SAPARi

SAPARi
	File:SAPARi Logo.jpg
Developer(s)	Sony, Sony Architecture Lab, Workstation Unit, then VAIO Development Unit, Tsunetake Noma
Initial release	February 6, 1997; 27 years ago
Stable release	1.0.1 / February 16, 2001; 23 years ago
Written in	Java
Platform	Windows
Website	pc.sony.co.jp/sapari/

SAPARi（Japanese: さぱり）was an online 3-D virtual world service developed in Java and ran by Sony. Users could speak to one another and join chat lobbies by using a dedicated server browser called the Community Place Browser. Upon selecting a server, users would appear in a 3-D virtual world as an avatar in the form of a human or an animal. The service's name is a shortening of the name Sampo Park Relaxation. The official SAPARi service was discontinued on January 31, 2003^[1].

From 1997 to 2001, the dedicated browser came pre-installed on Sony's VAIO series of computers. Its user base mainly comprised of VAIO users when it was free to use on those systems. However, its number of users sharply decreased when usage fees were added to the service and when it no longer came pre-installed on VAIO systems, leading to the end of the service on January 31, 2003.

Since new users were easily captivated by its simple controls and familiar characters, SAPARi had a user base which included relatively many members who were new to the internet compared to other chat programs at the time. These users eventually formed a large community with the intent of resurrecting the service. Sales of the Community Place stopped in 2002. SAPARi Alpha began to use Sony's SpaceStream technology. The original SAPARi service similar to Circus Park at the time, but a new prototype was created to include different Worlds built by Tsunetake Noma.

Compared to Sony's other chat services, SAPARi was less developed (for example, VRML objects in worlds could not be interacted with).

Gameplay

World

Worlds were 3D virtual spaces written in Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML) placed on dedicated servers run by Sony. The first world when the service started was named "Park". As the number of users grew, more Worlds were added, but near the end of the service when the number of users was decreasing, the worlds became integrated into the system.

Park: This world contained many structures such as rivers, ponds, mountains, a church, tunnels, floating islands. As the number of Users increased, new copies of the world were created, including "Park 2" and "Park 3".
Downtown: This world contained many buildings, including a public bath and shops along the streets. A shortcut to this World was hidden behind the waterfall in the Park, which could be clicked to bring the user to this world.
Revised Downtown: Although it looked the same as Downtown from the outside, this world was actually a different independent world. It could be used after installing new distributed data to the game.
Coast: This world included structures such as a few islands and a warship in the middle of the sea. Unlike other worlds, time passed at Coast (although it was not in real-time). This would change the position of the sun or moon and the colour of the sky. There were several hidden objects scattered throughout the world. For example, one hidden object held a gimmick that would light fireworks visible to all users when clicked.; Similar to Park, "Coast 2" and "Coast 3" were added as the user base grew.
SAPARi Millenium: This was a group of worlds added on January 2000. This included the Millenium Park, the Millenium Coast, the Millenium Honjo-era Village, Millenium Downtown, Yamanote, Gardens, and the Hot Spring.
Honjo-era Village: Created by Ltd. GCO, this world released at the same time as SAPARi. This world was created using wood-block prints of townscapes from the Edo period. Samurai, Ninjas, Town girl, and Townsfolk avatars were used in this world.

Browser

SAPARi used its own dedicated browser customized by Sony for use by clients that could run VRML. It was called the "Community Place Browser". It was organized into a main window used for displaying 3D graphics, and a second window containing the chat lot titled "Multi-User Window". It also handled another piece of software which came pre-installed on the VAIO series developed and sold by Sony called the "Internet 3D Pack". Even though the servers are no longer in operation, it s still possible to browse the internet in VRML (by operating a SAPARi character).

Avatars

Human and animal avatars were created in 3D graphics following a particular motif. Although there were tens of them and some were common to each world, certain worlds would have restrictions on which Avatars could be used on them. Initially, a user always has their avatar set as a pink cat, although this can be changed in the Community Place Browser settings. Users could also customize the size and colour of each part of the avatars, such as the arms or head.

Conversation

Multiple users can converse with each other if they are within a certain distance of each other's avatars and are logged in on the same world with other users.
When a user speaks, their words would appear above their heads for a short period of time and would be logged in the Multi-User Window.
Users could make their avatars do actions such as sleeping or waving a hand.

Development

Tsunetake Noma's PC during development was a DEC, and his monitor was a Mitsubishi Diamond model. For GCO, A VRML output was created using 3DCG software called "LightWave 3D" from NewTek Co.. Polygons were edited using "LightWave3D".

The development process is described below.

3D modelling (DXF format)
DXF was converted to VRML (only for models)
Authoring in VRML (adding movement)
　Movement was originally programmed in Java (Tcl/Tk at the very beginning)
Movement testing on the Community Place Browser
　for a server-Client environment, testing was done on multiple PCs.
3D contents are published
The official site is updated and moderated by a user group
User Communication and support is opened in the 3D contents

Modelling was done by placing an order to the designer. Noma was in charge of the entire process after the DXF file was received from the designer. Noma also overlooked the direction of the project.

Timeline

February 6, 1997 - Beginning of the SAPARi Service
November 1999 - "SAPARi Premium" β version release
January 2000 - "SAPARi Millenium" official release
September 1, 2001 - A usage fee is added to the service (300¥ monthly)
January 31, 2003 - End of the SAPARi service

Since SAPARi came pre-installed on VAIO systems, it reached hundreds of thousands of users at one point. However, server fees, military fees, and the lack of a business model relating to the increase in new users stopped the user base from expanding. After this, control of SAPARi was transferred to So-net, which added fees to previously free material. Users actively disliked this, which led to the collapse of the community, causing revenue to sharply decrease and eventually the entire service to shut down at the end of January 2003. However, in 2020, two private servers were made thanks to reverse-engineering and fan efforts.

References

^ Service discontinuation announcement Archived 2003-02-24 at the Wayback Machine

External links

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[1] Service discontinuation announcement Archived 2003-02-24 at the Wayback Machine

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