Avatar, Assembled: The Social and Technical Anatomy of Digital Bodies

Cover
Table of Contents
Figures
Tables
Acknowledgments
Introduction: (Dis)Assembling the Avatar (Jaime Banks)
	The Vitruvian Avatar
	Avatarial Assemblages
	This Volume
	References
Part One: The Social
	Chapter One: Life & Death: The Meaning of (Digital) Existence (Teresa Lynch / Nicholas L. Matthews)
		Boundaries, Functionality, and the Significance of Life and Death
		Technological Constraints Shaping Life and Death
		Consequences and Functioning of Death
		Layers in the Sociality of Avatar Death
		Boundaries and Ethics
		References
	Chapter Two: Shape & Size: The Body Electric (James M. Falin / Jorge Peña)
		Creation and Selection
		Crafting Physiques: Strategies, Limitations, and Motivations
		Avatar Physiques’ Impact on Players
		Weight Hacking and Other Futures
		References
	Chapter Three: Race & Otherness:
The Utopian Promise and Divided
Reality (Kristine L. Nowak)
		Considering the Utopian Promise and the Racial Divide
		Perspective Taking and Identity Tourism
		The Utopian Promise—Kept and Broken
		Futures of Avatarial Otherness
		References
	Chapter Four: Boobs & Butts: The Babes Get the Gaze (Jesse Fox)
		Interpreting the Digital as the Real
		Social and Biological Roots of Gendered Bodies
		Fixations and (Hetero)Normative Gazes
		Objectification or Empowerment?
		Futures of Sexualized Bodies
		References
	Chapter Five: Face & Hair: Looks That Change Behaviors (Sun Joo (Grace) Ahn)
		Digital Faces Versus Physical Faces
		Hair as a Key Customization Feature
		Transformed Social Interactions
		Digital Doppelgängers—Reflections with Minds of Their Own
		Blurred Boundaries
		References
	Chapter Six: Voice & Sound: Player Contributions to Speech (Hanna Wirman / Rhys Jones)
		The High Cost of Avatar Sound
		Avatar Voices as Co-Constructed
			Identification
			Interpretation
			Negotiation
		Voice as Critical to Character
		References
	Chapter Seven: Gesture & Movement:
Indices of Presence (Sita Popat)
		Gesturing to Others
		Gesturing to Oneself
		Mapping Gestural Qualities
		Embodied Identity
		Corporeality and Immersion
		Note
		References
	Chapter Eight: Names & Labels: Strategic (De)Identification (Mark R. Johnson)
		Names and Labels as Identity Signifiers
		Names, Labels, and Gameplay
			The Safety of the Alphabet
			Anonymity and High-stakes Gambling
			Clan Tags and Group Identities
		The Future of Digital Names
		References
	Chapter Nine: Gear & Weaponry: Market Ideologies of Functional and Cosmetic Items (William Robinson / David Calvo)
		A Snapshot of Functional Items
		Diablo and a Crisis of Value
		Digital Items as Buy-In
		References
	Chapter Ten: Companions & Vehicles: Permutations of Digital Entities (Rabindra A. Ratan)
		Digital Companions
		Digital Vehicles
		Coming Full Circle … Well, Triangle
		References
	Chapter Eleven: Alignments & Alliances: Associations of Value (Kristine Ask / Mark Chen)
		Alignment Through Alliances: Systems
		Alignment Through Alliances: Factions
		Alignment Through Alliances: Players
		Alignment Through Alliances: Technologies
		Avatars <3 Alliances
		Note
		References
	Chapter Twelve: Morality & Personality: Perfect and Deviant Selves (Matthew Grizzard / Changhyun Ahn)
		Personality and Morality Defined
			Personality
			Morality
		Media Research on Personality and Morality
		Character Types in Videogames
		The Interaction of Character and Player’s Personality and Morality
		Morality and Degrees of Me and Not-Me
		Note
		References
	Chapter Thirteen: Relationships &
Reputation: Part of the Main(frame) (Nicholas David Bowman)
		Relationships
			Functional and Ludic Relationships
			Social and Narrative Relationships
		Reputations
			Functional Reputations
			Moral Reputations
		A Part of the Main
		References
	Chapter Fourteen: Headcanon & Lore: Owning the Narrative (John Carter Mcknight)
		Explicating Headcanon and Lore
		Gaps, Queering, Fix-it
		Canon Inputs: Mechanics, Narrative, Appearance
		Creative and Social Outputs
		References
	Chapter Fifteen: Cosplay & Conventions: Exporting the Digita (Nicolle Lamerichs)
		Costuming and Conventions
		Embodiment in Cosplay
		Embodiment and Affect
		Cosplay as a “Third Layer”
		References
Part Two: The Technical
	Chapter Sixteen: Rules & Mechanics: Parameters for Interactivity (Andy Boyan / Jaime Banks)
		Rules and Avatars
		Mechanics and Avatars
		Rules and Mechanics in Emergent Play
		Avatar Control and Parameter Literacies
		Note
		References
	Chapter Seventeen: Achievements & Levels: Building Affirmational Resources (John A. Velez)
		What Is an “Achievement?”
