Today , it ’ s all about Bento !
Today , it ’ s all about Bento !
Project Bento was launched a very short time ago , within a matter of weeks , and already , Bento has boomed thanks to the amazing content creators in SL who create the fabulous products we wear . It ’ s these creators who make SL ’ s advancements a reality for those of us who live and play here !
Bento is so new that many are still asking the question , “ Bento ? What the heck is that ?” Well , let me tell you friends , Bento will change your virtual world in new and very exciting ways !
Project Bento is an extension to the existing avatar skeleton , adding many new bones , joints and attachment points . Yes , our avatars actually have skeletons , this is what rigging is all about . There are points on our pixel bodies that bend , and points that don ’ t .
For years , we ’ ve had only so many , which is why the number of things we could wear were limited . I remember when SL added the ability to “ Add ” items to our body , hanging more than one thing to the same attach point . That was a big deal at the time ! Before that , we were limited to only what we could wear on the fixed points on our bodies .
So , anyway , back , to Bento . What Bento has done , is to add more ways in which our bodies can bend and move . More bending joints , more attach points which all means , more realism ! These new bones support rigging and animation to provide the opportunity for a much wider range of avatar body types , facial expressions , and animations than is currently possible in Second Life .
The fastest easiest way to see the difference between Pre-Bento and Post-Bento avatars is to look at the amazing new Bento hands . Vista Animations has a spiffy set available .
There are even new shapes available from creators , that show there ’ s more to be done to our avatars to create a fully customized look for ourselves here in Second Life . Creators are already quick to dive into this amazing new tool .
Catwa , for example , has made the first ever Mesh Bento Head and soon , others will follow giving us even more variety , but even with just this one head , with the addition of Bento , we can customize the look of the head with our shape sliders , turning this one mesh head into a million different faces ! The new Bento head gives us an individuality that was not available before with a mesh head and forget those unseemly sharp lines that cling to a standard SL avatar head . With the smoothness of mesh colliding with the function of the SL Avatar shape sliders , well , let ’ s just say “ WOW ” do we have some options now !
50 NU VIBEZ & ROLEPLAY GUIDE MAGAZINE