Life lived Virtually

Animal Crossing City Folk is still very popular. A lot of people that have lives and friends are probably unaware or uninterested in this fact. Yes, it's just another simulation game like The Sims or Harvest moon, with a few multiplayer pseudo-social aspects ala World of Warcraft and the late Everquest. Oddly, it's marketed at children.

Which is terrifying, and hilarious. Every five minutes a duck or cat or some thing runs up and asks me to write him a new catch phrase. Obviously enough, my animals can't say a good old fashioned swear. Or the more creative "twat waffle" but "douche bag" and "cum guzzler" made it past the censor.

Another interesting feature is the letter writing system. Somewhere, someday, an impressionable youth may meet a kangaroo that shows him the letter,

"Dear Astrid, Fuck you! Fuck you with something hard and sand paper-y!
Go die.
Love, DLP"

Much more likely, it will probably be someone I actually know who decided to Wi-Fi with me. So when a vulgar, provocatively dressed animal shows up in your town, brandishing hate mail - you'll think of me. And what a twisted person I probably really am when I don't think anyone is looking.