“My 10-year-old is more competitive, and her main objective is to earn coins and buy furniture and fancier igloos.”
Beth Irwin, a mother of three kids who play on Club Penguin
Shop Til You Drop
Currently, the two biggest activities in virtual worlds like Club Penguins are playing games and acquiring “stuff”.
In Club Penguin, players play casual games to earn coins. They then can spend those coins on a wide variety of items from clothing, to surfboards, to pets and more. Every few weeks, a catalogue of new items is released to the world, giving players more “stuff” to acquire and show off.
The dominating theme in Club Penguin as with other mmos is consumerism. Playing games is fun but the real purpose is to earn coins and then use the coins to buy stuff.
Given the potential for what these online spaces can teach young players, it is disappointing the mantra of “he/she who has the most wins” becoming the norm.
Pimp Your Igloo
In addition getting stuff for your penguin, players can also pack their own igloos full of items that serve no other purpose than to impress others.
Once again, this idea of status and stuff permeates throughout Club Penguin, separating the “haves” from from the “have nots.”