Eccky
Encyclopedia
Eccky is an online game
. Until 2009, it was an MSN
-based life simulation game
in which two people come together to create and raise a virtual baby. Eccky won the 2005 SpinAwards for Innovation and for Best Interactive Concept. In 2009, the game play changed to a real-time virtual world
launched on Hyves
in the Netherlands. Eccky has characteristics of life simulation and virtual pet games. The gameplay of this first version of Eccky involved a virtual baby, or Eccky, which was born on the basis of information derived from both Eccky user parents. Eccky used an AIML
chatbot
and MSN Messenger for chat between users and the Eccky baby. In 2006, Eccky became an independent company as a subsidiary of Media Republic.
From its live introduction to the public until August 2006, Eccky required an initial fee which could be paid by either user parent. However Eccky has been free to play since September 2006.
" test have been completed, a user may invite another person to make an Eccky. Upon accepting the invitation, the second user also registers on the Eccky website, and completes his/her own "DNA
" test. Both parents then choose both a masculine
and feminine name for their future Eccky. Thereafter Eccky is born, with characteristics determined by the combination of both user parents' DNA profiles. Eccky's sex is randomly determined, as is Eccky’s name (which is chosen randomly between the four possible names chosen by the user parents).
Over a six-day period from Eccky’s birth, Eccky grows and ages three years for every one day of gameplay. Thus, in six days, Eccky develops from a cooing baby into an eighteen-year-old young adult with its own character. Every Eccky is unique at birth, and the way in which the user parents raise their Eccky further individualizes Eccky’s demeanor and characteristics. On the sixth day, or upon turning 18, Eccky leaves the house to venture off into the wide world, and the game ends.
Eccky played principally via the Eccky website and MSN Messenger, though also via mobile phone. Upon Eccky’s birth, Eccky is automatically added as a contact to the MSN contact lists of both parents. This allows user parents to talk to their virtual child. Running on an AIML
chat engine, Eccky is able to speak from the moment following birth, both in response to user parents addressing Eccky and by initiating conversation
him/herself. Eccky will initiate conversation either randomly or to express any particularly pressing need he/she may have (i.e. being extremely hungry, having to go to the bathroom, being very sick, feeling neglected, etc.) Eccky’s vocabulary
is initially limited to newborn babble
. Then, as with a real child, Eccky’s command of vocabulary grows with each day of gameplay, to a final capability of being able to respond with over 60,000 unique answers on more than 4,000 diverse subjects. Since June 2007, Eccky also features an in-game chat functionality.
Eccky and user parents can also exchange text messages via mobile phone. Exchange of text messages requires that the user parent have a mobile phone, and that the user parent purchase a mobile phone for Eccky within the game environment. This feature involves some extra costs to the user parent, specifically the cost of sending text messages, and can be turned on and off at the user parent’s discretion.
Most games are intended to be played with user parents playing against their Eccky and vice versa. Others are played in cooperation with Eccky. Of note are the racing games, some of which allow users to create their own tracks and race on them with Eccky. Though most games are free to play, some games require additional credits to play.
Eccky’s physical and emotional states are subject to continual change, determined by 180 dynamic variables, and are influenced by the interaction with and treatment by user parents, both via the virtual world and via the chat. The levels of these physical and emotional states are continually assessed and are made visible to user parents via meters that gauge happiness, hunger, toilet needs, popularity, who Eccky’s favorite parent is, etc. For example, if Eccky is not sufficiently fed, users will see this in Eccky’s hunger meter. In worst case scenarios, an Eccky can be neglected, physical and emotionally, to the point of needing to be sent to the hospital. During this time, gameplay continues and user parents may chat with Eccky, but may not interact with Eccky in the virtual world. Further, Eccky’s physical and emotional states are reflected in the chat element, as Eccky will either comment, unsolicited, on how he/she is doing physically and emotionally, or respond to a user parent in such a way as to make his/her physical and emotional state known.
It is also possible to send Eccky away for a period, either to live in other accommodations such as in a hotel, on vacation, or to stay with a babysitter. A babysitter may be anyone with an MSN Messenger account. Sending Eccky to a hotel or on vacation does involve additional costs (sending Eccky to a babysitter does not), and as with Eccky staying in the hospital, user parents may continue to speak with Eccky via chat but cannot interact with Eccky in the virtual world setting during this time. A user parent can retrieve their Eccky at any time during a stay away from home. Eccky was closed down in 2007 and until it was launched in a new format in 2009.
