Wow. I'm absolutely amazed at the changes going on in Whyville. From WhyTunes, to Pearls, to Pets, and more! It seems like the opportunities are endless! Do you have any idea what I'm talking about? No? Well then, let's take a look at some of the major changes coming to Whyville, but before we do, I'd like to congratulate and thank all of the City Workers for winning Whyville the Gold Award in the National Parenting Publications (NAPPA) Children's Products competition! It's awesome to see how our little community (which really isn't that little anymore . . .) impacts society.
So, back to changes. Let's groove to WhyTunes.
Now, this has been out for a little while, so I'm sure many of you have had a chance to explore the system. I can remember a system like iTunes for Scions being talked about for a long time, and now we finally have our own WhyTunes.
WhyTunes allows you to play songs for three clams each in your Scion or at the jukebox. Now, these aren't normal songs . . . you won't find any Chris Brown or Rihanna. No, instead you find music created by actual Whyvillians! You can also create your own tunes by yourself or with a friend and sell them at a stocking price of 25 clams a week or keep it all for yourself! Driving in a Scion has never been so fun . . . or psychedelic.
Next up we have Whyville Pearls, which will debut in only a few days on October 10th.
Now honestly, I don't understand this system or its point. It has all the same perks as a Whypass and costs the same at the minimal level. The only difference I can spot is that it allows you to buy virtual pets and BUY Face Factory Vouchers instead of having unlimited access to the Face Factory. Apparently, parents rave about how the use of clams in Whyville educated their child on how to spend and save money in real life, which is an excellent point. It really does teach many children about spending habits, which in today's world is a needed skill. This is where Bankinter comes in and teaches kids about CDs and Savings accounts, interest, and many other aspects of banking. However, Whyville has said that these raving reviews by parents have led to the designing of the new Whyville Pearls system.
Also, we have the Cash for Clams system which uses a Whyville exchange rate to exchange real life currency into Whyville Clams. From what I can tell, the Whyville Pearls system is a combination of a Whypass and Cash for Clams.
The system is marketed as an "allowance" system. The parent pays real money to give the Whyvillian a Whyville allowance in clams. I don't know about you, but I'm starting to smell something a little fishy . . . but not on purpose . . .
Look, Whyville needs money to pay for it's systems, staff, and maintenance, along with many other things. They provide Whyville as an educational resource for free to anyone, but it's not just educational . . . to many, it is a hobby. Because they needed income to offset costs, they developed Whypasses and Cash for Clams. While many disagree with the Cash for Clams system due to its principle, you can't deny that everyone loves Whypasses.
Pearls don't have all the benefits of the Whypass, and the clams you have depends on how much money you send in from what I can tell. I think in the long run this gives kids a wrong message- that if you have money, you can do and have whatever you want. That's definitely not the message Whyville wants to send . . . I'm sure of that. Unfortunately, I think that's one that might be sent when Pearls is up and running.
Other websites like Club Penguin allow you to become a very basic member for free, but if you want any of the extras you have to pay. Whyville was never like this, and I don't want to see that happen, but unfortunately, if the current trend continues, that's what the outcome could possibly be. We all love our Whyville, myself included. I'm glad to see all the hard work and effort the City Workers are putting in to make Whyville more exciting than it has ever been before. Personally, I just think this is the wrong way . . .
Signing off, this is
Eric5675
