Musicosm.com
A pioneering Virtual World created by Spottworks, Inc.
- Scott Fedewa's Musicosm.com was the first web site to combine the compelling entertainment value of narrative-based television style programming with the immersive and engaging "virtual world" of a video game.
| Musicosm.com's story introduced a fictional office plaza located on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. The site broke further ground by implementing a highly artistic look using hand-drawn art to create a unique comic book feel. (The hand-drawn "comic book" look was also a necessity given the pre-Pentium processors and 28.8 dial-up modems used by most of the Internet audience in 1997!) |  |
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The office complex was home to Musicosm Records, an independent record label. The characters in the Musicosm story each had a job at the label, plus corresponding interest and expertise in a specific genre of music. These characters served as virtual “hosts” of the Musicosm.com online community. |
The unique vision of Musicosm.com included using these characters and their virtual offices at Musicosm Plaza as a "narrative metaphor" to organize the site's music-related content offerings.
In other words, the characters' fictional offices were full of cool stuff, new music releases, and an insider's perspective on the music business.
Instead of simple (and boring) text menus, Musicosm.com invited users in to explore and participate in its world.
| The virtual world of the Musicosm was extensive. |
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Allowing users to explore just as is now common in video games. |
| New music, prizes, community interaction, and backstage gossip were all integrated into this complex and original entertainment environment. |
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The amazing hand drawn art of Armen Sevada brought the world to life under the creative direction of Larry Malkin and Scott Fedewa. |