Eccky is integrated into Hyves
and Facebook. Together with their Hyves or Facebook friends players can chat, play mini games and post their Eccky's activities on their social networking profile. Eccky has many games
. Games can be played in single-player or multi-player format. Ecckies can also play with their Wobble. A Wobble is Eccky’s own pet
. Wobbles were the first inhabitants of the Eccky world. Wobbles live together with Ecckies and need to be taken care of. Once Ecckies advance in levels they receive superpowers to be used in the game.
Online game
An online game is a game played over some form of computer network. This almost always means the Internet or equivalent technology, but games have always used whatever technology was current: modems before the Internet, and hard wired terminals before modems...
. Until 2009, it was an MSN
MSN
MSN is a collection of Internet sites and services provided by Microsoft. The Microsoft Network debuted as an online service and Internet service provider on August 24, 1995, to coincide with the release of the Windows 95 operating system.The range of services offered by MSN has changed since its...
-based life simulation game
Life simulation game
Life simulation games is a sub-genre of simulation video games in which the player lives or controls one or more virtual lifeforms...
in which two people come together to create and raise a virtual baby. Eccky won the 2005 SpinAwards for Innovation and for Best Interactive Concept. In 2009, the game play changed to a real-time virtual world
Virtual world
A virtual world is an online community that takes the form of a computer-based simulated environment through which users can interact with one another and use and create objects. The term has become largely synonymous with interactive 3D virtual environments, where the users take the form of...
launched on Hyves
Hyves
Hyves is a social networking site in the Netherlands with mainly Dutch visitors and members and competes in this country with sites such as Facebook and MySpace. Hyves was founded in 2004 by Raymond Spanjar, Koen Kam, and Floris Rost van Tonningen....
History
Eccky was created in August 2005 by Dutch developer Media Republic in association with MSNMSN
MSN is a collection of Internet sites and services provided by Microsoft. The Microsoft Network debuted as an online service and Internet service provider on August 24, 1995, to coincide with the release of the Windows 95 operating system.The range of services offered by MSN has changed since its...
in the Netherlands. Eccky has characteristics of life simulation and virtual pet games. The gameplay of this first version of Eccky involved a virtual baby, or Eccky, which was born on the basis of information derived from both Eccky user parents. Eccky used an AIML
AIML
AIML, or Artificial Intelligence Markup Language, is an XML dialect for creating natural language software agents.- Background :The XML dialect called AIML was developed by Richard Wallace and a worldwide free software community between the years of 1995 and 2002...
chatbot
Chatbot
Chatbot may mean:* Chatterbot, a chatter robot is a type of conversational agent, a computer program designed to simulate an intelligent conversation with one or more human users via auditory or textual methods....
and MSN Messenger for chat between users and the Eccky baby. In 2006, Eccky became an independent company as a subsidiary of Media Republic.
From its live introduction to the public until August 2006, Eccky required an initial fee which could be paid by either user parent. However Eccky has been free to play since September 2006.
Eccky 1.0 (2005-2007)
In the first version of Eccky, two users create a virtual baby, and raise him/her with the goal of making the child as happy and satisfied as possible. A user must consists of a questionnaire that user parents must fill in with information regarding their personal characteristics, child-rearing attitudes, favorites, etc. Once registration and the "DNADNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
" test have been completed, a user may invite another person to make an Eccky. Upon accepting the invitation, the second user also registers on the Eccky website, and completes his/her own "DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
" test. Both parents then choose both a masculine
Masculine
Masculine or masculinity, normally refer to qualities positively associated with men.Masculine may also refer to:*Masculine , a grammatical gender*Masculine cadence, a final chord occurring on a strong beat in music...
and feminine name for their future Eccky. Thereafter Eccky is born, with characteristics determined by the combination of both user parents' DNA profiles. Eccky's sex is randomly determined, as is Eccky’s name (which is chosen randomly between the four possible names chosen by the user parents).
Over a six-day period from Eccky’s birth, Eccky grows and ages three years for every one day of gameplay. Thus, in six days, Eccky develops from a cooing baby into an eighteen-year-old young adult with its own character. Every Eccky is unique at birth, and the way in which the user parents raise their Eccky further individualizes Eccky’s demeanor and characteristics. On the sixth day, or upon turning 18, Eccky leaves the house to venture off into the wide world, and the game ends.
