Pet Society Fashion Poll: Dreadlock Wig

Pets are getting down with the dreadlock wig, even though it costs a whopping 1000 coins at the clothing store. The dreads are being worn in two different ways, like a pirate a là Johnny Depp or like a rocker such as Lenny Kravitz or Bob Marley. Who wore it best? Vote at the bottom of this post.

Big on Wigs in Pet Society

Just when I thought Pet Society couldn’t get any stranger, it did exactly that. Last week, wigs were introduced in the clothing stores. These wigs further confuse the species of these pets—are they dogs, cats, raccoons? With hair, the pets now look very human. Some of them even look like Hollywood bigwigs!

Pet Society Fashion Poll – Kebaya

Image on left is from http://kebayamodel.fiyz.net

Shopping at the Pet Society clothing store is like browsing through a museum of international fashion. Pets can get everything from an Egyptian Pharoah headpiece to a Korean hanbok to an Indian sari. There’s so much to learn about the cultural garments that I sometimes feel like Sarah Palin visiting the United Nations.

This week, the store added the pink kebaya, the Bali dance dress and the batik shirt in honor of Indonesian Independence Day (August 17). I have to admit, I didn’t know what the kebaya was. I was a bit confused and thought it had something to do with Kabbalah, the woo-woo mystic religion favored by Madonna and Demi Moore.

But a little research shows that the kebaya is a traditional blouse-dress popular in Indonesia and other parts of southeast Asia. There’s even an entire book dedicated to it.

In any case, many pets seemed to like the kebaya just because it was pink and pretty. Who wore it best?

Pet Society Fashion Poll – Bali Dance Dress

This contest is gonna be tough! All these pets are so darn cute in their Bali dance costumes, this week’s special at the clothing store. Whether or not they knew that August 17 was Indonesian Independence Day, these little darlings put on a heck of a show. One pet had been dancing all night and was taking a snooze when I visited.

Jeung Blabliblu, whose owner hails from Jakarta, was excited to see her native costumes at the shop. She also pointed out that the cute cat statues in the furniture store are reminiscent of traditional wood carvings hand-crafted in Bali.

At the bottom of this post is a picture of a real Balinese dancer. How do you think the pets compare? Vote for your favorite now.

You must have a steady head and strong thigh muscles in order to be a Balinese dancer.

Unique, Odd, Strange Pets in Pet Society

Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the strangest of them all? Most pets in Pet Society are cute and cuddly, but these six pets stand out because of their oddball features.

1. Minna – This pet looks like an angry little fairy. She’s not going to grant you a wish; instead she’s going to turn you into a frog and poop on your porch.
2. Jasi – This boy pet can’t decide what to wear. With a samurai helmet, a pink suit and panda slippers, he looks a little like Elton John.*
3. Alfonso – He may be wearing the pink Marie Antoinette dress, but the long, stick-like ears show that this pet is 100% man. Perhaps even 200%.
4. Punisher – Another one who’s twice the man, but with empty eyes, this pet looks scary! Besides, how can anyone love a pet named Punisher?** I wouldn’t want to run into him at night!
5. El Savaje – The more I look at this pet, the more he grows on me. Not everyone can look this cute with a bandage and apple on his head.
6. Mean Green – Mean Green has appeared on this site before. He always surprises us with his unique sense of style. This is one pet who’s not afraid to look crazy.

*In case you’re too young to know who Elton John is, he’s a musician famous for his oddball appearance as well as his songs.

Elton John would probably love the kooky outfits in Pet Society. Image from Daily Mail.

**The owner of Punisher says that he named his pet after his real cats, who are very naughty.

What exactly are these pets in Pet Society?

Recently, I had the pleasure of meeting the co-founder of Playfish, Sebastien de Halleux. “Do you think Pet Society is a good name for the game?” he asked.

“Sure,” I said. But I was uncertain. Pet Society often gets confused with humane organizations trying to save animals. The pets themselves are hard to classify. Are they dogs? Cats? Mice? My pet kind of looks like a puppy, except that it doesn’t have a tail, and it stands upright. Some others look like a cross between a raccoon and a rabbit.

Sebastien said that when the game was first released, it featured animal food in the shop. But it wasn’t very popular. Then the game started offering human food, and players loved it. These virtual pets are clearly an extension of ourselves, part human, part animal, designed to evoke emotion.

To add to the identity confusion, there are loads of animal costumes and accessories at the clothing store. This week’s special is the Goldfish Gown, costing 400 coins. Players snapped them up, adding fish scales to their hybrid animals. Who hooked the look? Who should be thrown out to sea? Vote at the bottom of this post.

Treat for French speakers: Click here for a video on Sebastien de Halleux, COO and co-founder of Playfish.

Dress for Your Shape in Pet Society

Fashion magazines often describe women as apples and pears. If you’ve got a big chest, you’re an apple. If you’ve got wide hips, you’re a pear. But what happens if you’re shaped like a watermelon? How’s a pet with a plus-sized head supposed to keep up with the hottest trends from the runway?

Of course, I could always go to the stylist and get rid of that clover, trim his eyebrows and change his gender while I’m at it, but I’m so used to him being an awkward, cross-dressing trannie that I love him exactly the way he is. I don’t want to change a thing. But his head still needs a little something.

So I dug into my closet and found a chic raspberry beret. It was from last season, but it really added flair to his outfit and offset the largeness of Sushi’s head. I also experimented with a feather mask and daffodil hat.

Now it’s your turn to speak up. All you fashionistas out there, tell us what you like best!

Cyber Babies in Pet Society and Beyond

I’m still mulling over the baby items in Pet Society. Frankly, they surprised me. First, it made me wonder if our pets could now pop out a kid like a little pile of poo. If so, who’s the babydaddy?

Then I realized that the items were for the pets themselves. Ah…OK. That keeps things simple. Or maybe not. As one reader, “Greena,” commented in my last post, “It seems a bit weird after having dressed [my pet] in Marie Antoinette creations or hula dresses to put her in diapers with a rattle. No, I don’t like it.”

Greena is obviously drawn to the more grown-up fashions and didn’t see the appeal of turning her pet into a baby. But perhaps players who are mothers see it a different way. Do the baby items allow mothers to relive the early years when their kids were round squishy things that didn’t ask questions?

Or, in the case of young girls or women without kids, are these items a way to train them as future parents?

A bit of research on virtual babies turns up all sorts of online games where the avatars resemble human toddlers. There is also a published study from 2007 that showed that computerized baby dolls encouraged British teens to become unwed mothers.

Finally, here’s a really strange video of a Second Life figure made into a pregnant Jennifer Lopez-type.

Pet Society Fashion Poll – Ooh, Baby, Baby

This week’s specials in Pet Society featured baby clothes, prams, rattles and other items designed to bring out the parental instinct. Personally, I find these items a little odd. Pet Society is cutesy enough without it going into baby territory. Aren’t we regressing enough by playing with virtual pets?

I realize that most of us in Pet Society are female, about 74% according to my readers’ survey. This figure exactly matches the overall demographics of online casual games. So are these pets now supposed to be our surrogate babies?

I may be alone in my views, as many others seem enthusiastic about the baby gear. Here are some of the most stylish tots in my neighborhood. You can vote for your favorite at the bottom of this post.

Pet Society Fashion Poll – Royal Garments

We’re starting a new feature on Pet Society Anonymous. Each Thursday (or Friday depending on your location), you’ll see several pets wearing the same items and get a chance to vote on your favorite look. Here are the first contestants, all wearing the royal Purple Gown or the King’s Tunic.