New Theme Hint? What are your guesses? Sakura!

[Gilgamesh Alpha]

I correctly guessed the new theme!

[Frigga Freidman]

OK, here's a full list of all 16 paired up:

Agisai and Asagao (1024)

Benibara and Botan (512)

Haibisukasu and Himawari (512; 2 storey)

Kaneshon and Kuchinashi (1024; 2 storey)

Kinmokusei and Kosumosu (512)

Rabenda and Renge (1024)

Shion and Sumire (1024; internal courtyard)

Tenjikubotan and Tsubaki (512)

 

[diamond Marchant]

Sakura Sunset

[Nika Talaj]

I think these may be the english translations of these floral house names.  Someone who actually speaks Japanese should probably check them!

agisai (japanese hydrangea) and asagao (morning glory)

benibara (red rose) and botan (peony)

haibisukasu (hibiscus) and himawari (sunflower)

kanashon (carnation) and kuchinashi (gardenia)

kinmokusei (orange osmanthus) and kosumosu (cosmos flower, "autumn cherry blossoms")

rabenda (lavender) and renge (lotus flower)

shion (aster) and sumire (violet)

tenjikubotan (dahlia) and tsubaki (camellia)

Edited April 16, 2022 by Nika Talaj

[Nika Talaj]

Sakura, let go

Tumble to rippling canals

Chiming as you fall

[xViXeNx71]

2 hours ago, Mercedes Avon said:

I licked this one so it's mine.

But...but... you CAN'T, I found it first! 😉

But yeah, that's a dreamspot, the person who gets it is very lucky!

[Prokofy Neva]

I think they're a nice change of pace.

@Frigga Freidman Yes, I think you have a point, whether related to the braces or not. The Lindens will use the new Asians to lure people out of the old Asian LHs which were the most popular.

I like the wisteria and the boardwalks through the bamboo.

I would like to hear from RL Japanese people whether their suburbias are so close together. It seems there are less easements.

Of course there are some 3-4 side protected for those avid GOH players. (See my photo).

Seems the spam vehicle people have already arrived.

I think probably they fit more houses to a sim because they need to move the old LH into these sims, possibly by force, i.e. take a move or don't have a house.

@Nika Talaj I didn't feel the spaciousness, even flying around as a Dinkie.  But maybe they hope to build more community feeling. You should be doing meditation in these houses, not other earthly things. Even so, they could be conflict drivers.

@Evangeline Arcadia that looks like a cage.

It's funny how set and setting influence perception. These houses are basically Newbrooks with more sloped roofs put on them, yet people are ecstatic because "Sakura blossoms" and nobody is complaining as they did with the Newbrookes, which were not all that different, especially the roads and the structure and walls of the houses.

And funny how no one is complaining about the brickwork which looks not Japanese, but like patios in New Jersey. But again, RL Japanese people could comment whether those paths/patios look "authentic". It's SL, you don't have to slavishly follow a RL style.

Wouldn't have dirt roads worked better here?  But again, maybe not.

Edited April 16, 2022 by Prokofy Neva

[Rufferta]

4 hours ago, Abnor Mole said:

We purposefully didn't make anything like shrines with torii, pagodas, buddhas or temples... because using such items with important spiritual or religious significance improperly or as decoration without proper reverence would be disrespectful and insensitive. 

I will miss places like the Temple to the Mole Gods. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Shareta Osumai/172/227/112

Edited April 16, 2022 by Rufferta

[Kitteh Whiskers]

On 4/14/2022 at 12:21 PM, Evangeline Arcadia said:

So Patch has posted his next theme teaser, which means the next theme is on the horizon..Soon...

So what's your guess as to what it will be. The interior doesn't look Asian (as some of us might have expected the next theme to be) , it looks quite modern...Mediterranean maybe?

 

If you check Olly's live on Facebook y'all can see the new theme. (Sakura)

[Marianne Little]

I have not been there yet, but based on the descriptions it is clear that this is an impressive work.

Using the best idea from Newbrooke - 512 houses for 1024 m plots - and open interior versions. The Traditional theme really need an update with more options.

I like the canals. What can I say, I am a water person. My sign is Cancer. 😄

I need to log in and look for myself. Great pictures from y'all!

[Prokofy Neva]

4 hours ago, Abnor Mole said:

We purposefully didn't make anything like shrines with torii, pagodas, buddhas or temples... because using such items with important spiritual or religious significance improperly or as decoration without proper reverence would be disrespectful and insensitive. 

Apparently if some buildings age long enough they turn from religion into culture or history.

Like the Lindens' Moth Temple in Iris.

Or maybe moths are irreverent?

 

[OkinamiTomoe]

4 minutes ago, Prokofy Neva said:

Apparently if some buildings age long enough they turn from religion into culture or history.

