Avatar, Assembled

The Social and Technical Anatomy of Digital Bodies

By: Jaime Banks (Editor)

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Paperback | 17 November 2017

At a Glance

Paperback
344 Pages

Edition Type
New edition

Dimensions(cm)
22.86 x 15.24 x 2.54

Paperback

$63.47

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Avatars, Assembled is a curated volume that unpacks videogame and virtual world avatars-not as a monolithic phenomenon (as they are usually framed) but as sociotechnical assemblages, pieced together from social (human-like) features like gender and clothing to logical (technology-like) features like code and statistics. Each chapter accounts for the empirical, theoretical, technical, and popular understandings of these avatar "components"-60 in total-altogether offering a nuanced explication of avatars-as-assemblages as they matter in contemporary society and in individual experience. The volume is a "crossover" piece in that, while it delves into complex ideas, it is written in a way that will be accessible and interesting to students, researchers, designers, and practitioners alike. Although, in this way, the book offers value to a broad audience, it would be useful to academic courses on online identities, digital embodiment, digital culture, or even as a supplement to technical game design courses focusing on character development.

Industry Reviews

"Much like the multiple customization options many games offer to videogame players, Avatar, Assembled offers the reader multiple fascinating angles from which to understand game avatars. Covering the social and technical aspects that make up our digital representations, the book draws on specific game examples, highlights well-known avatars, and brings in classic as well as cutting-edge theory about how and why these representations come to matter to us so much. For games scholars and interested players, this volume is not to be missed." -Mia Consalvo Professor, Communication Studies Canada Research Chair in Game Studies and Design Concordia University (Montreal, Canada)

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