The Faces of Online Gaming

[The Continental]

The New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com) currently has a web based slide show (http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2007/06/15/magazine/20070617_AVATAR_SLIDESHOW_1.html) picturing a number of MMO gamers side by side with their online avatars. The dichotomy runs the gamut from interesting to... lets say, really interesting.

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/06/15/magazine/ava1.jpg

First one to mention the robot kid is guaranteed a seat in hell. Seriously.

[Lekon]

These are all from a book called "Alter Egos" Which I picked up last week, It's remarkable, though it has quite a few gold farmers as "players"

The book also has short interview/biographies of each of these Alter Ego folks, one of the best is the guy who runs "History of Knights" (Or is it Legend of Knights?) Some huge Korean Lineage 2 guild. The picture of him in game is him leading 600 people in a castle defense. Scary.

Also, for note: That robot kid is 33.

[Heretic Machine]

WTF is that guy eating?

[SalaciousPuck]

Actually, in cases like robot *man*, the escapism in MMO's actually seems to have some redeeming value. I don't play the games, but could see the appeal if I had to deal with those kind of hardships.

[Kem0sabe]

The very term "robot kid" is ofensive... and yes, you are going to hell for that.

[Kielaran]

Actually, in cases like robot *man*, the escapism in MMO's actually seems to have some redeeming value. I don't play the games, but could see the appeal if I had to deal with those kind of hardships.

Agreed. It would be a place where he could escape and not be discriminated against by looks. I would think that it could be almost theraputic (if you can avoid griefers and such)

[Adam Blue]

Tommy Graves is in bedford, Tx? Never heard of the guy.

[Goronmon]

The very term "robot kid" is ofensive... and yes, you are going to hell for that.I think he meant the kid who plays a character that looks like a robot...

[cp#]

Saw this on reddit a few months ago. LOL@the fat kid

[Adam Blue]

No, he meant robot kid, as in the kid has components attached to him that make him robot-like.

[LeadBetter]

Looking at those pics I'm reminded of the Otherland series of books by Tad Williams.

[Roman]

Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. AAAAGH WHAT THE FUCK

[randir14]

I hope the people wearing matching clothes had those clothes before making the character. Also I don't think that's a kid...he has a beard.

[Adam Blue]

I hope the people wearing matching clothes had those clothes before making the character. Also I don't think that's a kid...he has a beard.

But he's also a robot, and that's not possible.

[Gil]

The Robot Man was born in 1974 according to that article, so he's hardly a kid.

[The Continental]

I think he meant the kid who plays a character that looks like a robot...Yeah, I did mean that. Didn't notice the age either, thought the patch around his neck was a scar from his tube, not facial hair.

[Deadend]

Yeah, I did mean that. Didn't notice the age either, thought the patch around his neck was a scar from his tube, not facial hair.
But his characters name is Rourini Kenshin, so who gives a shit?

[JimmyDanger]

Wow. Just wow. Whatta bunch of champs.

[T-Rex Commando]

http://images.wikia.com/starwars/images/thumb/8/82/IG-88.jpg/250px-IG-88.jpg

Jason Rowe-88 (aka Rurouni Kenshin) WILL fuck you up. Don't piss him off.

...I imagine hell will mostly be like sitting through "The Sound of Music" over and over again.

[Smoof]

Fuck Second Life.

[Schnoogs]

Wow....wow.

[Returner]

they need to do more of those just not second life the game sucks and the people who play it scare me.

[dirtbag]

Agreed. It would be a place where he could escape and not be discriminated against by looks. I would think that it could be almost theraputic (if you can avoid griefers and such)

Yeah, it looks like he may have CP, where your brain works fine, but it's so poorly connected to your body that you may have varying degrees of difficulty communicating, functioning, etc.

One of my wife's old coworkers had CP, and you couldn't tell at all. Then there's another girl we know who can't talk or effectively control her movements, and she's stuck in a wheelchair (in a similar pose to this guy).

[Steele Johnson]

WTF is that guy eating?

