SmallWorlds

Article summary

SmallWorlds was an online virtual world and social network service created by Outsmart Games, a game development company based in Auckland, New Zealand. The virtual world used Adobe Flash and ran inside a web browser, as Google Chrome was most recommended when playing this game. It integrated with YouTube, Flickr, SoundCloud, and a number of other Web 2.0 services. The game had thousands of players, peaking in 2012 with a total of 3.8 million visits globally from July to August. It was announced in March 2018 that the game would be shut down due to shrinking player numbers and financial struggles. It closed on 8 April 2018. A message on the SmallWorlds website stated that the company was in talks and hoped to resume service soon. As of December 2019, there is a new message on the SmallWorlds website indicating that developers are working on a new project called TownCenter. It also says that it will be "founded on similar principles, content, and offers new life for those who called SmallWorlds 'home'.".

Key claims

1. release date: 2008-12-01 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
2. The record states that the release date is "2008-12-01". What evidence would count against this claim?
3. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
4. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

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