jwz: Second Life and the World's Worst Children's Book
Virtual rabbits across Second Life will fall asleep on Saturday then
never wake up, now that the their digital food supply has been shut down
by a legal battle. The player-made and player-sold Ozimals brand of
digirabbits are virtual pets that players breed and care for in the
sandbox MMO, and even need to feed by buying DRM-protected virtual food.
But they rely on servers. Waypoint reported earlier today that the
seller of Ozimals and the Pufflings virtuabirds has received a legal
threat he says he cannot afford to fight, so they’ve shut down. By
Saturday, rabbits will run out of food and enter hibernation.
The rabbits aren’t dead, they’re sleeping. They simply can never wake
up.
[…] At least the Ozimals' birdy cousins, the Pufflings, had a swift
death. They shut down instantly on Wednesday when the servers went down,
while rabbits hold on with the food in their cyberbellies.
Ozimals did give rabbit owners a brief chance to save their rabbits.
Before shutting down, they gave away items which make rabbits not need
food – and leaves them sterile. Some rabbits will live on forever, the
last of their kind. If you wish that fate upon your rabbit, apparently
some kindly players have a stash you’re welcome to.