Comparing avatar game representation preferences across three age groups
Mark Rice, Ranieri Yung Ing Koh, Quintessence Liu, Qixiang He, Marcus Wan, Vanessa Yeo, Jamie Ng, Wah Pheow Tan · 2013
Avatar representation is an important interaction component of game design. In a game study of 36 mixed-age participants (teenagers, younger adults and older adults), we investigated three distinct types of avatars to differentiate user preferences and interests, primarily to determine if age affected the rating of these modalities. The results identified significant differences in the perceived attractiveness, homophily, engagement and expressiveness of the avatar representations across the three age groups, particularly in relation to the older adults. Moreover, we identified subjective variations in player's preferences towards the movement and customization of the avatar features designed. The implications of this work are briefly discussed.