To move your avatar in SimSafety, use the “up” arrow key to walk forwards and the “down” arrow key to walk backwards. The “left” and “right” keys rotate your avatar on the spot. Press ‘Page Up’ to make your avatar airborne, and ‘Page Down’ to lower it back to the ground. The arrow keys move your avatar in the relevant direction whilst flying. You can also use your mouse by clicking on buttons on the movement menu.

To change your view on screen, you can change the camera angle. Use the scroll wheel on the mouse to zoom in and out. If you zoom in to the maximum level then you will enter ‘mouselook’ mode which allows you to look around using the mouse from the avatar’s perspective. Another option is to go to View > Mouselook at the top of the screen. To exit mouselook mode simply zoom out again using the scroll wheel, or press the Esc button. If you press and hold Ctrl + Alt and hold down the left mouse button whilst moving the mouse around, you can point the camera in all directions, giving a much better viewing experience. You can also use the camera movement tool by clicking on the buttons to move the camera around.

Local Chat

Avatars within a ten meter range of each other can communicate via the Local Chat text box. Type into this box and press ‘Say’ to speak to other avatars. You can also choose the option ‘Shout’, which has a wider range if you want avatars further away to hear you. To view a history of all chat, click the ‘local chat’ button.

Instant Message

The second way of communicating in SimSafety is via private Instant Message. Click the ‘Communicate’ button at the bottom of the screen; choose the ‘Contacts’ tab and then select whichever avatar you wish to talk to from the list of ‘Friends’ or, if you wish to communicate to a number of people, ‘Groups’. Clicking the IM/Call button on the right brings up a window in which you can chat privately to another avatar.

There are many objects within SimSafety that are scripted to allow interaction between the object and the avatar; for example, touching a door will open it. These objects can be interacted with by right clicking and selecting ‘Touch’ from the menu, or simply by left clicking. To sit on an object, right click and select ‘Sit Here’ from the menu.

Objects occasionally also give note cards or objects when you touch them. When touching an object that offers an object, you can touch either ‘Keep’ or ‘Discard’. Choosing the option ‘Keep’ stores the object in your inventory.