Player Spends $330K (Real Money) On Virtual Space Station
A player insanely rich life form who goes by the name of “Buzz Erik Lightyear” recently spent $300,000 worth of real money on an in-game piece of property in the virtual world of Planet Calypso (formerly known as Entropia Universe). The Sweden produced online MMMORPG-esque game, which kicked off in 2003, features a real cash based economy with a 10-1 conversion ration between real world dollars and in-game Project Entropia Dollars (PED). So what did a cool 3.3 million PED get him? The Crystal Palace Space Station!
The Crystal Palace Space Station, or ”CP” as it’s called by those who roam the Planet Calypso universe, was added to the game in 2004 and is apparently the equivalent of 90210′s Peach Pit on steroids. All the coolest and experienced in-game hunters hang out here, but that’s not all. The Peach P….err Crystal Palace features a vast array of terminal options covering the trade, repair, revival, and social scenes. As awesome as it sounds, it isn’t the only hang out of its kind in Planet Calypso. The second hot spot, dubbed “Club NEVERDIE” (originally Asteroid Space Resort), was gobbled up in 2005 for the real world smackeroo sum of $100,000 by ” Jon ‘NEVERDIE’ Jacobs.”
The players who purchased these pieces of in-game “un”real estate do stand to turn a profit when you consider the fact that, while Planet Calypso is free to download and start playing, the real cash based economy within extends to every aspect of the game. This means that Erik and Jon can set tax/price rates for any service and or amenity their stations have to offer, though I still find it hard to believe they will be braking even on their investments any time soon.
The wiki for PC describes your starting character as one who enters the world with nothing more than an orange jumpsuit (sounds like a virtual convict), and of course the moment you begin to try and “move on up” in the world you’ll be prompted to open that wallet of yours and start paying the piper.
[Source: Joystiq]
