The Hive

I've been a Resident Evil fan since when RE2 came out in the stores, ages ago and I've seen many places during these years that aimed to be Re sims but somehow failed: you usually went all hype at the sight of nice screenshots and presentation.. only to be teleported in a freebie-filled urban setting with those annoying automatic zoobies and DCS systems that lagged the hell out of every computer, even the NASA ones.

It's been a lot of time since when I last searched for "Resident Evil" in the places directory, until my curiosity got the best of me and I tried again. Luck is on my side and, should I say finally, someone created a VERY beautiful Re sim, even if it's movie-inspired (but hey, the first one wasn't *that* bad.. just a lil bit..) and not directly related to the games.

Fact is, The Hive is a perfect reconstruction of the house and underground facility from the first movie and it's so immersive that I actually got scared while I was wandering in there for the first time.. and I'm not the squishy type.

You start in an alley, just outside what they call "Spencer Mansion", in a town called Arklay..property of Umbrella Inc. (this is *so* comforting XDXD).  The entrance of the sim also gives space to a small gatcha machine (RE-themed, of course) and a few boxes with outfits from the creator's store TRB (here's the flickr page).

The mansion is just a few meters away from the entrance, with an enormous garden/park, filled with statues, alleys, even a cemetary and a fully automated shooting game. Once entered, there's only a few rooms directly copied from the movie and an hidden elevator that takes you to the underground secret train station that connects the upper floors to the real Hive. Everything is under the control of the Red Queen, the same AI that caused all the fuss in the movies.

 The Hive is eerie, filled with empty rooms left in the usual mess that follows a crisis: papers everywhere, half empty coffee mugs, upsidedown chairs and working computers and screens. Walking through these halls knowing noone is there anymore and not knowing what lies behind the next corner or door is... honestly scarier than actually seeing monsters.
For instance, monsters and zombies are usually impersonated by real avatars during rpg sessions ..so if you go there while noone is acting... there's a OMG TERRIFYING atmosphere.
I won't spoil the final rooms for you: just remember this is a game-like sim so you can't just "walk past the doors" but need to find codes and decypher enigmas (not many and honestly very easy as well..).
Also bear in mind that almost *all* of the surfaces in here aren't scripted.. ie you can't just camera zoom and sit on something to ease your trip!

Thanks for creating this place. I am *so* grateful that someone finally created a fully detailed, high res, well textured, impressively accurate  RE location!!!!!!

 TAXI:   http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Pollux/124/135/1998

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Halloween 11th year Haunted Mansion and Rides

It's that time of the year again!!! Spooky faces everywhere and pumpkink candies are ready for the Halloween parties and hunts and Second Life becomes a fair of orange, blood, ghosts, candy corns and whatever suits your creepy tastes.
Now, there's a lot, and I really mean A LOT, of sims with spooky themes and they grow even more during these weeks, but some of them get so many reviews that others pass completely unobserved ... yet they deserve an honorable mention. So, this year I won't talk about famous and crowded places but the less known ones.
Starting with this tribute to Disneyland's Haunted Mansion (and yeah, they actually have been rewarded for that) which is quite old and "primmy", but is very detailed and has an impressive work behind it.
You arrive at a landing pad which gives acces to 4 different rides: the Haunted Mansion itself, the Asylum one, some sort of "OMG this is the most dangerous ride ever!!!" and finally a Zombie Massacre one.
I won't spoil the other rides, even if I've seen them all and they're quite enjoyable, so let's head to the Haunted Mansion right away!
The external part is a perfect reproduction of the original one: you even get to wait 70seconds before you can enter.. and it's all scripted in a way that you *must* respect the directions and timings. Just like the real ride, the first two rooms are just a presentation, then you jump onto the "cars" and let them guide you through the haunted palace.
Like I said, this is an old build and it's pretty evident: fact is, the colours, composition and audio tracks are so perfect and so deliciously trash that you will soon forget about meshes and such stupid matters... and just have fun.
This place is a milestone and I hope it'll never close.
Oh and don't forget to take the souvenir pic at the exit ;)  BUWHAAHAHAHHAHAHAAAHHHH!!

TAXI:  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/LandOurs/211/39/601

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