This is a teaser slide deck for Adventures of the Player-Avatar Journey... Get up close and personal, really personal, with the player-avatar journey. Experience the true bond players create with their avatars first hand as we trace the arc of the player-avatar relationship through all five avatar life stages (creation, birth, development, transformation and death). Using gameplay and interaction mechanics, we will create our own personal avatars, in a supplied adventure book, making note of the stories, events, and markers that impact this special relationship. We will end the session discussing the stories and attachment we experienced through this DIY interactive adventure talk and keep the conversation going as we send our avatars out into the world of social media.

1. ADVENTURES OF THE PLAYER
AVATAR JOURNEY
March 2015
Ciara Taylor (aka Trololol)
Experience Designer
@ciaramichelle
Art by Stephanie Wykoff
SXSW

2. Over 12 million people play and
interact socially through World of
Warcraft
MILLION
HOURS
spending on average 20 to 30 hours
a week interacting through an avatar…

3. PREVIOUS STUDY
COMPLETED IN 2010
Primarily focused my research
on World of Warcraft
Small sample of 12 participants
Research methodologies:
Interviews, surveys, diaries,
observational research through
gameplay
Findings covered the full
player-avatar journey, opening
up the opportunity to explore
the full avatar life cycle…

4. The avatar life cycle represents
the journey and relationship be-
tween a player and their avatar

5. CREATION
This is the stage in which the
player creates their avatar and
can “customize” to the
extent of choosing things like
race, gender, class, physical
features.
Reflective of a player’s real
world identity
Opportunity for the player to
become someone else
Selections based off aesthetics
Selections based off character
backstory
DEFINITION
ATTRIBUTES

6. HUNTER ROGUE WARRIOR
WHAT CLASS IS YOUR AVATAR?
circle the chosen class
From an early age the call of
the wild draws some adven-
turers from the comfort of
their homes into the unfor-
giving primal world outside.
Those who endure become
hunters. Masters of their
environment, they are able
to slip like ghosts through
the trees and lay traps in the
paths of their enemies.
For rogues, the only code is
the contract, and their hon-
or is purchased in gold. Free
from the constraints of a con-
science, these mercenaries
rely on brutal and efficient
tactics. Lethal assassins and
masters of stealth, they will
approach their marks from
behind, piercing a vital organ
and vanishing into the shad-
ows before the victim hits the
ground.
For as long as war has raged,
heroes from every race have
aimed to master the art
of battle. Warriors combine
strength, leadership, and
a vast knowledge of arms
and armor to wreak havoc
in glorious combat. Some
protect from the front lines
with shields, locking down
enemies while allies support
the warrior from behind with
spell and bow. Others forgo
the shield and unleash their
rage at the closest threat with
a variety of deadly weapons.

7. ELF
HUMAN
WHAT RACE IS YOUR AVATAR?
circle the chosen race
The ancient elf is notorious
for their ageless beauty. They
draw magic from nature and
have the ability to create en-
chantments to give objects
special abilities.
The tribal humans, descen-
dants of half-giant warriors,
are known for their diplomacy,
ability to gain trust with other
races and strength with sword
and mace specialization.
TROLL
The savage trolls are infa-
mous for their use of dark
voodoo magic, hatred for
other races and ranged dps
specialization.

8. WHAT PHYSICAL FEATURES
DOES YOUR AVATAR POSSESS?
circle the chosen features
FACIAL
FEATURES
HAIR
STYLES
OVERALL
UNIQUENESS

9. LET’S ACCESSORIZE!
choose your avatar’s attire by circling items below

10. LET’S DRAW!
take all the different characteristics you selected for your avatar
and sketch them onto your avatar silhouette
don’t forget to give your avatar a name

11. LET’S ROLL!
roll to see if your avatar continues on the journey

12. DEATH
This is the stage in which the
player decides not to play any
longer. This stage can also be
referred to as inactivity, stasis,
neglect, deletion depending
on how the relationship was
ended.
Logging their avatar out at
an in-game grave of the hero
of the avatar’s class
Giving away their in-game
items to friends or their alt
character
Emptying their guild bank
Reflecting on screenshots,
achievements and in-game
memories
DEFINITION
ATTRIBUTES

13. R.I.P
reflect on your player-avatar journey and write how you are
feeling and the impact it has had on you

14. MORE TO COME
CREATION
BIRTH
DEVELOPMENT
TRANSFORMATION
DEATH
Attend my talk to learn about
all of the stages!