Creativity and New Media
As online chatting becomes more apparent in society, more accounts on various platforms are created daily. To separate one profile to another, people will tend to create avatars, uploads pictures, and generally, have something that would greatly distinguish their account from others. Other than that, many platforms such as Bitmoji (which has since been acquired by Snapchat) enable users to create personalized cartoon avatars of themselves. Bitmoji can currently be linked to be used on Snapchat, Facebook, Facebook Messenger, Slack, and Gmail.
Nowadays, there are many websites that allow for creating a personalized avatar. Below are three such examples using Avatar Maker (a Google Chrome extension), Avatar Maker (avatarmaker.com), and Avachara (avachara.com/avatar/). The avatars could be as simple or as fancy as the user wants depending on what he/she wishes to use it for and/or how much he/she is willing to pay for extra features.
In the past, I remember creating individual avatars for online games (they no longer exist). One of which was for a farming game; however, the options were limited and all the avatars would overlap in appearance. Users could choose among about 3 colors for hair and 2 for eyes (black, brown, yellow/blonde; brown, black) and simplistic clothes. I no longer play online games; however, from browsing the web, I realized that games are allowing for a broader range of options such as Sims where users can change the facial expressions of the avatars. In my past encounter with playing Sims Social, I would attribute creativity flow to creating a living space as well as a "life" for the avatar. The avatar would essentially be "me" in an alternate universe (unfortunately, the game is no longer available so I am unable to attach my original avatar). Through avatar games, people could act differently and be "someone else" for a moment. They could experience another life and/or use the platform as a model for something they will work towards in real life (possibly an architect).
Nowadays, there are many websites that allow for creating a personalized avatar. Below are three such examples using Avatar Maker (a Google Chrome extension), Avatar Maker (avatarmaker.com), and Avachara (avachara.com/avatar/). The avatars could be as simple or as fancy as the user wants depending on what he/she wishes to use it for and/or how much he/she is willing to pay for extra features.
In the past, I remember creating individual avatars for online games (they no longer exist). One of which was for a farming game; however, the options were limited and all the avatars would overlap in appearance. Users could choose among about 3 colors for hair and 2 for eyes (black, brown, yellow/blonde; brown, black) and simplistic clothes. I no longer play online games; however, from browsing the web, I realized that games are allowing for a broader range of options such as Sims where users can change the facial expressions of the avatars. In my past encounter with playing Sims Social, I would attribute creativity flow to creating a living space as well as a "life" for the avatar. The avatar would essentially be "me" in an alternate universe (unfortunately, the game is no longer available so I am unable to attach my original avatar). Through avatar games, people could act differently and be "someone else" for a moment. They could experience another life and/or use the platform as a model for something they will work towards in real life (possibly an architect).
Hello Connie,
ReplyDeletePersonalized avatars have really gone a long way. I also remeber when personalized first came out. Features were very limited and nobody really fit the avatars that they created because of the lack of diversity between avatars. It is definitely interesting how many social media platforms nowadays use personalized avatars with so many features. It can be sent through text, used in stories, profile pictures, etc. While a small feature, I believe that it is very fun addition to new media. Creating an online version of yourself can be very fun because you can be creative and add very fun details into your online persona. All in all, it is a very enjoyable experience creating online versions of yourself.