February 2001
Vol. 2 Num. 5

Editors

Senior:

Laurel
Daly

Technology:

Leonard
Daly

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Rights
In Web3D Worlds

There has
recently been many interesting developments with regards
to individual and community rights within 3D
environments on the Web. Players, companies, employees
and many others are demanding the right to control these
enviorments.

For the companies running these worlds, they are
simply part of their business and no one from outside
their business has any right to say how things are run
within the world.

Some of the players involved in these communities, on
the other hand, believe the companies running these
worlds are acting like totalitarian governments, and
must be outwitted on the way to civic freedom. The fact
that the freedom these players seek may mean the end of
these worlds if companies involved abandon them doesn't
seem to matter. This has lead to lawsuits and anger on
all sides.

For instance, Sony/Verant have been trying to stop
online auctions of 'Everquest' items and characters by
suing eBay, the online auction site. Sony/Verant was no
doubt hoping to scare eBay (and through them, the other
auction sites) into taking all Everquest items off their
auction lists. In response, some of the player/sellers
immediately got together to file a class action lawsuit
against Sony & Verant for not allowing users of the
game to sell their virtual items for real money (see
resources).

On the face of it, Sony/Verant would seem to be
holding all the cards in the eBay lawsuit. The End User
License agreement that Verant demands all players agree
to is very clear that all property rights to 'Everquest'
images and items stay with the company.

Also, Geoffrey Zatkin, from Verant, has recently made
some very good points. One is that when the auctions go
wrong, everyone involved complains to Verant and Verant
has no way to solve these complaints.

He also points out that having an inexperienced
person buying and playing a high level character is
unfair, not only for that person, but also for everyone
who groups with him or her in the game. Zatkin tells an
interesting story about parents who paid one thousand US
dollars to buy a level 50 character Everquest character
for their young son. The boy then spent a few weeks
dying repeatedly, loosing 20 levels and all the
equipment on the character in the process. The parents,
of course, complained to Verant.

Because of the lawsuit, eBay took the 'Everquest'
items off their site for a short time, but as of this
writing, ingame items are back on the auction list. The
only changes that has been made seem to be a few
disclaimers on some of the Everquest auctions. This puts
the ball back in Verant's court, but don't look for a
solution anytime soon.

Another group of players who are recently asserting
their rights are the volunteers that many online
communities rely on. Last September, a group of 'Ultima
Online' volunteers filed a class action lawsuit against
Origin and ElectronicArts demanding compensation for
their work as 'Ultima Online' volunteers. The lawsuit
alleges that the volunteers, as a part of Origin's
Counselor program, were systematically charged with
obligations and responsibilities typical of compensated
employment. The volunteers are seeking back wages from
Origin for their participation in the Counselor
program.

The role of the volunteer, as the interface between
company and game player is central to the very idea of
massive role-playing games. Volunteers play part of the
role that was once reserved for the dungeon master: a
human who can actually fix things and who will listen.
If Origin loses this suit, it could have a profound
impact on the still unrealized potential of online
community worlds. If every volunteer had to be paid as
an employee, no site could afford to have this kind of
program.

And, as if online multi-player game makers didn't
have enough problems, there are signs on the horizon of
possible movements to protect the rights of Non-Player
characters. The idea of non-player characters having any
rights sounds like a joke, until you hear the story of
what happened in the 'Creatures' A-life community.

'Creatures' is a virtual pet game using A-life
techniques to create semi-intelligent creatures called
Norns. According to Lisa de Araujo of Creature Labs, the
Norns are a cross between a dog, a cat and a toddler.
They are also very cute to look at, which surely played
a part in the issues that arose.

The point of the Creatures game is to raise your pets
so that they grow up and reproduce until you have a
thriving community of little Norns. The players job is
to help them learn and keep them harm and/or from
accidentally killing themselves.

The issues of Norn rights began when a player who
called himself the Anti-Norn began to torture Norns. He
would hatch the little creatures, then make their lives
completely miserable until these Norns were very
anti-social. Then, since it isn't very fun to be evil
without some recognition from the world, he began
offering these Tortured Norns up to the Creature's
online community for rehabilitation.

This caused an immediate uproar in the 'Creatures'
community. Players were up in arms about what was being
done to these Norns. Several organizations were formed
to prevent the further torture of the Norns.

All of this sounds a little funny until you realize
that these creatures were designed to simulate life.
They fit almost any definition of life you can come up
with, and if someone was torturing dogs, there would be
a similar uproar.

While the furor seems to has died down a bit in the
'Creatures' community, this is surely not the last we
will hear about rights for artificial life. As AI and
A-life begin to form a greater part of online
communities, it will not be long before people begin to
bond with NPC's and begin to assert that these computer
generated characters have rights. Luckily we are not
quite there yet.

Raph Koster, now of 'Sony Online', is a long time Mud
designer, as well as the lead designer for Origin's
Ultima Online. He is one of the few people on either
side of these issues thinking clearly. His website is a
treasure trove of essays and articles on these
subjects.

At the beginning of his essay "Players Bill of
Rights" (see resources), Koster asks, " Do players of
virtual worlds have rights? One of those questions that
given my position, I shouldn't write about. No matter
what, any answer I give is bound to be wrong, either
from the perspective of my employers or my customers."

Being the brave man that he is, he goes on to
postulate those player rights, and even prints the
responses he received. Although he raises more questions
then he answers; this kind of open dialog is a least the
beginning steps to solving many of these issues. And
solve them we must, if 3D online worlds are to become
good business as well as pleasant places to play.

Resources:

Law Suit Against SONY Computer Entertainment
and Verant Interactive

Ultima Online volunteers are suing for back
wages (Salon)

Creaturelabs

Tortured Norns

Raph Koster's site

Koster's 'Declaring the Rights of
Players'