		Videogames, Avatars, and Repairing Bad Moods
		Achievements and Coping with Bad Moods
		Avatars’ Potential Role in Achievement-Based Self-Affirmation
		References
	Chapter Eighteen: Spells & Statistics: Inside the Black Box
(Christopher A. Paul)
		World of Warcraft and the Emergence of Metagaming
		NBA 2k16, Hero Ball, and Perfecting Myplay
		Clash Royale and the “Twisted” Meta
		Avatar (and Player) in a Box
		References
	Chapter Ninteen: Class & Role: Frameworks for (Inter)Action
(Oskar Milik)
		Classes, Roles, and Norms
		Class and Role as Player-Avatar Feedback Systems
		Social Classes and Interactional Roles
		References
	Chapter Twenty: Resources & Inventories: Useful Fictions
(Isaac Knowles)
		A Brief History
		Resources as Game Artifacts
		Inventories as Avatar Artifacts
			Capacity
			Interactivity
			Inclusivity
			Commutativity
		Inventories as Useful Fictions
		Note
		References
	Chapter Twenty-One: Code & Logic: Procedural Desire (Peter Kudenov)
		Defining Code
		Perspectives on Code
		The Logics Code Implements
		Procedural Desire
		References
	Chapter Twenty-Two: Glitches & Lag: Unanticipated Variables
(Mark R. Johnson)
		Flying, Bouncing, and Standbying in Halo 2
		Glitched Characters and Player Experience
		Lag and Avatar Perception
		The Fluidity of Digital Bodies
		References
	Chapter Twenty-Three: Pixels & Polygons: The Stuff of Light-Beings (Roger Altizer, Jr.)
		Avatars as Real Abstractions
		More Pixels, Better Avatars?
		Polygons: The Key to 3D
		A Power Problem
		The Novelty of Light-Beings
		References
	Chapter Twenty-Four: Embellishment & Effects: Seduction by Style (Dominic Kao / D. Fox Harrell)
		Juiciness and Instrumentality
		Toward Embellishment: Effects as Seductive Details
		Avatar Embellishments and their (In)Efficiencies
			Simple Avatars Perform as Well as Embellished Ones
			Dynamic Embellishment Can Improve Performance Over Static Appearances
			Self-similar Embellishment Is More Impactful
		Graphical Elements and Ways of (Scientifically) Seeing
		Note
		References
	Chapter Twenty-Five: Perspective & Physics: Frames for Play (Ryan Bown / Gabe Olson)
		Physics in Player-Avatar Connections
		True Physics are Boring Physics
		Perspective as an Experiential Frame for Physics
		Physics as an Experiential Frame for Interactivity
		Breaking and Bending the Frames
		Physics and Playful Experimentation
		References
	Chapter Twenty-Six: Mobility & Context: Of Being and Being There
(Edward Downs)
		A Logic of Being
		Game History as Change in Mobility
		Motion as Aesthetic
		Being There
		Situating Gameplay in the Dialectic
		Note
		References
	Chapter Twenty-Seven: Engines & Platforms: Functional Entanglements (Casey O’Donnell)
		Four Facets of Platforms
		Engines as Philosophical Frameworks
		The Precision and Messiness of Tools
		The Importance of Entanglement
		References
	Chapter Twenty-Eight: Interfaces & Mods: Customizing the Gateway (Nathan Stevens / Anthony Limperos)
		Historical Roots and Rise of Interface Mods
		Altering the Avatar Gateway
		From Modding Characters to Modding Players
		References
	Chapter Twenty-Nine: Controllers & Inputs: Masters of Puppets (Daniel Roth / Jean-Luc Lugrin / Sebastian Von Mammen / Marc Erich Latoschik)
		The User as the Controller
		The Controller as an Input Device
		Controlling Avatars Through Control Schemes
		A Brief History of Controllers and Control Schemes
		Avatar Embodiment and Virtual Body Ownership
		The Future in Autonomy and Hybrid Systems
		References
	Chapter Thirty: Licensing & Law: Who Owns an Avatar? (Tyler T. Ochoa / Jaime Banks)
		The Limited Logic of License Agreements
		Copyright and Avatars as “Works”
		On Joint Authorship and Ownership
		The Value and Future of Avatar Ownership
		References
Contributors
Ludography
Index