Like the Lindens' Moth Temple in Iris.

Or maybe moths are irreverent?

 

I'm confused, is this temple part of the Bellisseria continent?

[Prokofy Neva]

55 minutes ago, Rufferta said:

I will miss places like the Temple to the Mole Gods. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Shareta Osumai/172/227/112

This is why the Lindens need to articulate a policy on their own builds both in the old Linden Homes area and in general in the legacy Mainland. Some day, Bellisseria, too, will be outdated so they need to look ahead and declare carefully whether their concept of "Linden protection," which developed since the dawn of time and seemed an inherent feature of the world, upon which land prices or house selection were based and are still based, will be jettisoned now in favour of some kind of rolling "modernization".

Will they give some of their own sites historical preservation status so they are not changed or slated for demolition?

Will residents have a say in this?

Will they open up others to demolition or "repurposing" or "updating" by select groups of residents via JIRA proposals?

Will they leave them alone but perhaps delete old Linden Homes sims or abandoned land around old builds?

If the concept of "Linden protection" -- that such land is not changed or sold and "holds the view" -- is now being retired completely or modified, they need to give fair warning of this soonest.

[Prokofy Neva]

3 minutes ago, OkinamiTomoe said:

I'm confused, is this temple part of the Bellisseria continent?

No, it's on the Mainland, on the Heterocera continent, and was the first telehub to be installed on that continent, proving that telehubs (later infohubs) didn't have to be ugly, squat concrete buildings but could be beautiful. 

[Nika Talaj]

52 minutes ago, Prokofy Neva said:

It's funny how set and setting influence perception. These houses are basically Newbrooks with more sloped roofs put on them, yet people are ecstatic because "Sakura blossoms" and nobody is complaining as they did with the Newbrookes, which were not all that different, especially the roads and the structure and walls of the houses.

Yes, Sakura has some strong resemblances to Newbrooke, notably roads, parcel entrance stairs, formal landscaping around parcels, huge windows.  But is that a bad thing? I just mean that a lot of folks really love the Newbrookes, and Sakura fixes 3 things that some find off-putting about Newbrooke:

• no extensive waterways (navigable canal system throughout)
• minimalist landscaping w/lots of pavement (Sakura is not as lush as the logs or cabins, but is more lush than Trads)
• container homes too boxy (Asian, or sorta tourist-Asian, rooflines)

I do wonder if people will be unhappy with the 2nd floor windows.  Also, to me these homes do not seem to lend themselves to easy addons.  But I'm not a big addon user, so maybe I can't judge that very well.

[OkinamiTomoe]

3 minutes ago, Prokofy Neva said:

No, it's on the Mainland, on the Heterocera continent, and was the first telehub to be installed on that continent, proving that telehubs (later infohubs) didn't have to be ugly, squat concrete buildings but could be beautiful. 

Then I think this is a separete subject from the concept they are describing for the Bellisseria area.

Thank you for pointing out he LM though, it's worth a visit just to appreciate the creativity and legacy behind!

[Abnor Mole]

50 minutes ago, Prokofy Neva said:

...the old Asian LHs which were the most popular...

... I would like to hear from RL Japanese people whether their suburbias are so close together...

... I think probably they fit more houses to a sim because they need to move the old LH into these sims...

... that looks like a cage....

... These houses are basically Newbrooks with more sloped roofs put on them...

... RL Japanese people could comment whether those paths/patios look "authentic". It's SL, you don't have to slavishly follow a RL style.

... Wouldn't have dirt roads worked better here?...

 

 

 

 

By the numbers Meadowbrook were the most popular theme the old Linden Homes, not Shareta Osumai.

My RL wife is a RL Japanese. RL Japanese houses in suburban areas are generally MUCH MUCH closer together than these are... or could be given the constraints of SL and of Linden Homes.

We fit more houses to a sim region because that is what pays for those water areas everyone seems to want so much.

It's not a cage. It's for a tsuboniwa.

*looks at Newbrookes* ... *looks at Sakura* ... 🤔🤨😑

It's not meant to be a realistic representation of Japan, but Linden Homes in a Japanese style motif. Mrs Abnor says they look fine.

In all the times I've been to Japan to see my in-laws I can't remember ever seeing a dirt road, even in the countryside. 

 

[Prokofy Neva]

36 minutes ago, Nika Talaj said:

Yes, Sakura has some strong resemblances to Newbrooke, notably roads, parcel entrance stairs, formal landscaping around parcels, huge windows.  But is that a bad thing? I just mean that a lot of folks really love the Newbrookes, and Sakura fixes 3 things that some find off-putting about Newbrooke:

• no extensive waterways (navigable canal system throughout)
• minimalist landscaping w/lots of pavement (Sakura is not as lush as the logs or cabins, but is more lush than Trads)
• container homes too boxy (Asian, or sorta tourist-Asian, rooflines)

I do wonder if people will be unhappy with the 2nd floor windows.  Also, to me these homes do not seem to lend themselves to easy addons.  But I'm not a big addon user, so maybe I can't judge that very well.

