If the state of Avatars in my Xbox Live Friends list is any indication, all my friends are apparently closet Master Chiefs, attendees of PAX 09, steam punk aficionados and Halo Waypoint award whores. Seriously, that floating ball thing is attached to almost every other person on that list.
However, you may want to hold back buying anymore doodads for your little digital likeness, according to 1UP through a recent Microsoft patent called "Avatar Individualized by Physical Characteristic." This patent is the ultimate form of corporate digital "guilt tripping," in which player's Avatars are designed to reflect the weight and shape of the people they are representing. Nevermind that their console exemplifies the ultimate in a sedentary life by not only promoting lazy living, but presenting products that grant wish-fulfillment of being more active human beings.
It's like watching Nickelodeon on a Sunday afternoon, only to be told in some patronizing condescending PSA to go outside and play. "No disingenuous corporate watchdog group," we will stand up and say, "We will not be patronized!" Does Jim Sterling want to be told that his Avatar thinks he's unhealthily overweight? No! Does Brad Nicholson want to be reminded that his obsession with physical fitness borders on pathological OCD? Maybe!
Of course, we all know this is probably tied to some WiiFit-like game for Project Natal. The patent says it functions by "Linking the avatar to a physical characteristic of a user provides leverage to provide incentives or constraints that can encourage good behavior (e.g., healthy behaviors, virtuous behaviors, etc.)" There's some other third party trickery going on, such as blood and glucose monitors, so this service will probably work like the Miis do in WiiFit, which really isn't so bad, especially if they don't force it on players. But do they really have to tell us we are fat? This is America. We like being fat, just not told so. Jeeze.
Contest:
11:00 PM on 12.19.2009
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seriously though, sweater vests
Clearly, you are forgetting that Spongebob Squarepants is still on the air.
The lead singer from AFI.
So dont give me any of that Ben 2.0 sass...I'm no award whore
actually Jim i think he mis-spelled "impotent"
Oui.
Sure, corparationss might just be looking to sell something, but from a tough love perspective, don't you want to live and see all those future games? Because we're not talking people tacking on an extra couple pounds, people are growing to the size of two and half people on average (on average for my eyes since I moved to Heffer, Texas and feel like the only person without a gut hanging over their belt.)
Little weight is one thing, but when the obese are the norm...Jeez, do SOMETHING else before plopping down to game, for your own sake!
But then again....if those fatties start dropping off, they put on those pounds in the first place from gaming obscene amounts of hours and if they die maybe I could win more matches once in a while, since they are also freakishly skilled with controllers.
Okay, changed my mind. Happy meals all around!
Jim's fat = Arnold has a football head.
Sorry guys, but I am married. You cannot have me.
Also, in order for it to look like Jim, you need to be able to give the heads extra chins and thicker necks. Ah too bad it sucks too much for you to be able to do that, eh?
Jim has a football fat.
From a female perspective, this brings up some interesting issues... especially given the female propensity for eating disorders and tying our self-perception of attractiveness directly to our weight (which men seem to have less of a problem with). Even that ultra skinny gal in the middle won't be thin enough for some girls... then again, if they see that avatar amongst other "reality" based avatars, maybe they would get a better perception of how skinny they actually are... I don't know, but it does bring up some interesting issues.
Overall though, weight really has little to do with physical fitness. I'm a total slug who gets winded just looking for the TV remote, yet I'm fairly slim. My best friend is incredibly fit and does a lot of hiking, but she will always have a rounded shape and will achieve skinny. Again, this whole idea might backfire unless the avatar is "representative" of physical fitness and not actual appearance... in which case my rounded friend would be a skinny avatar - and I guess I might be represented more as "Jim-sized" (and the real Jim is likely more fit than I am and might have a skinny avatar too).
Eh... interesting concept but unless it's tied to actual fitness levels and not physical appearance, I don't see it being "real world" effective.
my avatar is prolly fatter then I am as it's average and you don't see any bones sticking out on him :-)
you bag on people relentlessly. don't get your nipples in a twist when others do it to you.