“Video games have increasingly being deliberated as a propaganda tool to influence people with regards to some targeted matters. Design of game’s character plays an important role for such objectives.” (Avatar warrior: A Kansei analysis)
With the new advancements in technology and the growing popularity of it amongst the diverse generations, online games have a significant impact as a propaganda tools, both subtly and not subtly, that influence their audience’s opinions on a vast number of subjects.
When creating my character, the first decision that I had to make was the race of the character. While I thought that the human was the most aesthetically pleasing to the eye, the character descriptions really intrigued me because they subtly focus on circumstances that happen to individuals in their daily lives. An example of this would be heartbreak or death, which is subtly implied when they mention how a race goes through something that it is not expected to come back from, but it comes back stronger. However, when I saw the Sylvari race, I immediately knew what I wanted for my character. That was an important decision for me to make because it brought out reflections that I see of myself. They looked so mysterious and magical; it drew me in because personally, I’ve always been into magical ideas and concepts. I love mermaids and the stories around them so much. Therefore, when I saw the Sylvari, it resembled a mermaid in its essence because of how mystical, seductive and magical it looked. Additionally, I feel that I may have been more drawn to the Sylvari because it was the only race that would have been directly classed as feminine in society due to the subtle hints that our cultures use to identify individuals into genders – a subtle example of how a social constraint can further influence the ideas and classification systems in individuals.
What is so interesting about creating a character in a virtual reality is that you have the ability to become whoever and whatever you want to be, although that applies within the limits of the game, it is a massive outbreak from the constraints in reality. I chose piercing amber/yellow eyes because I think they bring out her other features in a beautiful way, and it’s a very unconventional eye colour. I wanted to exist in a world that is as far away from reality as possible, perhaps that’s because in virtual games, we are made to feel as though anything is possible, as opposed to in society where we are held down by social constraints.
When choosing my avatar’s purpose, I chose for her to be a ‘Mesmer‘. This bothered me at first because she had to wear a mask that hid her face, which I thought was very beautiful and wanted to show. However, I later started to view this as a reflection of our social realities as we are all wearing masks, depending on what is accepted, or even idealized in society. This does not apply to everyone all of the time, however, it does apply to certain circumstances in our everyday lives. This taps into the idea of gender essentialism, which suggests that gender is a fixed part of who we are as individuals. Furthermore, the mask almost acts as a social constraint that blinds us to the influenced ideologies and thoughts that our cultures have placed in our minds that are deemed ‘correct‘ and ‘universal‘. I also chose for my avatar to wear Harley’s smile because I am always smiling and I really admire it when other individuals smile at me. I didn’t realize that I made that decision for that reason until now. My avatar has big eyes and long, dark hair, just like I do. She also has a fairly curvy body, which is similar to mine. I didn’t realize that I made those decisions as a reflection of the way that I look, but it turns out that I did.
Certain choices that were unavailable to me in creating my character were choices that revolved around my character’s body. There were only options to choose a body in its entirety but you could not alter the sizes of different body parts. I found this interesting because it is yet another example of how the social expectations of society exist as bodies are immediately classed into five body types. However, the truth is we all have different body types and they are all so diverse. For example, not every slim individual has thin legs, but in Guild Wars 2, the unavailability of altering the sizes of different body parts confines us subtly into perceiving bodies in limited ways. Personally, I feel like this is also true in reality. Additionally, I noticed that the armor available for the female avatars to wear is subtly trying to be seductive as it reveals the chest area. Perhaps this is a way for the game makers to draw a larger target audience to the game, however, it does indeed add to gender stereotypes.
Choosing the right name was the one of the most important decisions to me. This is because I view my character as a reflection of myself to an extent, but a version that I created. In a sense, we don’t really name ourselves but this gave me the opportunity to recreate myself with no limitations. I chose the name “Lilah Rose Ivy” because the name Lilah makes me think of a fearless warrior – one that stands up for herself and what she believes in, but also one that is mysteriously charming. Roses are my favorite flowers and I think Rose is a beautiful name because it’s so delicate, it adds to her femininity. I chose Ivy because it adds the danger element to her character as ivy is often associated with poison.
-B