SmallWorlds

SmallWorlds
Developer(s)	Outsmart LTD.
Publisher(s)	Outsmart LTD.
Distributor(s)	Outsmart LTD.
Series	SmallWorlds Virtual Worlds/Outsmart Products
Engine	SmallWorlds World Server (Created by Outsmart LTD. in-house.)
Platform(s)	Windows 98/2000/XP/Vista/7/8, Mac OS X v10.1+ and variations of Linux
Release date(s)	December 1, 2007 (Alpha), June 1, 2008 (Open Beta), December 1, 2008 (Version 1.0)
Genre(s)	3D Virtual Reality, MMO, Casual Social Gaming, Virtual World
Distribution	http://www.smallworlds.com/

SmallWorlds is a virtual world by Outsmart 1996 Ltd, a privately owned company based in Auckland, New Zealand.^[1][2] The virtual world runs inside a web browser and integrates with YouTube, Flickr, SoundCloud, and a number of other Web 2.0 services. SmallWorlds is aimed at the teen markets, and is designed to be more casual than Second Life.^[3]

SmallWorlds entered Beta in June 2008 after 18 months in development, and was released on 1 December 2008. Several software updates have been released since that time.^[4]

In October 2009, SmallWorlds was voted top prize in the Social Computing category of the Adobe MAX Awards 2009.^[5][6][7]

Partnerships and integration with social media

In February 2009, SmallWorlds launched embeddable versions of its application that integrate with Facebook, MySpace, Hi5 and Bebo. SmallWorlds does not affiliate with any of these companies anymore. They allowed SmallWorlds users to enter SmallWorlds using their social networking applications and link their social networking profiles to their SmallWorlds account.^[8][9]

Levels

Players in SmallWorlds have seven skill paths: arena, artist, crafting, explorer, farming, gamer and social, each with their own level. A player can level up by playing missions in the game or by interacting with items. There are many different widgets you can use.

There is also a primary level which is determined by your seven skill paths.

Business Model

SmallWorlds is based on the freemium model of sales, where one may play the game free, but can pay for extras, such as VIP membership, granting them access to various places around the site, and have the ability to buy items other players do not have access to, as well as gold, the main virtual currency of the game.

SmallWorlds recently has partnered up with major advertisement agencies and sites in order to further support this freemium model.

Updates

SmallWorlds launched version 1.0 in December 1, 2008. This involved performance enhancement, retexturing, and other various technical changes. The world was not reset as was planned by the developers.

The site later on had seen a major update as of April 5, 2013. The new update includes a brand new layout for both the site and the forums. Also, there was a new reward programme called Kudos in which players receive a special item after completing the weekly challenge. Smallworlds replaced the gold payout that players paid for as a bonus with only XP rewards now. SmallWorlds have also decided on a new slogan in which they have used: "The Game Where You Belong!"^[10]

It was initially met with criticism from the players who were used to the old style of the site, but it still was recognized as welcoming to new users.

Movies

A while back, SmallWorlds released a sub-forum specifically allocated for discussion and advertisements of Movies created, directed, produced, written and starring SmallWorlds members in-game.

Along with movies, there has also been many Awards Ceremonies including the official ceremony hosted by SmallWorlds, the 'Swoscars' where entrants compete to win a Platinum Dan Award.

On March 3, 2014, the winners of the 'Swoscars' had been announced. They are:

Action – Kagami Sato for “Fade to Black”

Comedy – Mallie Post for “The Struggle”

Drama – Veronica Silvaa for “Incognito”

Documentary – Clary Cain for “SmallWorlds Zoo”

Romance – Ryan Hack the 3rd for “Bon Voyage”

TV – Doubletrouble Biteme for “The Swalking Dea Suspense- Kiddnapped

References

• Krynsky, Mark. "Small Worlds Brings Innovative Lifestreaming to the Virtual World", Lifestream Blog, April 23, 2009.
• Scoble, Robert. "Small Worlds' virtual world blows away Second Life limitations", Scobleizer TV, March 4, 2009.
• Scoble, Jason. "SmallWorlds Brings a Third Dimension to Web 2.0", TechCrunch, May 21, 2008.

Current Sites

Notes