Remember how bitterly critical people were for days on end about the Newbrookes? And got the Lindens running here explaining and changing and apologizing.  I personally was baffled by this because there is so much about the SL experience that you cannot change or even criticize that it seemed wild that THIS was something people could change "democratically," at least by shouting loudest on the forums. That's what I mean -- forgetting that history. Then somehow, people adjusted to the Newbrookes although they weren't THAT changed, and those that felt compelled to do add-ons changing their silhouette got dealt with summarily.

I have no idea how big a percentage of the add-on builds make of the whole economy, but I sense that this business drives some of the commentary here. BTW can I interest you in my add-on for the Moles' kettle (which doesn't deliver any mugs of tea) -- mine has tea, hot chocolate, latte with a little heart on the foam even, etc. I have never sold any, in fact, but maybe it's because I didn't let my forums posts be driven by my add-ons for sale. So now it's free!

It's good to have waterways, especially if they aren't cul-de-sacs, which happens a fair amount in the cabins, but then maybe it's impossible to link them up. Overall, it seems the Lindens achieved the "Sakura" aesthetic in a number of ways and judging from photos of RL Japanese suburbs I'm looking at now, it's not as if they have a half acre a piece to each house at all like an American suburban tract. But then, they're on an island. Obviously, as they have said before, when they role out a demo, it's just that, a demo, and likely they tweek stuff before the final release. But is this now a standard procedure, Lindens roll out a theme, everybody edits by committee? 

I think it's awfully hard to edit by committee. At one of my jobs today the VP sent around a designer's logos and there were like 12 variants, getting wilder and wilder with cosmic rays and rainbows, and everyone began to fight over the "mission" and the "profile" based on these pretty standard graphic designs. I suggested (since the typeface was all the same) that we use one for the mobile version, one for the standard web site, one for the business cards, one for the stationery, etc. So the wackier ones could even go to the merch on the coffee cups or coasters or whatever lol. But I think it's better if some trusted party hires the designer, then that designer is approved or not, but not edited by committee.

And with the Lindens homes, they have the top-down view of all this, they know what works or doesn't within the exigencies of the sim, so they will make what they make and you vote on it with your feet, and if they don't sell a lot of one kind of home, they cut it short and move on. 

Edited April 16, 2022 by Prokofy Neva

[Prokofy Neva]

30 minutes ago, Abnor Mole said:

By the numbers Meadowbrook were the most popular theme the old Linden Homes, not Shareta Osumai.

My RL wife is a RL Japanese. RL Japanese houses in suburban areas are generally MUCH MUCH closer together than these are... or could be given the constraints of SL and of Linden Homes.

We fit more houses to a sim region because that is what pays for those water areas everyone seems to want so much.

It's not a cage. It's for a tsuboniwa.

*looks at Newbrookes* ... *looks at Sakura* ... 🤔🤨😑

It's not meant to be a realistic representation of Japan, but Linden Homes in a Japanese style motif. Mrs Abnor says they look fine.

In all the times I've been to Japan to see my in-laws I can't remember ever seeing a dirt road, even in the countryside. 

 

But what is the most popular *now*, i.e. houses that remain with people still in them, not what was originally? People often speak here of how they like the Asian homes the best. Of course this isn't a scientific survey.

I think that's a great trade-off, waterways for proximity to thy neighbour. Because the reality is, people are on different time zones, they have different amounts of time they stay logged on, so it's not as if you have all 22 or 26 or whatever all there at once and it's not really the issue people imagine. If only you could make media-on-a-prim not bleed outside the parcel (other sound can be restricted to parcel), proximity wouldn't matter so much. 

Dirt roads then are out (my father's pictures are from the 1950s), but perhaps something like this, where the pavement is more subdued, with curbs not as high. Note the steps look just like the ones in Sakurasseria. Or rather, visa versa. And of course nothing "has to be like" RL. PS aren't these done now? It's not like you are going to re-do anything on the basis of what somebody opines on the forums, right?

I have seen many Japanese builds and homes in SL with the tsubo-niwa, and they didn't seem like cages, but that may be due to the fact that they already had flowers, benches, statues, etc. in them.

 

Edited April 16, 2022 by Prokofy Neva

[Abnor Mole]

Very little about Newbrooke actually changed from the time the demo was revealed to the time it was released. What actually changed was the demo, because no matter how many times we said there would definitely be color options and some low hills and ponds and these are not the finished houses and so on... until people actually saw it they looked at the WIP demo and poo-poo'd the lack of the very things we told them were already coming. They just weren't finished yet or represented that particular demo region. The only major thing that did change was allowing 512 houses to rez on 1024 parcels. That was a relatively simple scripting change.*  What everyone saw at the final release was really how it was always going to be.

