, Master Kaos is coming up with puzzling rooms for the haunted house and putting finishing details around the rest of Octoberville to make everything look realistic. My daughters are taking the scripted hunt items and hiding them, while I am making sure that everything flows correctly and ensuring there are no holes in the game.

The final week before opening is probably the most stressful time of the year. We are hiding the last of the items and testing the game in its entirety.

Finally, on October 1st, our efforts pay off as we watch Octoberville become filled to capacity with fans within 1 minute after opening.

Photos by Taylor Flanagan

About the Author: Cherub Spectre (along with Master Kaos and Nathan Oddfellow) is the creator and designer of Octoberville, which is celebrating its seventh year on the grid.  Visit Octoberville in Second Life!

Check out  the SL Flickr Pic of the Day for Oct. 26, "Abandoned," by Solangesimondsen. Visit inworld here.

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the Day for Oct. 25, "The Last Train," by Victor1st Mornington. Visit inworld here.

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So, what’s your favorite scary story this Halloween?

Praying Mary, Moonkiller, Skinner and the idiot savant who can draw people’s auras suddenly were filling up my mind with their evil agendas, begging me to bring them to life. The family of lunatics started to grow and desperately needed a home for roaming around. I tried to stop them, push them in the back of my mind, hoping they could wait for a little bit longer, till there was more time.. but once an evil seed has been planted, it grows without feeding.

A mad asylum needed to be built for this story. When I approached the team in August asking if we could make an interactive and immersive asylum with a kick-ass story — and why not at the same time make that into a grid-wide hunt involving 50 high-quality stores? —  I was expecting more resistance. With a little bit of bribing, blackmailing and cheese throwing, they were all willing to work extremely hard to make sure this mad idea would become a reality and MadPea would be able to provide an unforgettable adventure for Halloween.



Little by little the mysterious foggy swamp took over the whole island. It used to belong to a Native American tribe, who had very bizarre methods for draining souls from the evil-doers. Many, many years later, the highly anticipated Peatonville Asylum gets built on the swamp. Top-class doctors and staff were hired to treat the most severely mentally damaged patients and a special large grant was assigned to this rehabilitation program, aiming to use new technologies and methods in making the patients fit for society again. The program started to show tremendous progress in a short amount of time, until it all went wrong. One by one they start dying in the most gruesome ways and when help finally arrives, there is no one left to tell the story. Only a journal and shards of an ancient stone remain. Dare to enter this scary mystery? Environment rich of sounds, details, spooky elements and interactivity will keep you entertained for hours and in the end you will be exhausted with a big smile on your face and inventory full of goodies. Built with love, blood, sweat and other wonderful bodily fluids, the Peatonville Asylum awaits..

About the author: Kiana Writer has been a prominent game creator in Second Life for several years. As a co-founder of MadPea Games, Kiana has helped to create several popular games including The Devil's Labyrinth, The Kaaos Effect and Virtual Medical Doctor. Her newest co-creation, The Peatonville Asylum, debuts Oct. 28.



Making your own Halloween _______.


So you've had lots of fun exploring the various haunted houses, maddening mazes, and other spooky spots celebrating Halloween in Second Life this year and you say to yourself, “But I can make a better Halloween _______ than that!” Maybe you can, but it takes a bit of planning to bodge something together. Good thing you have a year for putting it all together.

First you need to sort out what kind of venue it will be. A so-called “dark ride” like you find in amusement parks? How about a walk-through haunted house or even a haunted forest? The assets you have will be your biggest consideration in this decision with land being chief among them. Fortunately, Janeforyou Barbara let me use a large chunk of her land and a few thousand prims to make my fourth annual Halloween treat, the Menagerie Isle Haunted House  My dream is to one day use a whole region as the folks at Innsmouth do, but even if you have only a 117-prim, 512-square meter parcel, you can put together something great if you have great ideas. It all comes together with the decorating.

That's the where the theme comes in. Popping about Second Life this year, I saw a greater variety than ever before, but paying tribute to horror films was quite popular, especially zombie flicks. Even folks who usually don't go see the likes of Freddy, Jason, and their kin in theaters will, thanks to mass marketing, be familiar with the characters — so your intent is clear, but these themes might be so mainstream that their familiarity could decrease their impact. Think carefully about clever ways to incorporate pop-horror into your creations while seriously considering more traditional items like ghosts and skeletons.

This means you also need to think about the build itself. Get together with your team, or if you don't have one, frequently invite friends to give you a third-party perspective. This is my second year with a two-stage installation at Menagerie Isle: a pre-show walkabout in a decrepit mansion made by BailyMarie Princess and available in her shop at Abbey Island, every room decorated with spiders or ghosts or... well, I won't spoil the surprises. Then there is a dark ride through several themed tableaus that eventually ends in an eerie graveyard where anyone who survived can pick up a gift before running off. I used many commercially sourced items — ghosts, spiders, furniture, etc. — along with custom textures and items I made myself. Because I worked alone, I had several people look in to catch my mistakes, such as when the ride stopped at a certain spot if two or more folks were in the car at the same time.

Assets, theme, and build are the basic components. Post your ideas in the comments for what you like to see in a Halloween attraction, whether you are a builder or not. I’d also like to see your suggestions, with SLurls if you can, for what you thought were great attractions or places to shop. Don't be scared to post something!

Bay City Hay Halloween Maze

The Linden Moles and the Bay City Alliance have a Hay Maze full of whimsical fun and prizes.

Bewitched Haunted Dark Forest

The Bewitched Haunted Dark Forest is a whole region of spookiness.

Isle of Ewe

Shops can be attractions, too! The Isle of Ewe has dressed up for the holiday and the Meeroos have gotten into the spirit of things.

Mark your calendars for the Best of SL Halloween: A Resident-Hosted Event, held this Friday, Oct. 28, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Pacific) in the official Forums.

Plus, check the official Second Life Blog all week for guest blog posts from our Hosts!

Halloween Hosts Available in the Forum this Friday, Oct. 28 and Guest Blogging this Week:

• MiaSnow Myriam
• Ivey Deschanel
• Uccello Poultry
• Vitabella Dubrovna
• Sinatra Cartier
• Kiana Writer
• Cherub Spectre

Hear What Second Life Creators and Bloggers Think in Real Time

Your Halloween Hosts are Second Life Residents with experience creating or even simply enjoying Haunted Locations in Second Life. They’ll be standing by in the Halloween Forum to share favorite inworld locations, costumes, and tips and tricks for scripting successful haunted experiences.

Ask Questions

Experts will be on call in the community from 9 a.m. through 4 p.m. (Pacific) on Friday, Oct. 28. This is your chance to ask the experts any Halloween or Second Life questions you can dream up.

Share Your Creations

Want to share your own creations? All participants can post and share images of favorite Second Life Halloween and Haunted locations, costuming and memories from past years. Join the forum conversation and ask the experts for advice on building, costuming and other questions hand-picked for the pros.

Don’t miss this special event, which can be found on the Second Life Blogs and Forums this Friday, Oct. 28!

Check out the Featured SL Evolution photo by Winter Wardhani.

Check out the SL Flickr Pic of the Day for Oct. 24, "Pumpkin-cide," by Rick Fermi.