Creating an avatar.

With all of the virtual worlds I’ve been joining this quarter, from OurWorld to Second Life, and EVE Online… I’ve had to create more characters in the past few weeks than I’ve made since I started playing video games. This really has gotten me thinking about what goes into creating that perfect avatar for a particular world. First, I will admit that it depends on how much I already have invested in the game as to how much I develop my avatar. I didn’t really enjoy EVE online and didn’t feel like paying for a subscription, so I didn’t put much effort or time into the character. After spending some time in second life, and eventually going back a few more times, I’ve slowly developed my character as a more life-like virtual representation of myself.

I created a virtual me in second life as I thought that encompassed the true meaning of the world, to create a virtual representation of myself where I could truly live a second life. Also, in most games I like to create myself as when I play I like to imagine myself in that world, rather than role play as another person or character.

However, I have expanded with OurWorld and created a female character that looks nothing like me. This is a new direction for me in video games, and I’m really enjoying the experience. Although I haven’t yet graduated to a more life-like avatar that is not-at-all reminiscent of myself, I am beginning to enjoy controlling another character. I can role-play and mess around with the obnoxious teenage boys in OurWorld who seem to try and hit on everything online, or I can simply figure out how well I can dress my avatar on a fake budget.