Eating? If he's eating from a straw, then he's got more problems than we think.

[Codicier]

Man, that Harisu girl from Korea is pretty good looking.

Urge to play Lineage II...rising...

[Shodan2020]

Hahahaha, they had Anshe Chung in there! She's the one who was trying to sue people for "infringing" on her creations or something or maybe she was the one who was assaulted with flying penises... bah I don't give a shit, it's Second Life.

[Nicodemus]

Reminds me of those car commercials that match cars with their similar-appearing drivers. Except weird. Also, the black guy and the French secret agent guy look pimp.

I bet there are a lot of things you could learn about someone from what kind of online character he makes: what gender, race, appearance they choose. Some players in the slide show are definitely similar in appearance to their avatars (matching clothes?). Makes me want to read more Daedalus Project (http://www.nickyee.com/daedalus/) stuff.

Whenever I play a game where I make my own character, I never go out of my way to make him similar to me. I usually just pick whatever looks most bad ass, although I always end up playing a dude. Freud might say that makes me sexist or insecure. Maybe gay with some mommy issues.

What about you guys: do your avatars ever resemble you physically?

[m0nk3yb0y]

It says the guy with CP spends 80 hours in game a week. I don't care if he has CP, I'll still make fun of him for that. And come on, he is hooked up to machinery and plays a character that looks like a robot. That's funny. Making fun of him for having a disability would be mean, but just pointing out the fact that he has one isn't.

And to reiterate others' comments, fuck Second Life.

[cp#]

Poor kid. He should be playing WoW not fucking SWG.

[Mr. Lake]

I have a confesion to make... I AM the Chinese woman who roams cyberspace as a black man.

[captainstrombosis]

"robot kid" is playing a character in composite armor. Not an actual robot.

He should quit SWG though...

And el oh el at the noob that started playing EQ in 2003.

[LilAbner]

First one to mention the robot kid is guaranteed a seat in hell. Seriously.

I had no idea what you were talking about until I actually went through the slideshow. Then I laughed my fucking ass off!!!!!!

Hell, here I come.

[Heretic Machine]

Eating? If he's eating from a straw, then he's got more problems than we think.

No, that thing... in front of him... with the eyeball-like thing floating in the middle. WTF is that?!

[Joestar]

Man, that Harisu girl from Korea is pretty good looking.

Urge to play Lineage II...rising...

Yeah, HE is. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harisu)

[JRR006]

I found the people who looked anything like their avatars more surprising than the ones who don't. When I create a character, I don't think of it as an extension of myself. Perhaps that's why I'm comfortable playing as a male or female - it's not me, it's a character in the self-contained game world.

[cp#]

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/06/15/magazine/ava5.jpg

[Psykoboy2]

This was good.

For a while.

Now I can't stand that pic on the front page.

Fucking haunting me.

[Smoof]

Yeah, HE is. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harisu)

That's fucked-up.
But, I suppose as long as the dangle is missing and things are in the correct places...I'd poke it...

[Chameleo]

What about you guys: do your avatars ever resemble you physically?

i usually make the hottest chick possible, or some random guy. usually never looks like me.

unless its a sports game.

[Psykoboy2]

That's fucked-up.
But, I suppose as long as the dangle is missing and things are in the correct places...I'd poke it...

You said it yourself, so I'll just repeat it:

That's fucked-up.


There's ALL kinds of analogies to throw your way that would probably make you reconsider that statement. But, you know, to each their own.

[Disgustipated]

http://images.wikia.com/starwars/images/thumb/8/82/IG-88.jpg/250px-IG-88.jpg

Jason Rowe-88 (aka Rurouni Kenshin) WILL fuck you up. Don't piss him off.

...I imagine hell will mostly be like sitting through "The Sound of Music" over and over again.

It says the guy with CP spends 80 hours in game a week. I don't care if he has CP, I'll still make fun of him for that. And come on, he is hooked up to machinery and plays a character that looks like a robot. That's funny. Making fun of him for having a disability would be mean, but just pointing out the fact that he has one isn't.

