interview An Interview: How pop culture inspired my building
Hello everyone,
Today, we are interviewing Diana Prince, a gamer and movie buff from Germany! She has been surrounded by popular culture surrounding movies, games and more. It ranges from the old-school VHS format to the Commodore 64 console. And you'll see a lot of the influences of this popular culture as you read through the interview. She loves to build many things she grew up with, and you'll see many of her creations throughout the interview. I want to say thank you, Diana, for the excellent interview! It's cool to see how much popular culture influenced the person that you are today.
So, without further ado, let's jump right into it!
Q. Who is Diana Prince?
I'm an (almost) 43-year-old geek and gamer girl from Germany. I was raised with PCs and game consoles (thanks, Dad ) and am still young at heart. Always trying out new tech stuff, so you could call me an early adopter
On the other hand, still owning a VHS recorder and my dad's old C64 and Pong console.
The name Diana Prince is, of course, the alter ego of Wonder Woman, my role model.
Q. What music genre/s do you like most?
I love the 80s / 90s rock and pop; Billy Joel and Meat Loaf are my favourite musicians. With their songs and texts, they tell better stories than most modern movies.
But I like soundtracks, too. John Williams is the grand master of them!
Q. What hobbies do you enjoy in your time outside of 3DXChat?
As I mentioned, I love PC / console games (Uncharted anyone?) and Flight Sims (with VR, it's an incredible experience!).
And you would find me in the Alps skiing or hiking, not so much lying at a beach. I love travelling and exploring nature and cities. My favourite place away from home might be Sedona in Arizona.
Any sport with a ball is made for me. Tennis, Badminton, Squash, Golf, you name it. I'm like a fish in the water there, lol.
Of course, I like to read anything from my favourite, Stephen King, to Bill Bryson (travelling author), to popular science with Brian Greene, Michio Kaku, etc.
I have been a biiiigg movie geek since childhood. I can't count the number of times I watched Dances with Wolves, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, back to the Future, The Godfather, Superman, ...
I could have complete conversations just using movie quotes
It reminds me I need another cupboard for my Blu-rays...
Q. How did you find 3DXChat? (If you don't mind talking about it)
Almost five years ago, I stumbled upon an online article with a test and comparison of several sex MMOs (including Second Live, Sexvilla 3D 2, Sex Roulette, etc.). And 3DXC was the highest-rated one. So, I made a subscription for a month to test it but extended it for a year shortly after. They say the rest is history, and I didn't regret it.
Q. How do you compare the game now? Back to when you first started playing?
I started after the world editor was released, so that might have been the most significant change that 3DXC have seen. There were also some significant changes when they switched from the 32 to the 64-bit client. We lost the ghost poses back then, but since I started, there have been a lot of new poses, clothes, hairstyles, dances, objects, and stuff for the world editor. It's steady progress, and the update to the more recent Unity version will hopefully open the door for improvements in the near future.
It's in the nature of us players that we always want more, more, more...
Q. What's your favourite location/player-made world?
There are many. In my opinion, the most unique room in 3DXC is the Springfield room. It's like being IN the TV series, technically a masterpiece, and if you have not seen it yet, you should visit it when it is open.
Sadly, the creator, Paulita, passed away, but Olesya opens it occasionally and keeps her legacy alive. Shoutout to Olesya, and thanks!
The Lake was one of our first favourite rooms, with many fond memories. Furthermore, every room by Shiraz is a must-see.
I like rooms created after real-life locations, art galleries, or something like Arsinoe's classical concert rooms.
There are a lot of real artists in 3DXC, and the time and passion they put into those rooms are unbelievable.
Varz: I'm sorry to hear about the player "Paulita". I never got to meet them, but they sound lovely!
Q. What was the deciding factor in joining 3DXChat for you?
Like many of us, the virtual sex was what lured me in. But the friendships let us stay in 3DXC. Once you see that 3DXC has to offer so much more than just virtual sex, this world can become part of your life.