That isn't the case here. This Sakura demo is not "work in progress" anything. These are the final houses. These are copies of actual finished regions. All the tweaking that is going to happen has already happened. But even with 4 regions, there are still going to be some things on other parts of the final regions you're not expecting just looking at the demo. You still haven't seen it all until you actually see it all.

*Edit: IIFC Quartz had already predicted that might be a feature request at some point and had planned ahead for that to a certain degree in his scripting if it occurred, which it did.

Edited April 16, 2022 by Abnor Mole

[Marianne Little]

1 hour ago, Nika Talaj said:

Yes, Sakura has some strong resemblances to Newbrooke, notably roads, parcel entrance stairs, formal landscaping around parcels, huge windows.  But is that a bad thing? I just mean that a lot of folks really love the Newbrookes, and Sakura fixes 3 things that some find off-putting about Newbrooke:

• no extensive waterways (navigable canal system throughout)
• minimalist landscaping w/lots of pavement (Sakura is not as lush as the logs or cabins, but is more lush than Trads)
• container homes too boxy (Asian, or sorta tourist-Asian, rooflines)

I do wonder if people will be unhappy with the 2nd floor windows.  Also, to me these homes do not seem to lend themselves to easy addons.  But I'm not a big addon user, so maybe I can't judge that very well.

I was a huge add-on user for the Traditionals, but that was because it was not enough rooms. I used a big add-on to live in, and had kitchen/bedroom/bath in the original rooms.

Since Victorians, I have not been feeling the need for big add-ons. Unless you count the small kitchen I made in one of the Newbrooke's I had. It is more the outdoor areas with terrace/pergola/pool I am interested in.

With my largest add-on for the Winchester model, I was still far from the size of some of the newer themes.

 

Edited April 16, 2022 by Marianne Little

[AuroraDammerung]

1 hour ago, Prokofy Neva said:

I have seen many Japanese builds and homes in SL with the tsubo-niwa, and they didn't seem like cages, but that may be due to the fact that they already had flowers, benches, statues, etc. in them.

 

This looks so very close to the LL homes:

However, there is no low wall or drainage in the LL homes. Which is a good thing, because that allows the home owner much more flexibility and choice in how they want to use that space.

I am utterly smitten with this home design and can not wait to use it! 😍

Edited April 16, 2022 by AuroraDammerung

[Marianne Little]

My major hate object in Newbrooke is the glued on terraces. I still hate them, even if I made one work for me.

Overall, I warmed up to the Newbrooke's after I saw some really good interior posts. But it will snow in hell before I change my opinion of the glued on terraces. I made one of the terraces work, but that is not the same as freedom to make just the size of terrace I want, or no terrace at all.

[Prokofy Neva]

35 minutes ago, Abnor Mole said:

Very little about Newbrooke actually changed from the time the demo was revealed to the time it was released. What actually changed was the demo, because no matter how many times we said there would definitely be color options and some low hills and ponds and these are not the finished houses and so on... until people actually saw it they looked at the WIP demo and poo-poo'd the lack of the very things we told them were already coming. They just weren't finished yet or represented that particular demo region. The only major thing that did change was allowing 512 houses to rez on 1024 parcels. That was a relatively simple scripting change.*  What everyone saw at the final release was really how it was always going to be.

That isn't the case here. This Sakura demo is not "work in progress" anything. These are the final houses. These are copies of actual finished regions. All the tweaking that is going to happen has already happened. But even with 4 regions, there are still going to be some things on other parts of the final regions you're not expecting just looking at the demo. You still haven't seen it all until you actually see it all.

*Edit: IIFC Quartz had already predicted that might be a feature request at some point and had planned ahead for that to a certain degree in his scripting if it occurred, which it did.

The 512 m2 option should accommodate people's need for space, for not feeling hemmed it.

That worked for the Newbrookes.

[Marianne Little]

2 minutes ago, Prokofy Neva said:

The 512 m2 option should accommodate people's need for space, for not feeling hemmed it.

That worked for the Newbrookes.

I agree, and the 512 houses are bigger than the Traditional houses, and has much more indoor space than they have. So it is a win for both garden and house. The way the smaller houses is placed is also very nice. They are on the edge, not center of the plot. Gives us a nice, very nice sized garden area. (And no glued on terrace!) 😈

It is really lucky that it ended up this way. The best idea LL has had with the new Linden Homes.

I am still not sure if i will renew my Premium for this theme. Maybe, maybe not. I have an overall positive feeling for them, and I do not agree that the houses are a copy of Newbrooke's. Some has a similarity in how the rooms are placed and size, but it is also different ones.