And to reiterate others' comments, fuck Second Life.

Holy fuck I can't stop laughing. Funniest shit I've read in a while.

Poor kid. He should be playing WoW not fucking SWG.

That's his parent's punishment to him for being disabled. "YOU LOOK LIKE ROBOT, YOU PLAY LIKE ONE TOO OR NO MORE CABBAGE!"

[51|RandoM]

I make the smallest character possible, just because of my experience playing RVR in DAoC.

I started out as a Firbolg Bard. In RvR, it is pretty hard to find a BIGGER target than a Firbolg Bard. Matter of fact, there isn't one.

Ever since then, any time I play a MMO that might have PvP, I always choose the smallest model possible.

Same thing for FPS. My RA2 clan always played as the default female model. It had the same hitbox as the rest of the models, but as far as actually seeing it to shoot at it, it was the smallest target.

[Chameleo]

I make the smallest character possible, just because of my experience playing RVR in DAoC.

I started out as a Firbolg Bard. In RvR, it is pretty hard to find a BIGGER target than a Firbolg Bard. Matter of fact, there isn't one.

Ever since then, any time I play a MMO that might have PvP, I always choose the smallest model possible.

Same thing for FPS. My RA2 clan always played as the default female model. It had the same hitbox as the rest of the models, but as far as actually seeing it to shoot at it, it was the smallest target.

so you've played a gnome i take it then. (WoW)

[51|RandoM]

so you've played a gnome i take it then. (WoW)

I only dabbled in WoW RvR, playing the Orc Shaman(oh man, here comes the shit), that was a carbon copy of my Beta character.

Yes, I was an orc shaman, back when they were uber. I lived through every single nerf, and stuck around until they got turned into raid mana pots.

I found WoW RvR to not be worth my time. It is kind of sad. Your RvR/PvP has to be more fun than CS Source. If you can't deliver that, I'll just play CS source.

[Lizard Dude]

That's fucked-up.
But, I suppose as long as the dangle is missing and things are in the correct places...I'd poke it...

For some reason I read this post alone while quickly scanning through and thought it was talking about the robot kid.

[harbo]

Man, that Harisu girl from Korea is pretty good looking.

Urge to play Lineage II...rising...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harisu

She's also a transsexual.

Edit: I guess I'm not faster than lightning after all. :(

[Heretic Machine]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harisu

She's also a transsexual.

Edit: I guess I'm not faster than lightning after all. :(

Psh, she is post-op, whatev :p

Of course, she plays Lineage II, and I find that highly unattractive...

[Kielaran]

What about you guys: do your avatars ever resemble you physically?

Whe I was playing WOW I had a Tauren Druid, so yeah

[bKangy]

Kind of. I usually make mine for novelty purposes. I don't look anything like my old CoH character Legal Eagle (or something along those lines), nor my black Jesus WoW toon.

[gojira]

Many of my City of Heroes toons are females, just because if I'm going to look at some polygonal person every time I log in, it might as well be one easy on my eyes. I'm glad to see CoH well represented in that slide show. Good times.

[Testcase]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harisu

She's also a transsexual.

Edit: I guess I'm not faster than lightning after all. :(

In the words of the mighty mighty Quagmire: "Post-op or pre-op?? Alllllright."

[Sammael]

Yeah, HE is. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harisu)


AAAAGGHHHH!!!!!

Yikes. You know, that is just plain creepy. I thought there was something odd about her... him... whatever. There was something about "her" arms that looked funny.

[m0nk3yb0y]

By the way, we need to start making fun of this woman too:

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/06/15/magazine/ava13.jpg

70 hours in game per week on SECOND LIFE...

Seriously, what the fuck.

[Sl1pstream]

Is Star Wars Galaxies still on life support?

[Codicier]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harisu

She's also a transsexual.

Edit: I guess I'm not faster than lightning after all. :(

Well....shit.

Urge to play Lineage II completely wiped from my mind with a blowtorch.

[XenonCJ]

Well....shit.

