Free basic account for clothed platonic friendship - VIP accounts for naked pixel-sex
The Herald explores worlds beyond Second Life
by Jessica Holyoke, virtual world explorer
Red Light Center (RLC) is a virtual world that touts itself as a socialized meeting place where you can make friends and even have sex with them. Because some residents would like to see the lascivious go there, because they are not welcome here or There, I decided to check it out.
Accounts come in Basic or VIP. Basic accounts are free to play but you cannot have sex, and therefore, you don’t know what you look like naked. VIP accounts cost $20 US per month and allows for fuller access. I started with a basic account as Jessi_angel.
In opening an account, you have two things to create. One is your avatar. The customization is limited to either what RLC gives you or what you can download onto your PC. Downloaded textures can change your avatar's clothing or tattoos. No one else can see these textures unless they also download those textures into their PC.
One way to get those custom avatar textures is off a person’s web based profile. When you click on a RLC avatar for their profile, the program opens up your web browser and gives you a MySpace like web layout for that resident. This profile is customizable to the same extent as a MySpace page, except you can include pornographic pictures of yourself and others. The age verification comes by having certain pictures viewable only by VIPs or by your friends.
The use of the web browser is frequent as any tips or special rules are opened in an outside web browser and not in the game itself. FAQ’s, as limited as they are, open outside of the game. If more in depth help is needed, one either learns from others or goes onto the RLC forums which are linked to the profile system.
Rays are the in-world currency. They can be earned either by spending time in RLC or there are escorts, called Working Girls or Guys, who work in certain areas and earn Rays by having Sex. I was able to talk to a few working girls but none that have had that same experience in SL to compare. In return, Rays can be bought and sold for currency and some residents are able to earn their VIP memberships by having sex for Rays.
When you enter RLC, you enter in a Transportation Center. From there, you can teleport to certain areas, such as the Alley or the Bareback Bordello. There is also an option to change dimensions or dimes. If you want to be around Straight people, you click on Dimensions and click an area that says Straight. You can change those dimensions from Straight, BDSM, Furry or Anything Goes.
Your avatar is not as customizable as it is in SL. The options are fairly standard and I’ve run into myself a few times in exploring the streets. And by exploring, I mean walking or running. There is no Point to Point teleportation or vehicles. The only flying is done in a specific sports club.
There is shopping in RLC. However, it is for businesses that have paid up to $50,000 US according to the website. Those businesses sell RL games, art or clothes and clicking on those icons will direct you to the websites for purchase.
Beyond the textures for things like collars and tattoos, there is no content creation. Everything is pre-fabricated by Utherverse, the overview name for the RLC properties which include Red Light Center, Virtual Vancouver and other future worlds.
In future stories, I’ll be exploring more of what RLC has to offer. In the meantime, I’ll leave you with a Moment of Zen®.
Colbert Report in Red Light Center
The Moment of Zen is The Daily Show.
Posted by: An Onny Mouse | February 23, 2008 at 06:18 PM
It's like a Second Life that is honest about its goals, lol
Posted by: anon | February 23, 2008 at 07:01 PM
How dull. I've never had to pay for sex - in either realm - and I don't intend to start. SL has more on offer as regards to an all round experience. I'm quite happy in my bunker here, thank you.
Posted by: Winter | February 23, 2008 at 07:21 PM
You said there's a furry zone. Are there even furry avs here??
Posted by: Argo | February 24, 2008 at 01:53 AM
Looks like they're already dead set in their furry-bashing ways.
Just go to their forums and search for 'furry'.
Posted by: Kiran | February 24, 2008 at 12:46 PM
I entered Worls of Warcraft Everquest,SW Galaxies and many free based virtual worlds and the same thing keeps me hooked to Second Life. The fact that i can be and look like anything my imagination can conjure. so until another world is invented that is as open to creative thought as sl, Im staying home in Mos Espa(second Life Sim).
Posted by: Glendon Bade | September 08, 2008 at 09:07 PM
I luv this game
Posted by: Brashley | April 21, 2009 at 06:57 PM
were would the icon show up for the red light center?????
Posted by: madison | May 23, 2009 at 11:25 AM