Reflecting on the closure of The Sims Online and the emotional journey of players. Discover how one player found solace and companionship in the unconventional video game EA Land. Documenting the closure of EA Land and capturing the emotions of its dedicated users. Exploring the unique sounds, interactions, and the bittersweet feeling of loss as the game world disintegrates.
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Quick takeaways
EA Land provided a virtual space for socialization and escape from real-life challenges.
The closure of EA Land represented the loss of a unique culture and community within a virtual world.
Deep dives
EA Land: A Virtual Oasis
EA Land, a virtual world game, provided a place for many individuals to socialize and escape from their real-life challenges. Unlike traditional video games, EA Land emphasized social interactions rather than competition or combat. Players could create avatars, form friendships, and be judged solely on their virtual presence. For one player, Paul Monaco, EA Land became a lifeline after losing his wife and feeling socially isolated. He immersed himself in the game, finding solace and friendship in its virtual community.
Preserving a Virtual World
When EA Land faced financial troubles and its servers were scheduled to be shut down, Dr. Henry Lowood and his team at Stanford saw an opportunity to document the closing of a virtual world. Their project, How They Got Game, aimed to preserve multiplayer online games for future generations. Saving multiplayer games proved to be challenging, as simply saving the code wouldn't capture the experiences and interactions that occurred within the game. Dr. Lowood recognized the significance of recording the final moments of EA Land, an online world that held emotional value for many players.
The Farewell of EA Land
As EA Land approached its end, dedicated players gathered to reminisce and bid farewell to the virtual world they called home. The atmosphere was poignant as avatars exchanged virtual hugs and shared memories. The radio station within the game played a final song, evoking a sense of loss and emotional attachment. When the server was finally shut down, the world disintegrated, and players witnessed the disappearance of their virtual environment and avatars, ending with a simple error message. The closure of EA Land symbolized the end of a unique culture and community within a virtual space.
A few months before the end of the world, everyone was saying their goodbyes. The world that was ending was The Sims Online, an online version of The Sims. Even though The Sims was one of the most popular computer … Continue reading →
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