The Great Equalizer

by ted2112, HSM team writer

Let’s face it – on Home we’re all super hot! We are a community of men and women with perfect bodies and blemish free skin, living in swanky mansions; what could be cooler? I have an amazing six pack under my Threads t-shirt – I bet you other guys out there do as well – and it’s tough to decide on hot tub or infinity pool at my Hollywood house. The stores are full of perfectly tailored clothing to fit on a body that never ages or gains weight – unless you want it to – for any event we could possibility think of for a buck or two. In short, we all look amazing and likely not at all like out real-life selves.

What’s my point?

Well, I think it’s kind of cool.

Since we’re all kind of MMO gods and goddesses, it’s an equal playing field. We’re not rich, broke, fat, skinny or some loser working a pair of lame jobs. We’re all COOL, and when I say cool I mean really cool! When we meet people there is no prejudgment of deficiencies; it’s just another perfect-looking ten with a sweet pad. We can make friends and hang with people based simply on who they are, not on where they are in the socio-economic ladder. Where else can this happen? I can’t think of any place. Home is a great equalizer. Like Wavy Gravy said at Woodstock,”We must be in Heaven, man!”

Well a bluetooth enabled, 1.6 version of Heaven, man.

Okay, I know what you’re going to say, if you need a PS3 and a high speed internet connection, that’s a not exactly a perfect cross section of humanity, now is it? May I counter, my fellow gamers, by saying although it may not be perfect, it might just be a perfect example of people looking for something more, something they can’t find in the “brick and mortar” world – a great equality. That my friends is a rare thing indeed.

Everyday we make thousands of judgments. We make them at a light speed as to how people look, our own predefined version of what “normal” is and how we expect others to act. When a person is outside any of those subconscious criteria we have set up, we take notice and pass judgment. I consider myself a pretty open minded person, but even I have been dead wrong about people and judgments I have passed on them; I have yet to have that happen in Home.

I have met some amazing people and every one of them, like myself, has had a killer place and posh clothes – not to mention some sweet dance moves! Talking to them removes all these filters we have built up over our lives. It’s just a conversation on an equal playing field.

Now, I am hardly suggesting that Home is some kind of utopian paradise; it’s not. At its core it’s simply a collective experience and like any collective experience, Home has its problems based on the individuals in that collective. Some people are just bored out of their minds (or lack imagination) and find it fun to annoy others in public spaces. There is no communication there. It is a one-way interaction that the participants don’t care what you think, but are simply hoping for a reaction. It’s like those people with the perfume sprayers at the front of department stores. They are not looking to get to know you or have a conversation; they don’t care how you’re feeling that day. It’s just a one sided interaction repeated all day long, “Hi, have you tried moon musk?” 

It’s an experience yes, but not a true interaction; unless you count the sneeze after they spray it in your face as a form of dialogue.

The people most of us meet on Home are probably more like ourselves than we know – fellow gamers looking for a fun and positive experience. Home gives us that platform and opportunity to meet and interact without prejudices. But it’s an opportunity only if you take hold of it. That person you are talking to might be a single mom, dad, farmer, CEO, young, old, red state, blue state, rich, poor; it doesn’t matter as much, as John Wayne used to say, “a hill of beans.” Not that I have ever seen a hill of beans, but I would really like to!  We are all equal here. You got a Tycoon Penthouse? Yeah, me too.

The Dalai Lama once said, “I do not judge the universe.” For all of us not as enlightened as him, we may need a little help in the judging department because we live in such an unequal and unbalanced world. All have the same light on Home, no one is brighter than the other, and that is the great equalizer. 

Home is a spectrum of many wonderful aspects, gaming, social interaction and finally equality. So, with that said, my mansion or yours?

January 5th, 2012 by | 16 comments
ted2112 is a writer and a Bass player that has been both inspired and takes to heart Kurt Vonnegut words...."we are here on planet Earth to fart around, and don't let anyone tell you different."

