Well before VR viewers, Meta’s Reality Labs and the much-discussed Metaverse, the first true virtual alternative world was born back in 2003. Let’s talk about Second Lifea project developed at the beginning of the new millennium by Linden Labsand which is now preparing to land on iOS and Android mobile devices.
For those who really don’t know what we’re talking about, Second Life is the first true metaverse in the history of the web, although the term was not as cool as it is today. The platform allows users to create their own virtual avatar and interact with other users in a digital world. We could call it a multiplayer version of The Sims, where behind every character there is actually a real human being.
Second Life is coming to iOS and Android by the end of 2023
The news of the landing of the “game” on mobile comes directly from Linden Labs, which has released an official announcement video (which you can find below). The mobile version of the metaverse will obviously have to do without a mouse and keyboard.
In its 20-year history the metaverse has hosted over 73 million users, with a peak during the pandemic and the first lockdowns. In 2020 the platform has in fact reached the record number of 900,000 active users. After all, we were in a historical period in which we were all looking for any form of social interaction, even if it was virtual. The following year, in 2021, Second Life would have turned 18, coming of age just when the concept of metaverse was depopulated in the world. That concept that Linden Labs had already conceived and implemented in 2003.
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