Second Life, the hit MMO, is now releasing its beta publicly
If you're a premium subscriber, you can access it right now on iOS or Android
There is, however, no news yet on free access for players
Second Life, the hit social MMO that recently announced it was coming to mobile, will now be available for the first time ever in a public beta on iOS and Android. You'll be able to download Second Life from the App Store and Google Play as of the time of writing.
You'll still need a Premium account to access it, so if you're not already a Second Life fan, this may not be quite the free glimpse you were hoping for. But still, with this newest beta, the slow trickle of info about the mobile version of this hit MMO should increase rapidly.
Second Life should, realistically, need no introduction. However, for younger readers and indeed those who weren't around at Second Life's peak, it's worth reiterating. An early precursor to the idea of the metaverse we saw touted a few years back, Second Life is an MMO that focuses less on exploring outer space or fighting dragons and more on social interaction.
Players indeed live a 'Second Life' as their chosen avatar. Whether that's something ordinary, their ideal self or indeed role-playing as anything they could imagine. First released in 2003, Second Life can take accolade for introducing many of the ideas we see, like social gaming, user-generated content and more, to the mainstream.
Too inadequate, too late?
Of course, with that pedigree comes the obvious question: is Second Life simply too antiquated nowadays? This is, after all, a game that still uses the much-maligned subscription system, and now faces formidable competition from games like Roblox.
While Second Life's status as a pioneer could not be disputed, it may be that the other games that succeeded it have now also taken its place. Will coming to mobile give it a new lease on life or just be a declining campaign for the former king? We'll have to wait and see.
In the meantime, if you want to see what else is popular on mobile, just like the weather, then check out our list of the best mobile games of 2024 (so far). Or our list of the most anticipated mobile games coming this year!