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16 Responses to “The Great Equalizer”

  1. Gideon says:

    Nice one ted. You are totally right…sort of. LOL. It seems to be human nature to find what you don’t like about something… someone… and hone in on that. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been ostracized in Home for wearing “n00b” clothing. Girls get harassed. Guys get ignored (to an extent). People judge you by the color of your name. While I completely agree with you that Home is an equalizer and that we are all cool on Home (by our own standards and definitions of course) I think we still bring our prejudices and stigmas with us onto Home. Does gender and skin color effect a person’s social experience in Home as much as it does in real life? No… does it at all? Yes.

    You can enroll an idiot into Cambridge… but he’s still going to be an idiot.

    And.. no… I don’t have a Tycoon Penthouse… guess that makes me just a little less cool than you. :D

  2. NorseGamer says:

    This is a great article, and it touches on a very fascinating sociological topic: how do we choose to portray ourselves to others when we have the freedom to be whatever we want?

    Some people choose to carefully reconstruct their actual appearance. Others make a point of dressing very fantastically. Some take their appearance very seriously, whereas to others it’s just an exercise in tomfoolery.

    How we *choose* to portray ourselves in an anonymous society with little threat of repercussion says quite a lot about ourselves, whether we realize it or not.

    This article has my wheels turning. I may have to write a follow-up piece. Awesome stuff, Ted!

    • Angie Sue says:

      I agree Norse…It not only is Home that is the purveyor of such social idealisms But just look at the World Wide Web as a whole…Where individuals can be what or who they choose to be at any given time …Whether it’s wrong or right only ourselves can say…But it’s out there and out there to stay I believe…

  3. cthulu93 says:

    Wasn’t “Wavy Gravy” also the guy that warned everyone about the purple acid at woodstock as well?Anyways,when it comes to judging people appearances shouldn’t even be a consideration on Home as we can make ourselves look like just about anyone it’s really unreliable.If you truly want to judge someone,something I personally try to avoid,then watch them and see if their words match their actions.This will tell you quite alot about their character and their value of honesty.Also you can tell quite alot more about people by talking to them on mic than you can by simply typing,so “mic’ing up” can be a big advantage for you in your judgement process.Normally I don’t judge people,however there have been a couple of incidents where people pretty much made it necessary and certain.The problem with judging people harshly,IMO,is that it’s quite possible to do so wrongly.Unless you actually see the person on cam there’s no way to tell 100% what they look like anyways.

  4. Godzprototype says:

    Have character, Don’t be one, unless you are in a movie. Then ham it up, your on TV!

  5. Burbie52 says:

    Nice perspective on Home Ted! I think that much of what you said is true, Home is a great equalizer when it comes to judging people by their possessions or their looks, at least it can be. That being said there are still many people in Home who act as though they are something quite different from their “real” selves. There are also those who “role” play to the point that you have no idea at all who they really are. I have been very lucky in my friends, most have been who they say they are, and those that aren’t have come out to tell me so after a short time knowing them, i.e. a friend who tells you they are male not female.
    But I have had people also who are deceitful and just plain liars who have been found out through other means entirely. You can’t judge a book by its cover in Home, only by its content, and in that what you say is very true.
    When it comes to actually judging people though, I try very hard to let people be people in real life and in Home. In other words we are all human, we all make mistakes, and forgiveness and acceptance of that fact, not judgement, are always the better way to go.

  6. LostRainbow says:

    I read this article a few times because it is just such an awesome read and all of what you said is so true. I am not a newcomer to MMO’s, I’ve been playing since 2005. I didn’t know what to expect when I first started playing and I think I thought I could be who I wanted to be. I don’t think I realized that some of the people I met on these games would become real friends. When you start not telling the truth, it can be bad. I think also when you start becoming friends outside of the game, how do you really know that the other person is being truthful about who they really are and how can you know you can trust them. But anyway, I love playing Home. I like that I can be myself and hang with my friends. I like that I can own a beach and a yacht and several other properties and feel like I am wealthy, but i do know how to separate it from my real life. Home to me is a fun way to unwind and hang out. I don’t feel like I have to be on there 24/7, I just enjoy the time I do get to play. I like being with my friends that I can’t just go an hang out with because they are several miles or even states away. I find that I like being in private spaces because if I go to a public space, I get bombarded my men telling me they love me and want to go out with me. Do they even know me?? LOL.
    But maybe I strayed away from the topic a little, but that’s just me. But Ted, I love the way you write and I can’t wait to read more stuff from you. Your articles are captivating and hold my interest the whole time. Keep up the good work. :)