Q. If you could choose anything to be implemented into 3DXChat, what would it/they be? (Limit to a maximum of 3)
As a builder, I would love to be able to import PNG files and use them as a (sizable) texture. Instead of working on a logo or text for days, having a nice-looking logo in your club would take just minutes.
And how about having moving objects (along a given path), not just static ones? Combine that with a dynamic skybox (like in the game Wild Life), and you could build a room with a party yacht slowly making its way around Manhattan. As time passes by, the sun sets, the stars come out, the lights of the city appear... I wish that this would be possible one day.
Q. Is there anything specific that makes 3DXChat special and worth recommending to others?
3DXC can be almost anything you want it to be. You can have all sorts of kinky sex; you can be a DJ, part of a dancing group, a party organiser, a builder, and you can hang out with friends from all over the world.
So, it's the variety that makes 3DXC unique. There are often discussions about 3DXC being a game or some social platform/life simulation. Hey, it can be what you want it to be.
Varz: I have also considered this topic since I started working here. I can see its potential to become its own unique "Digital Universe" that is persistent and becomes a life simulator. Where you can be who you cannot be in real life, where you can live another life, or lives (If you're a superhero!) There hasn't been a studio out there yet that has mastered this concept. But many have tried. I can imagine it would be costly and tricky! Crowdfund anyone? (I joke!)
Q. How would you envision the future of 3DXChat, and what positive changes would you like to witness regarding gameplay or community engagement?
What will the status of 3DXC be in, say, five years? I want to mention the recent development around the Unity Engine. I'm not convinced that Unity is still there in 5 or more years. And to be honest, 3DXC graphics are still okay now, but in 5 or more years? The gap to modern AAA games gets bigger and bigger.
My dream would be to switch to the Unreal 5 engine. I know it would mean building the game new from scratch, and that probably won't happen, but what will 3DXC do when the Unity Engine is not developed further anymore? Will we have a >5-year-old engine someday?
Varz: It may not be as much work! I have seen some studios port their games from Unity -> Unreal when the recent news broke about the runtime fees. Some people have made applications and uploaded them to Github repositories that can "Import" around 60-70%~ of the project, but sadly, the other 30-40% has to be built up manually from scratch.
Regarding gameplay, there can never be enough poses for gameplay! No matter if sex poses (nipple sucking anyone?) or social emotes like laughing, shaking hands, clinking glasses (we have Champagne now!), walking hand in hand, carrying your partner around...
I'm sure many players would love to have more dance sync abilities with more than 3 people. I am thinking about all the dance teams. Or why not let the room host set one dance number for everybody? Must be impressive to see 50 or 100 players move to the same dance in sync. Add a headbanging dance and holding up a light for concerts...
For community engagement, how about adding a user-created "room of the week/month" to the official rooms for that period?
Furthermore, in an earlier interview, the interaction between the devs and players on Discord was already mentioned. And I can't stress enough how important communication with your player base is. It's gotten better recently, but there is always room to improve.
Q. Have you attended any player-hosted parties within 3DXChat? If so, could you share a memorable experience from one of those parties?
We have attended a lot of parties over the years. Most memorable are weddings (our own included, with an excellent room built for us by Tsela), the first party we hosted ourselves or events with "interaction". Like the movie quiz evenings in the Generator, to name a few. And, of course, the Comic Cons, with guest appearances of all our favourite Marvel or DC heroes
The official parties with more than 300 people are always a good stress test for our PCs
Q. What sets 3DXChat apart from competitors, in your opinion?
There are some sex MMOs, but they all specialise in certain things. Or they are so feature-overloaded that you need to go to university to study them (looking at you, Second Life).
3DXC is the all-in-one package. It is accessible, and after a few days, you find your way around. And with the subscription fee, you get all clothes, hair, poses, dances, etc. Kind of like a flat rate.
You don't need a NASA PC to run it; turn off a few settings if you have an older PC, and you can run it perfectly in 99% of all rooms.
