Meeroos on Menagerie

A Fantasy Theme on Menagerie Isle

Real Life has left me little time to do much in Second Life, which is sad because I have 12 adorable Meeroos romping around on Menagerie Isle (SLurl) and I feel like I'm neglecting them. You may have heard of these new breedable pets that aren't bunnies or kitties or horsies or ... whatever else is out there that is breedable. If not, check out the official blog or even do a Web search because lots of people are writing about them.

At this time the program is in an Open Beta period where thousands of your fellow Residents, each with six or more 'roos of their own (depending on how many alts they've enrolled in the program ... I have six and Zyx Flux has six). It doesn't seem to me that many folks are spending much time with the animal's backstory (there's a whole mythology), many of the social aspects (you can get "points" for certain activities), or too many things beyond wondering about breeding and the things you often associate with other virtual breedable pets.

I suppose that is understandable as I had the popular bunnies for long enough that certain habits are ingrained. One of which is thinking that the critters are real and have feelings. Yes, I've assigned personalities and feelings and such to each, not hard when they sometimes walk up to you and ask in chat to be cuddled. So I'm getting all emotional again and wonder what I'm going to do when the last of Beta period approaches in about two weeks.

For now I'll just pet them and cuddle them and have fun with them. I know that at the end of the Beta all the critters go away. From the outside I told myself and others that at most I'll get one for me and one for Zyx Flux so the critters can play with each other when I'm not in-world. Maybe this will limit how attached I get and certainly save me a lot of money on food. Look at these pictures, though, and you'll see how hard it will be to keep myself limited.

Visualizing the roaming range of the four "stump" homes. Eight 'roos can live in each stump and as some of the critters are mating up now, I'll need the room soon.. My stumps are to the left and Zyx's are to the right.

Micro Zyx is visiting at the Isle of Ewe, the home of some friends and their 'roos.

Zyx is back home with our herds and keeps on eye on Sadie as she checks out the camera. Each 'roo has personality traits that can be bred as well as size and color traits, not just the personalities that I assume they have.

McCuddles is asleep. The clever programmers have set the critters to follow the region's day/night cycles. I wish the eyelids were lighter, though. Their asleep look strikes me as a bit creepy.

Zyx is cuddling Reagan, a "large" meeroo but probably not at his full size yet. The size trait runs from teacup-sized to giant.