When I first was introduced to fishing in Second Life a little over a year ago, I loved collecting all of the cute fish, clams, crabs and sharks. Back then you could fish at the 7 Seas headquarters, or at a handful of public and private fishing areas around the grid. These days, however, content creators have gotten into the act and have not only added fishing areas near their shops, they have created custom prizes that you can win.
Destination shopping areas such as Sn@tch, Katat0nik, Exodi and Locos Pocos, just to name a few, provide their customers with a fun and interactive activity, and the opportunity to catch a prize that, in most cases, is not otherwise available. At katat0nik, for example, in addition to custom fish (merkat lovers, anyone?) you can catch the blueprint and required pieces to make your own Whale Hooker dress in one of three colors, depending on the items you catch. At Exodi, Ryker changes the prize periodically, and right now you could reel in some glittery bikinis.
So, why do I enjoy fishing? Two reasons, and the prize doesn’t count (that’s a given, right?). First, it is enjoyable. Okay, it may not be for everyone, but with the right group of people it is a downright pleasant way to kill an hour or two. Sometimes, I’ll pick a fishing spot, settle in and activate my hour-long auto-cast gesture and sort inventory, listen to music or chat with friends. And at the end of the day, I have a few goodies to enjoy.
Second, these are some really generous people and if I can pay them back with my traffic, I’m going to. Sure, I know there are some who think that traffic doesn’t matter, but I happen to think that it does. When you use the search function in-world, the results are ranked by traffic. If I like a place well enough to spend an hour or two fishing for whatever custom prize is being offered, then I like them well enough to want to see them do well. If the traffic I generate for them by fishing helps them to move up the search ranks, chances are more people will find out about them, buy their stuff and give the creator the income and incentive to keep creating. It’s a win-win situation, as far as I’m concerned. And honestly, paid classifieds have gotten so out of hand the the average content creator cannot compete monetarily, so it is in traffic, REAL traffic, not bots, that the content creators can be seen the way they rightfully deserve.
I asked around and here is a list of some favorite fishing holes that offer custom prizes (thanks, plurk friends!):
- Sn@tch
- Exodi
- katat0nik & Lazy Places
- Loco Pocos
- Starlust
- Caroline’s
- FakE
- Silent Sparrow
- Lo Lo
- Petable
There are a ton more, just check out this list from the 7Seas website! Now, grab your rod and I’ll meet you at the fishing hole. Just remember to BYOB…bring your own bait!
Do you have a favorite fishing spot? Leave the slurl in the comments!
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