Wagner James Au / New World Notes

As Second Life's iOS/Android app finally gets close to launch, here's a good catch from Reddit /SecondLife host "0xc0ffea". In a message to users of the closed Mobile Alpha group, a Linden Lab staffer inevitably announced the app won't be able to access Second Life's naughty sims:

We are planning the exciting transition of the Second Life mobile app from Private Alpha to Public Beta in the near future. Expanding the audience for the app means that we must comply with app store requirements, including limits on the types of content that can be displayed in apps.

In order to move forward, we will soon be removing access to Adult-rated regions on the mobile app. In the longer term, we are working on finer-grained controls for content maturity in order to allow maximum freedom while complying with app store requirements.

For now, you will see this message when attempting to visit an Adult region: "The location you selected exceeds the content maturity limit on this device. App stores restrict the type of content that can be displayed in apps."

I say "inevitable", because Apple is fairly restrictive about violent and sexual content in its App Store:

Apps should not include content that is offensive, insensitive, upsetting, intended to disgust, in exceptionally poor taste, or just plain creepy. Examples of such content include… Overtly sexual or pornographic material, defined as “explicit descriptions or displays of sexual organs or activities intended to stimulate erotic rather than aesthetic or emotional feelings… Depictions that encourage illegal or reckless use of weapons and dangerous objects, or facilitate the purchase of firearms or ammunition.

I guess strafing hordes of zombies from an AC-130 gunship doesn't qualify as reckless use of weapons, but OK.

What's definitely clear is vast swathes of Second Life land are rated "Adult", even if the overall theme isn't pornographic in nature — many landowners mark their land "A" simply so they don't have to worry about being penalized for, say, Impromptu Pixel Penis popping up in public.

There's an irony here, of course. Some of Second Life's most interesting areas are Adult-rated to expand on creative possibilities not usually available to mainstream games. You can play Grand Theft Auto on your iPhone, but I doubt SL mobile users will ever be able to access SL"s GTA-inspired Crackden, even though it has a wealth of roleplay creativity. 

I wonder if adding "finer-grained controls for content maturity" are even possible for all scenarios. (Again, the TTP probability of IPP is high.) For SL content creators, however, there's an important takeaway: Start creating content and experiences that are fully available in General-rated sims, where mobile users can access them.