Social MMO on the Go – What Avakin’s Mobility Means
by Terra_Cide, HSM Editor-in-Chief
The challenge with a proprietary program is that it usually caters to a rather narrow focus in the marketplace, and as a result, can be a bit of an isolating experience. Players trying to engage friends whom they think will also enjoy the experience of a virtual world often run into the challenge of trying to justify the purchase of special equipment just to participate. This is where social MMOs that are browser-based have an edge, because they are accessible to everyone with a PC. This is where services like Habbo Hotel, Second Life and IMVU – while they lack the rendering refinement – have an advantage over Home.
So what can Avakin bring to the table that is different?
Since 2009, Lockwood has been an established name within the Home community as being the developer that just does things just a little bit better, with enormous results. Across their portfolio of content, there is a recurring theme of enculturation, refinement and just, well, being really über-cool. It’s earned them the reputation as being the developer with the Midas touch, even when things don’t always go as planned. Their work isn’t just a cut above the rest however, especially when it comes to their clothes and their spaces. The real magic Lockwood captured is their ability to make the owners of their items feel like a cut above the rest, and that feeling – that experience – makes all the difference. Like an Aston Martin DB9 looking down its nose at a blinged-out Cadillac Escalade, this lot doesn’t do gauche.
This could be how you spend your time in the waiting room at your next doctor’s appointment.
This appearance of preferring the finer things in life – and very cleverly getting people to want to be a part of that lifestyle – has been a main driver behind a large part of Lockwood’s most successful items, and it’s that philosophy they are carrying over into Avakin. Although on the surface, it would appear they are starting out rather modestly with a lounge to chat in and a version of Texas hold ‘em as a gaming option, the atmosphere is very much one of high class, albeit fun high class. That Lockwood is going after an older audience than Home’s – one that has more discretionary income steadily available – is quite apparent.
Lockwood also have a history of being a very customer-facing company. They listen to their customers, and if there is an idea for a commodity that is widely desired by the community, they do their best to turn it into reality relatively quickly. One only needs to look at their Twitter and Facebook to see how prompt they are at communicating with their fans. They are listening to their consumers, and the freedom that Avakin brings to them is that they can fulfill requests in a more prompt manner, not to mention allowing for a greater amount of user customization with their products.
But these tried and true formulas that Lockwood have used to create a very successful Home following aren’t the only gap in the market that they’re shooting for.
Mobile gaming is very hot right now, and you don’t need a news source or some expert to tell you this. My own household is a prime example. While visiting Norse in February, my son – who stayed with his grandmother – managed to con said grandmother into buying Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit for his Nexus tablet. To date, he has roughly fifty apps and games – some educational and some free, some not so much of either – that he’s downloaded (with parental assistance, of course). He’s only had this tablet since December. It took 27 years for the PC to sell 200 million units per year; it’s only taken tablets three. More than one analyst believes that the sales of tablets will actually surpass that of PCs by the end of this year.
This is the key to Avakin’s genius.
With so many people widely accepting tablets as a part of their daily lives, it’s only logical that Lockwood would want Avakin to appear on a platform that’s increasing in prevalence. As more and more people turn to mobile technology (which doesn’t necessarily mean phones nowadays) and mobile gaming – something the ESA even acknowledged in their report last year on the gaming industry – there is an increased reduction of the barrier to participate. After all, for people who are fond of social MMOs and social gaming in general, who doesn’t want the opportunity to meet a wider variety of like-minded individuals?
The concept of Avakin on tablets fulfills a need that fans of social MMOs – especially fans of Home – have long wanted to see. When the PlayStation Vita came out, there were a number of Home enthusiasts who were really hoping there would be a place on it for their beloved community, so they could take the Home experience wherever they go. Unfortunately, this was not to be. What it did do was reveal a hole in the market; namely, the desire for a social MMO platform that is capable of going wherever the user wants to go. This is a hole that Avakin can readily fill, once it becomes ready for tablets.
This is not to say that Avakin intends to replace Home altogether, nor does Lockwood intend to completely walk away from Home while the platform is still viable. Indeed, the relationship between Sony and Lockwood is a good, strong one. As mentioned in other articles here, diversification of one’s business is always a good thing.
If you’ve followed Lockwood’s work in Home at all, you know that this is just scratching the surface with what they want to do with Avakin. Where it goes from here will be largely up to the users. This beta period is not only an opportunity to test Avakin before it’s ready for prime time, but an opportunity for users to think about what they want to see be created there, and to have their voices heard. The canvass is primed and ready; it’s up to the users to paint what they want to see upon it.
June 3rd, 2013 by Terra_Cide | 4 comments
Terra _Cide is the former Community Manager for Lockwood Publishing and Editor Emeritus for HomeStation Magazine.
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Have to admit what is going though my mind at this point is, “So I’m going to have to start carrying a tablet around with me?” Not to mention the tradeoff between the constant search for WiFi hotspots and the cost of a data plan. Who could have guessed that social media would be so addictive?
IMVU already has IMVU 2 go so smart phone and tablet users can keep in touch with they IMVU friends while away from a pc. But no one has tried to combine a social MMO, poker and mobile devices. Is it because that I have the choice of some of the best poker games available on these devices already, there are already well established social apps. Both jobs are done very well separately across all formats. So combining them it’s still got to be as good and that will be the trick.
The poker game is just the tip of the iceberg. Long term, Lockwood plans to have a much broader spectrum of games for Avakin than just poker.
It could be the tip of the iceberg. Hopefully it will be successful but it will still have to match up to stand alone versions of what it does as I can switch between apps quicker than I can switch between spaces on home.