Let’s start with a disclaimer. I’m a Comcast customer. And while I haven’t had any problems with them personally (in fact, they’ve been decidedly not bad), I’ve heard enough stories (think “sleeping Comcast tech”) to regard them as one of those typical Big Evil Corporations. The noises they’re making about charging heavy users of their high-speed Internet service for bandwidth in order to dissuade them from streaming movies instead of watching them on cable don’t give me the warm fuzzies.
That said, they were smart enough to contract Millions Of Us to create their Second Life island. The island ties in remarkably well with their current “Faster” marketing campaign for high-speed Internet service (yeah, the same one they are thinking of charging for bandwidth on). Rather than bore you with information that you could get on their web site, the island is chock full of activities that drive home the point. Faster, faster, faster. It’s remarkable.
First up, the laboratory, where a mad scientist has created a formula to make a liquid named Faster. I won’t go into too many details because it will ruin the surprises. Suffice it to say they they play on your instincts to try everything you’re not supposed to. So, of course, you’re going to cross the red line, stand where you shouldn’t, and disturb the sleeping lab tech. (Okay, I gave one away with he opening picture). You can also step into the PneuMADitron and travel around the world in 80 seconds. Figuring out how they pull these tricks on you doesn’t make them any less clever.
Much of the island is taken up by the race track. Outside you can grab a free (and not bad) racing suit. Here’s me and my posse modeling the different colors. Okay, that’s not my posse, those are the freebie vendors. But if I had a posse, I’d make them wear matching jumpsuits with my logo on the back. (Note to self: Design logo for posse).
Let me say right here that this is without a doubt the best racing experience I’ve had in Second Life. Encompassing the track in a tube keeps you from going off course, and everything works very smoothly. Up to four people can race at a time. The twists in the course make it longer than you think, and the race is three laps. Plenty of time for a come-from-behind victory.
If racing inside a tube is a little too constricting. you can also pick up a jet-pack and race through rings in the sky. In an interesting twist, the order in which you go through the rings doesn’t seem to matter, and the location of the next ring isn’t always obvious.
Closer to the ground, there’s a jetsk race you ca try, although the controls are so touchy I had a hard time keeping myself going in the right direction. More often than not I’d do a 180 and wonder why everything suddenly looked so familiar.
Above it all there’s an observation deck, so people who aren’t participating in the three race types can watch and cheer you on. Beyond that there’s an exposition center with some unexciting stuff obviously stuck there until they can get some real content going. Likewise, there is is a large arena where you can watch streaming video, if they had any streaming video to play. For now, you’re treated to the ever-so-exciting Quicktime logo.
But those are quibbles. For the most part the island is marvelously entertaining, and succeeds in it’s mission of equating Comcast with Faster in your mind. Could this be the best corporate island yet? If you’re going to a purely marketing island, is they key just to drive home a simple message in new and interactive ways?
Posted by Garth Goode 
