Anyone who has looked into Red Light Center and spent any time considering it will most likely know that it is an adult game with an heavy emphasis on sex but that you cannot have sex as a free member. You need to upgrade to the VIP level. This is a $20 dollar investment. I say investment because once one has upgraded it open up a whole new level of enjoyment on the game and I am not talking about the sex. Here are ten reasons I recommend going VIP over remaining a basic member.
- Private Messaging — As a basic you can talk in public chat and if a VIP send you a Private Message you can chat in the PM. However you cannot initiate a private message. Imagine walking into a room in the real world and being unable to speak to anyone unless they spoke to your first or unless you shout out your comments to the whole room.
- Go There/Follow Option — As a VIP you can follow a friend whereever your friend goes or if you find they are online you can jump to them directly. Now as a basic there are work arounds that will allow you two to hook up but they are more time-consuming and as such less conducive to building friendships.
- Fashions — Once you are VIP you have access to buy from the clothing system. I say buy but there are also thousand of free clothing items. For women this include being able to buy makeup and for men this include tattoos. (Which is not to say there is not makeup for men and tattoos for women.) Of the nearly 250,000 items in the clothing system for women about half of them can be had for 5 rays or less that is .40 cents or less.
- Earning Rays — There are ways for a basic to earn rays. There is a free ray program that can earn up to around 200 rays a month or about $14. One can also recieve tips from VIP members both as a act of generosity and for services rendered. However if one wants to earn rays as a club owner or a working girl or a decorator or a disc jockey or dozens of other options you have to be VIP. Why care about earning rays? On average I cashout with about $100 a month from the rays I earn. It is not a life-changing amount but it covers my monthly membership and puts a few extra dollars in my pocket.
- Spending Rays — What you cannot do as a basic is spend rays with the singular exception of spending them to pay for your VIP. So what? That you cannot spend rays means you can not buy clothes. You cannot go to clubs with a cover charge. You cannot tip a dancer who is dancing just for your pleasure. You cannot buy raffle tickets and maybe win more rays. You cannot buy a layout/home or a business. I prefer to look at rays as points on the game. As with any VR game with points, the more points you have the better able you are to enjoy the game. If you have points you cannot use, what is their value to you.
- Home Ownership — Once again as a basic you can get a zaby and you have some limited decorating options. However as a rule at best it will come off looking more like a weekly motel rental than a real home. As a VIP you have full access to almost all decorating options. Plus you can buy (if you have the rays) a customized layout that is already done or hire a decorator to create the home of your dreams.
- Business Ownership — Some people come on the game and say they do not care about making rays (or cash) off of the game. I do not get it. This is a virtual reality world and it is best played (in my opinion) as if it was your life. Not having a business or a way to earn rays is like deciding to be a free loader in real life — looking for all of the perk but not willing to do any of the work. Most importantly however I firmly believe that everyone should have a means of earning 300 rays a month on the game so that they always have the means to pay for their membership without pulling out their credit card.
- Parties and Events — Once again as a basic one is able to attend virtually all parties and events on the game. However once there they are not able to necessarily join in all the fun. I have already mentioned private messaging. They cannot chat with anyone they like but have to wait for others to speak to them. A popular game is Strip Trivia and they cannot strip. If a group of friends have a hot tub party the friends may all get naked and you sit in the hot tub in a dress or suit. Basics often complain that they feel alone and unwelcomed on the game. While I acknowledge there is no reason they should be treated such, it is also true that as a VIP I feel that a basic has not yet made a commitment to the game and as such may be gone tomorrow. I try to be welcoming since I am a working girl and everyone is a potential client, but after fourteen months on the game I know that most basics I see I will only see once.
- Dance Moves — As a VIP I have the option to get a glow stick (glowie) which gives me a different set of dance moves. When I do not do so, neglecting to pick one up before I hit the dance floor I watch myself dance and I am embarassed. The dance moves when not using a glowie are like watching a bad comedy dance skit. It is a small thing but I am glad I can access a glowie before I got to the dance floor.
- Get Naked — Okay I said I was going to provide ten reasons excluding sex. This one may be testing that promise as the primary reason one get naked is have sex. However sometimes we just want to get naked as in when we want to step into a shower. As a basic you can only shower on the game wearing clothes. Who cares about a shower? Well I must admit I rarely shower on the game, but when I do so I am glad I can take off my clothes and shower.
I am going to add one more reason to go VIP and this is just for the guys. As a basic you do not have a penis. I have been with men who upgraded to VIP and then got naked to have sex and they were without a penis. They needed to reset their avatar to get their penis. It has only happened a couple of times that I have seen this but once was enough. Looking at a naked man who does not have a penis is simply weird — even when he is an avatar. As you run around the game as a basic male, you may want to keep it in mind that under your trouser is . . . nothing.