  7. keara22hi says:

    Right on target, Ted! Here’s something for everyone to think about: You expect to see your loved ones in Heaven some day, right? Do you expect to see them the way they looked when they died? Or do you expect them to pick an appearance that makes them happier? To insist that Grandma who died at 85 wasted away from cancer should look the way she did when you last saw her is the height of selfishness. Each person should choose the appearance that makes them comfortable. If being a 6 foot tall beagle makes me happy, I shall wear my beagle costume. And if someone dares ask if I look like that in real life, I shall hunt them down and bite them.

    • cthulu93 says:

      Quite honestly granny I have no “expection” of meeting my dead loved 1’s in Heaven as I’m in no way sure such a place exists,I’m not doubting it’s existence but I’m not banking on it’s existence either(just one case of my non-judgementalness).So I really have no idea what they’d look like if it exists and they do there and really it doesn’t matter to me what they look like if they are there with me as long as they’re still the way I remembered them(personality-wise).I believe it’s 9 times out of 10(and maybe even more)more important about what’s inside a person rather than what’s outside.

    • Gideon says:

      Here’s a thought on the concept of Heaven: What if your loved ones looked like what you remember them the fondest as? If, whenever you think of the spouse that has gone before you, you think of a wide smiled, moppy haired 20 year old… then that’s what you’ll see them as.

      Wouldn’t it be interesting if we could allow this sort of personalization in Home. What if Home allowed us to give particular friends permission to “dress” us? They could have access to our clothes and outfits and when they see us, they see us as they dressed us. No one else would see us that way, not even ourselves. Just them.

      A silly and useless concept? sure. Is it doable? Oh yea!

      • cthulu93 says:

        Silly and useless?maybe,but that could describe most things we find entertaining.That’s a pretty good concept but it may cause minor confusion in a room full of friends that start asking questions about clothes but I’m sure it would be straightened out eventually.The more options the better IMO.

  8. Godzprototype says:

    Energy never dies it just changes form.

  9. Olivia_Allin says:

    Some say we should be true to ourselves on Home… I agree to an extent, but one of the biggest if not the biggest draws to a virtual world is the ability to escape from ourselves. Be true to your convictions and morals. Be true to your belief structure. Be true to the people you care about… but be true to your dreams as well. I have said it before and forgive me for repeating myself… Judging someone on Home by the way looks is like but a car off Ebay based of a picture a child drew. And… When we judge others we don’t defined them as much as we do ourselves.

  10. KrazyFace says:

    “Energy never dies, it just changes form” -- Godzprototype.

    BAM! Got it in one man, well said. The more people realise this, the better for everyone. And if I can just take that statement and apply that to the topic at hand, what you get is an explination as to why so many of us enjoy using Home. As Ted is saying it allows us to be “who we want to be” by changing our form, entirely crafted by us, for us (and others).

    Personaly, I’m one of those wierdos who feels the need to replicate my image as closely as possible in most games that give the option. Otherwise I’ll whole-heartedly adopt role of who I’m playing. That said, as far as projecting an alternate me, I try not to. I tell it like it is, and I always project what is the essence of my true self. I’ve never told lies in Home about myself. Well, maybe once for fun with a complete stranger but I felt odd afterwards and realised pretending to be something else really didn’t sit comfortably with me. The beauty of Home is this; it will allow you to explore avenues of your own personality with minimal negative repocussion to yourself at all, and because of this you will always find “interesting” people in Home.

    Great article Ted and food for thought too. Thank you.

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