Creationist Capitalism: Creativity Pays.
The main idea of creationist capitalism is a mode of capitalism in which labor is understood in terms of creativity, so that production is understood as creation (Boellstorff, 206). Self-fulfillment becomes a means of production (Boellstorff, 206). It’s not surprising people today operate through this type of model but you can take it further by engaging in online virtual worlds such as Second Life, online gaming or massively multiplayer online role-playing games like World of Warcraft. Anthropologist Tom Boellstorff discussed in his book, Coming of age in Second Life, the political economy and creationist capitalism of Second Life. People in Second Life can earn real money in the virtual world and retain intellectual property rights over anything they create (Boellstorff, 12). The difference between virtual worlds and the actual world is that virtual worlds can be owned (Boellstorff, 206). Second Life, like most online virtual worlds, is owned by companies, backed by venture capital and prioritizing cash flow (Boellstorff, 206).
Capitalism arose from the property and money which are all virtual in nature. The money for example, created to simplify and secure business transactions in an expanding commercial world, has become today the main means of speculation and manipulation. Humans in game will use this power to exploit other humans where embedding one’s creative self into (virtual) objects is the assumed means of turning labor into values. It’s amazing to understand that the community in Second Life has the ability to unite production and consumption. Being creative in this online virtual world allows your inventiveness to be a primary asset.
The virtual community that also had engaged in “creationist capitalism” is Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided. The game was a 3-D sci-fi MMORPG based on the original star wars trilogy. The online game required a monthly subscription and was renowned for its sandbox game play and intricate skill and crafting system. Like Second Life, you could build houses and craft anything from food to weapons. You were allowed to trade or sell items through vendors or in-game face-to-face transactions. The game’s system had an immense player-driven economy and politics in which closely related to the virtual community of Second Life. Like Second Life, players can make real world money by doing “jobs” for other players. These jobs were almost “illegal” because one of the requirements was the clients needed to give his or her account information to the “runner”. These types of jobs consisted of leveling the clients character, selling in-game rare items either through e-bay or other online auction websites, and selling credits (Star War Galaxy’s currency) using real world money.
These “runners” actually never played the game, they offer their services to help other players out but it’s a risky business. In their terms of service, the game forbids you to give your account information to any other registered user even if its a close friend or relative. Although many players knew about this most went ahead and paid the third party company and allowed the runners to do whatever job they asked. Unfortunately, the server administrators eventually caught on to these transactions and eventually started to ban players. What I found most troubling was that Second Life allows registered users to do most of these real-world to virtual world transactions. There is people that actually make a living off Second Life and continues these virtual transactions even to this day. The residents live off creativity as a means to be free. There is a lot of freedom in that gaming platform, which is probably why Second Life is still a popular and widely played game today.
