Asia Overload

I hope that by now all of most of our readers know that Ameba, a Japanese internet technology company, is the creator of Pico. One year before Ameba brought us Pico to English speakers, they launched the Pigg social avatar community - one of the most popular and successful virtual worlds in Japan, having attracted millions of users in its first year.

Pigg is the template for Pico.

Aside from being in Japanese and some other very minor differences (read more about them here), Pigg and Pico are the same.

And that, dear readers, is the point of this rant.

How many more Asian-themed rooms must I (and the rest of you) endure?

As of today, we have quite a few Chinese and Japanese-inspired rooms, and all of the food and furniture and clothes that all come along with Travel rooms.

Ameba, for the love of God, can you please start developing non-Asian Travel rooms for Pico? Something new and exciting. I'm tired of hand-me-downs from Pigg. (Although I do, want to see the fishing game and the clothing basics in a rainbow array of colours carry over to Pico ... and I know Peggy will DIE if she can't get Hello Kitty items [1] [2]).

There's a whole wide word out there!

What do you think about ... ?

• North America:
• Theme park room with rides, carnival games and yummy foods like cotton candy, corn dogs and deep fried everything.
• Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration room with candied pumpkin, pan de muerto ("bread of the dead"), and sugar skulls to eat; festive masks and a parade.

• South America:
• Rain forest with tree huts and games that reinforce the importance of preserving our natural resources and a farm field merchant that sells fruits and vegetables.
• Soccer stadium that has a simple goal scoring game with a store where you can buy sporting items.
• Latin club with new dances and club clothing, playing your choice of contemporary cumbia, samba or bossa nova music.
• Greenland:
• A wintery wonderland with sculptured snow and ice landscapes, mountains, and a colourful village - complete with all the hustle and bustle of rural life
• A whale tour that takes you on an over and underwater cruise to explore marine life.
• Europe:
• Trendy fashion districts in England and Paris.
• Art museum in Italy with an artist workshop activity to create your own Pico masterpiece.
• Time travel back to romanticized European monarchy (king/queen, roi/la reine, czar/czarina) with a shop where you can buy ornate furniture and royal garments.
• Africa:
• Safari tour with a photography game to learn about and photograph rare (and/or endangered) wildlife.
• Southern Asia:
• An Indian marketplace with spicy foods and vibrant decorated clothing - saris and salwar kameez for ladies, dhoti, lungi and kurta-pyjama for gents.
• A recreation of the beautiful Taj Mahal.
• Cricket match game and clothing/equipment to purchase.
• Oceania:
• A surfing competition to become the "Big Kahuna".
• Plantation-style beach resort facade, lobby and hallway, and luxurious room.
• A beautiful tropical park with exotic plants and flowers to relax and enjoy nature.
• Fantasy/Science Fiction:
• Atlantis underwater city.
• Space travel to the moon.

Do you have any great ideas for more Travel and Time Travel rooms in Pico? Tell us about it! Leave your idea in comments or on our Facebook discussion board.