Eccky played principally via the Eccky website and MSN Messenger, though also via mobile phone. Upon Eccky’s birth, Eccky is automatically added as a contact to the MSN contact lists of both parents. This allows user parents to talk to their virtual child. Running on an AIML
AIML
AIML, or Artificial Intelligence Markup Language, is an XML dialect for creating natural language software agents.- Background :The XML dialect called AIML was developed by Richard Wallace and a worldwide free software community between the years of 1995 and 2002...
chat engine, Eccky is able to speak from the moment following birth, both in response to user parents addressing Eccky and by initiating conversation
Conversation
Conversation is a form of interactive, spontaneous communication between two or more people who are following rules of etiquette.Conversation analysis is a branch of sociology which studies the structure and organization of human interaction, with a more specific focus on conversational...
him/herself. Eccky will initiate conversation either randomly or to express any particularly pressing need he/she may have (i.e. being extremely hungry, having to go to the bathroom, being very sick, feeling neglected, etc.) Eccky’s vocabulary
Vocabulary
A person's vocabulary is the set of words within a language that are familiar to that person. A vocabulary usually develops with age, and serves as a useful and fundamental tool for communication and acquiring knowledge...
is initially limited to newborn babble
Babble
Babble is a British internet telephony service. It was one of the first commercialisations of VoIP technology, appearing in 2004 approximately 6 months after the proprietary Skype opened up interest in telephony over the internet...
. Then, as with a real child, Eccky’s command of vocabulary grows with each day of gameplay, to a final capability of being able to respond with over 60,000 unique answers on more than 4,000 diverse subjects. Since June 2007, Eccky also features an in-game chat functionality.
Eccky and user parents can also exchange text messages via mobile phone. Exchange of text messages requires that the user parent have a mobile phone, and that the user parent purchase a mobile phone for Eccky within the game environment. This feature involves some extra costs to the user parent, specifically the cost of sending text messages, and can be turned on and off at the user parent’s discretion.
Most games are intended to be played with user parents playing against their Eccky and vice versa. Others are played in cooperation with Eccky. Of note are the racing games, some of which allow users to create their own tracks and race on them with Eccky. Though most games are free to play, some games require additional credits to play.
Eccky’s physical and emotional states are subject to continual change, determined by 180 dynamic variables, and are influenced by the interaction with and treatment by user parents, both via the virtual world and via the chat. The levels of these physical and emotional states are continually assessed and are made visible to user parents via meters that gauge happiness, hunger, toilet needs, popularity, who Eccky’s favorite parent is, etc. For example, if Eccky is not sufficiently fed, users will see this in Eccky’s hunger meter. In worst case scenarios, an Eccky can be neglected, physical and emotionally, to the point of needing to be sent to the hospital. During this time, gameplay continues and user parents may chat with Eccky, but may not interact with Eccky in the virtual world. Further, Eccky’s physical and emotional states are reflected in the chat element, as Eccky will either comment, unsolicited, on how he/she is doing physically and emotionally, or respond to a user parent in such a way as to make his/her physical and emotional state known.
It is also possible to send Eccky away for a period, either to live in other accommodations such as in a hotel, on vacation, or to stay with a babysitter. A babysitter may be anyone with an MSN Messenger account. Sending Eccky to a hotel or on vacation does involve additional costs (sending Eccky to a babysitter does not), and as with Eccky staying in the hospital, user parents may continue to speak with Eccky via chat but cannot interact with Eccky in the virtual world setting during this time. A user parent can retrieve their Eccky at any time during a stay away from home. Eccky was closed down in 2007 and until it was launched in a new format in 2009.
Eccky 2.0 (Since 2009)
In 2009 Dutch/Chinese developer TribePlay created a new version of Eccky and launched it in Hyves as one of the first social networking virtual worlds. In Eccky players can make a character (an Eccky) with their social network profile. After that they enter the Eccky world. In this world they have access to various locations, such as a city center, park, mountain top and beach. Players can also visit their own or other user's house. In any of these virtual locations players can chat, play mini games and do a variety of other things.Eccky is integrated into Hyves
Hyves
Hyves is a social networking site in the Netherlands with mainly Dutch visitors and members and competes in this country with sites such as Facebook and MySpace. Hyves was founded in 2004 by Raymond Spanjar, Koen Kam, and Floris Rost van Tonningen....
and Facebook. Together with their Hyves or Facebook friends players can chat, play mini games and post their Eccky's activities on their social networking profile. Eccky has many games
Game
A game is structured playing, usually undertaken for enjoyment and sometimes used as an educational tool. Games are distinct from work, which is usually carried out for remuneration, and from art, which is more often an expression of aesthetic or ideological elements...
. Games can be played in single-player or multi-player format. Ecckies can also play with their Wobble. A Wobble is Eccky’s own pet
Pet
A pet is a household animal kept for companionship and a person's enjoyment, as opposed to wild animals or to livestock, laboratory animals, working animals or sport animals, which are kept for economic or productive reasons. The most popular pets are noted for their loyal or playful...
. Wobbles were the first inhabitants of the Eccky world. Wobbles live together with Ecckies and need to be taken care of. Once Ecckies advance in levels they receive superpowers to be used in the game.