The question used to be “what do they do when I’m away” but parents better start asking their kids, “who are you being when I’m away”.
The answer may very well lie in an online persona created in an online world like IMVU.
Executive Summary:
What’s IMVU? It’s a virtual world combined with a chat program that lets a user create an Avatar (physical representation of themselves) to use in the online world.
IMVU is free to start but if you like it you can pay for virtual currency so that you can “buy” new cloths, a house, furniture, etc. IMVU reported making 1 million per month back in June of 2008. See interview here.
Basically IMVU is a world where you’re kids may be trying on a different persona and exploring an overly sexual online world on the cheap.
Pros:
- IMVU runs much faster than other online worlds such as second life.
- It is a fun environment to explore and add to with purchases of clothes, household items and the like.
- Fun to meet new people and talk with a face to the words (though I’m sure everyone isn’t really a size 4 in real life)
Cons:
- As in any virtual world, you can be anyone that you want to be. A girl, a guy… any image you want to portray.
- IMVU doesn’t have a wide selection of overweight Avatars. Pretty much everyone is super attractive, with disproportional, measurements, muscles, and way too much skin.
- You could spend a lot of time pretending to be someone you are not.
Overall IMVU is a good idea but to sell it they have really overly sexed it up. Maybe there are areas in the IMVU landscape that don’t have a ton of people shouting “wanna sex” but I couldn’t find them.
Last links:
- Interview from June 2008 can be found here
- IMVU the site is here
- Short list of stats on IMVU can be found here
6. April 2010 at 9:51 am
I tried to look at the good in imvu but all the pets, slaves, masters, mistresses and the sexing kinda ruined it for me. And for all you plp who say it’s just a game, it’s not. You are talking to another person so it’s like yahoo messanger but with avatars. If you have a boyfriend or girlfriend and sext on imvu, your a whore. If you have a boyfriend or girlfriend, letting them on this site is a horrible horrible idea.
6. November 2010 at 5:06 pm
I think that it is hard to really monitor everything that your child is doing but with the technology that is out there, it is making it harder to track them.
11. January 2012 at 1:34 am
Imvu was to allow you to escape the real world. Not everyone is falling into the “wanna sex” category on the site. Yes, Imvu has a sexual side of the site. But you must be 18 or older to purchase it with your own credit card. It’s called AP. The people that abuse the chat rooms to the “wanna sex” chats (as you call it) can be reported. And as for all the pets, slaves, masters, mistresses it all depends on what type of rp (role play) chat your in. And NO not the SEXUAL role play. In Imvu world role play is used more as a fictional story matter. It’s almost a form or writing your characters part in a story that each avi contributes to in the room. Such as elves and vampires in a surrounding of kingdoms or covens. Wolfs and their wolf packs. Furries to their owners or their furry family. Some role plays open you to have a family away from your real family. You do grow attached to your virtual family. Imvu allows the person to have the life away from whatever problems may be at home. AND Yeeeesss… I understand they shouldn’t “run” from their problems but for those who can’t face their real world find true friends in the virtual. No one can call them fat or ugly or call them out on their real appearances. A virtual ear that may listen to your problems and try and comfort you and wont turn you away. Yes, it is just a game. And yes, there is a person behind the avi (who maybe lying about who they really are.) But it wasn’t meant for a blind dating site… Some people may meet in teal life… but that’s them. MANY people don’t meet at all. It does allow you to try different personas. For example, my avi has black hair and tattoos and piercings like a “so called biker or a hood rat.” In real life, I have very small hidden tattoos, brown hair, and piercings only in my ears. I view my image on the streets a little differently because of the way society would look upon me. So I am who i want to be in my virtual character. All in all, it’s a fake world, and as for the people that view this game as purely a “sexual chat site” do not understand the game at all and need to really look into it before you start throwing accusations so freely. I am a proud IMVU-er!