Q. What do you like the most about 3DXChat? You can say multiple things.
Without a doubt, for me, the best thing is to hang out with my 3DXC wife and friends in the evenings. Talking bullshit and just having fun
By now, you know that I love building; it's like creating art. 3DXC is the canvas, and we are the brush.
Another thing I really enjoy is making friendships with people from all over the world. To learn about their culture, to tell them about life in Germany.
Q. What do you not like much about 3DXChat and hope to see changed or improved?
Did anybody mention the disconnects and sync probs yet? I'm sure most players would answer this. I really hope that the problems can be found and a solution is possible.
Q. Have you formed any meaningful friendships or connections with other players in 3DXChat? If so, could you tell us about one?
When I started with 3DXC, I found it "weird" that some people were married. In a game? What did they smoke?
But after a few weeks, I wandered through the rooms, and a fellow German woman messaged me. She had seen me in another room, but I disappeared. She wanted to find me again and, by chance, went to the same room I had switched to.
We immediately "clicked," about 6 weeks later, I asked her to marry me. By then, I knew why people married in the game April and I have been together since then; she is my muse and better half, and I would marry her again any day
Q. What aspects of the Character editor in 3DXChat make you feel more connected to your virtual representation?
It's the ability to get quite close to my real self-look with the character editor. I'm not a big role-player; I'm just "me" in 3DXC and happy to have my look in it.
Hairs and facial features are essential. In real life, those are the things that change seldom or only over a long period of time. Contrary to clothes, that you can change every day. So, if we have a wide variety of hair and facial features, we can create an avatar that can come close to our real look. I'm sure the character editor can and will improve in this area, too.
Q. Are there any improvements or updates you would like to see in 3DXChat that would enhance your overall enjoyment?
The friends list could use some updates. Obviously, the sorting is something out of the X-Files, lol. And some sort of "friend groups" you could create and put friends in would be awesome. Something like "Dance Group Friends", "German kinky players", ... One friend can be of course in different groups.
And a text field for notes I can make for each player in their bio. But just for me to see. Discord has this feature.
For the room list, there could be some kind of "info popup", like the player's bios. You right-click on a room name and get a window with a description text and pics of that room. I'm sure we missed many awesome rooms because the name of the room is not enough to get our interest.
And please, let our Avis smile Let us walk hand in hand; let us dance together.
Varz: Agreed! I'd love to see more interactive elements, emotions/facial expressions on our avatars that we can click to permanently have on our faces and then alternate through them when we'd like. It'd add much more to the immersion and RP aspect 100%.
Q. If you had the opportunity to design a new public location within 3DXChat, what kind of environment or theme would you choose, and how would it make players feel?
That would have to be a room that suits most people. So I would go for something to relax, to spend the evening together with friends, like a bar or club with a nice spectacular view.
Q. Your building items, are they available for public users to download? If so, where can they find your profile?
Not really, though I build a lot of logos and texts for friends. If somebody is interested, send me a message on Discord.
Maybe in the future, I will put my creations on one of the websites to download for free.
Q. Can you share any ideas or features you want added to the Character editor to personalize your avatar further?
Of course, I would love to have some superhero costumes available Or other things like cowgirl/cowboy clothes, nun costumes, and roleplay stuff. And what about more detailed and realistic skin textures? Hairstyles, of course, too. Freely placeable tattoos would be nice.
Q. Any closing comments?
Thanks for giving me this opportunity to share my thoughts. I'm really looking forward to 3DXC evolving and improving. And who knows, someday, most of our wishes may have found their way into 3DXC. And we can enjoy it all together.
Varz: Thank you, Diana, for this insightful interview! Seeing how you've added your "Part" to the 3DXChat world is excellent. Your creations are superb and bring back many memories of my growing up! Thank you for sitting down with me and exploring your inspirations and what 3DXC means to you!
6 Comments
Recommended Comments
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now