What is an avatar?
February 10, 2009
What it is, part one
As an English major I like Meadows’ comparison of an avatar to the protagonist in an “interactive narrative.” I agree that there’s a scale with the three types of avatars mentioned in reference to customization and control. Mario can’t be customized, but the video game user has most of the control over his actions. On the other hand, the Simms are extremely customizable right down to their emotions, but users cannot control the characters directly.
What it is, part two
I agree with the first statement mentioned in this section: “An avatar is a social creature dancing on the border between fact and fiction.” This statement completely summarizes this section. With sites like YouTube allowing anyone to create and post videos of themselves the line between fact and fiction can be blurred. Though the person may be real are they representing their true self? In the case of “the three white girls from YouTube,” I don’t agree that the girls should have led the public to believe that they were genuine.
What it is, part three
I understand the concept of a 3-D avatar sharing all three levels of perspective. Also, I agree with Meadows’ claim that chess has several avatars (“the perspective of the player” and “the individual piece.”) This observation helped me to understand what Meadows was trying to say in this section.
What it is, part four
I agree with Meadows’ claims that an avatar (whether 2-D or 3-D) is involved in character development. What avatars do within their environment is determined by “the metaphor” chosen for the game/website. That metaphor may be building a family in the Simms or rescuing a princess in Super Mario Brothers.
