Dancing Around Home
by Burbie52, HSM team writer
Back when Home was first started, the powers that be knew that people love to dance, so they gave us that ability right from the start. There has always been a dance floor in Home — first at the Central Plaza, then SingStar, Konami and several others threw their hats in the ring. Remember all of those Running Man chains that appeared spontaneously in the Plaza? Remember the incessant “Chain Swing” replays?
Dancing has been a form of expression that human beings have used since before recorded history. It can be found in every culture in the world, from ancient to modern. Dancing has an emotionally freeing effect on people. It has been used to entertain, to prepare for battle, for healing and ceremonial rituals and religious practices. Every country in the world has traditional dances associated with it, though I think the United States has more than one because of our melting pot society. Home is no different than the real world in this — people just love to dance, and the developers have been able to give us a lot of choices since the recent core upgrades that expanded their options.
Many people in Home had been asking for new dances for a very long time. It was getting tedious and redundant for us, with only the same default dance moves — after almost five years, we were ready for a change. We were also ready to pay for that privilege, and now we can. And I am sure that the developers are making a great deal of profit from these new items, judging by the sheer numbers of people I have seen using them.
Most of my friends own at least one of the new dance packs, and several own them all. I myself waited a bit before selecting any, knowing that there would be more to choose from as time went on, and I have always been picky about my purchases anyway. But now I own a few of them and thoroughly enjoy goofing off with my friends on the various dance floors around Home.
It has been good to see that the developers have brought not only the hip hop and modern dances into Home, but also various older ones, many of which I can remember doing when I was a younger person. The Twist is a particular favorite of mine, and now there are two versions of it. The newer nDreams one is my favorite. The developers seem to be having a lot of fun with these dances and the gestures they have been creating alongside them. Some of the gestures are pretty outrageous and not my style, but I know that a lot of people are having a great deal of fun with them in Home. Here is a video that my friend Keara made showing quite a few of them.
There are many new dances that are being done based on YouTube popularity, like the newest one, Harlem Shake. Until I saw this in Home and was informed of its origins, I didn’t have a clue what it was about. The same is true of the cowboy moves that Atom Republic has based on the Korean sensation PSY. Atom Republic seems to be the one who is keeping their finger on the pulse of what is currently trending and staying on top of it with new moves.
Lockwood threw their hat in the ring and added the new twist of being able to give dances to your friends as well through the gift machine. This was a smart move, I am sure the sales of this have been very robust, and I hope to see more of it soon. Choices are always good for Home and the bottom line of any developer.
nDreams has added their own little twist to this as well. They went through the trouble of using actual people to map dance moves on a green screen at a movie studio then transfer them to our avatars. The results are wonderful, the dances they have created so far are very fluid and real looking. Their newest change to the dance scene is adding world dances. Now you can look like a Russian Cossack or do an Irish step dance, as well as several others.
All of this is an answer to the wishes that much of the Home community have had for a very long time. If you think that developers and Sony don’t listen, think again. But I believe they need to take all of this a step further. We need slow dances that people can do together if they both choose the right dance at the same time.
I know there is a collision barrier around most of what is designed for Home, our avatars included. I have seen those barrier breached many times though, especially when people spawn into spaces at the same time, so I am sure there is a way around them. We also have been given the ability to hit each other with snowballs and eggs and knock each other down in a game. I hope they can transfer this ability to give us waltzes and other slow dances in Home. I know many people who would buy this type of dance instantly.
The developers have been doing a great job adding to our dance repertoires on a weekly basis. It is good to see this because it fortifies relationships in Home, be they friends or more than that, and dance is an integral part of any society, including the one we are pioneering here in our beloved Home.
April 11th, 2013 by Burbie52 | 1 comment
Burbie52 is a 62 year-old published author and founder of the Grey Gamers group within Home. Born and raised in Michigan, she has lived there her entire life, with the exception of a twelve-year residency on the Big Island of Hawaii. She enjoys reading and writing, as well as video games, especially RPG's. She has one son in his twenties.
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Great write up, but I really am looking for couples dances soon on home, that would be fantastic to connect on a more personal level with somebody on home, but more than that it can be fun too!