Urge to play Lineage II completely wiped from my mind with a blowtorch.Just play WoW, it's 100% transgender free - honest!

[Sl1pstream]

If not, Blizzard will be more than happy to ban them for you. :p

[Xerxes]

Is Star Wars Galaxies still on life support?
No but robo man is...
I wonder how did he show his frustration when Sony set him and those other players in outer space. Did he makes circles while in his chair?

[Sl1pstream]

We should really stop making fun of him, for all we know he could be Disgustipated.

[Xerxes]

We should really stop making fun of him, for all we know he could be Disgustipated.
That was to be a bigger shot at SW: Galaxies. I mean he's playing the MMO that puts it's customers in a fucking void. That shit was fucking hilarious. Get him a Vanguard account to show how much you really care.

[Sl1pstream]

STOP MAKING FUN OF DISGUSTIPATED! I got the joke though.

[Xerxes]

Dude looks like the Korean chick on Lost. You know, aside from the whole ummm...

[Steele Johnson]

No, that thing... in front of him... with the eyeball-like thing floating in the middle. WTF is that?!

Wait, you never had an eyeball sundae with puke sauce?

[51|RandoM]

I have a Chinese friend who always orders red bean ice cream. I can't watch them eat it. Ice cream with beans is like crossing the streams.

[reimomo]

No but robo man is...
I wonder how did he show his frustration when Sony set him and those other players in outer space. Did he makes circles while in his chair?

I hope you or someone close to you is afflicted by a serious disease.

[alleycatsphinx]

This link is awesome! Thanks =)

I have a Chinese friend who always orders red bean ice cream. I can't watch them eat it. Ice cream with beans is like crossing the streams.

Yeah, except your primary flavors of good ole american ice cream come from beans too, dummy. Vanilla and chocolate aren't entirely made in factories, yet.

[Xerxes]

I hope you or someone close to you is afflicted by a serious disease.
Oh nos? You aren't suppose to wish that on somebody. That's as bad as making fun of said person. You're only allowed to chastise and tell me how I'm wrong. :rolleyes:

Again, it was a little poke at him and a big stab at that incident. Merge the two is something I can chuckle at. I refuse to say "That poor guy is so brave." :o

[Zeal]

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/06/15/magazine/ava14.jpg

lolololololololololololhelloiammasterchiefllololol ololo

[Xerxes]

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/06/15/magazine/ava14.jpg

lolololololololololololhelloiammasterchiefllololol ololoActually when I saw her pic I thought, "Well someone likes Tel'c."

[Dag-Sabot]

By the way, we need to start making fun of this woman too:

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/06/15/magazine/ava13.jpg

70 hours in game per week on SECOND LIFE...

Seriously, what the fuck.
Good point.
Dear Bitch:
You do not look like Lara Croft. Or you would if Lara suddenly decided to become a dumpy assed, padded B cup ho bag such as yourself.
You may think these comments a tad heavy handed. Madam: You should know that you've ruined one of my few comforts in this mortal life...
I doth fear gone are the lazy sundays spent masturbating (in the park) to thoughts of sweet sweet lara.
Please die.
Best regards,
Dag

[Xerxes]

Good point.
Dear Bitch:
You do not look like Lara Croft. Or you would if Lara suddenly decided to become a dumpy assed, padded B cup ho bag such as yourself.
You may think these comments a tad heavy handed. Madam: You should know that you've ruined one of my few comforts in this mortal life...
I doth fear gone are the lazy sundays spent masturbating (in the park) to thoughts of sweet sweet lara.
Please die.
Best regards,
Dag
Oh i make fun of people in outer space and i get wished crippled family members and this out right attack against a lady who plays alot gets nothing. Screw you ho bags. :p

Also she plays so much cause she works for the game. :rolleyes:

[Tel Prydain]

That's fucked-up.
But, I suppose as long as the dangle is missing and things are in the correct places...I'd poke it...
He/she/it is still hot.... it's giving me conflicted feelings....


And this one is alright too:
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/06/15/magazine/ava7.jpg

[m0nk3yb0y]

Also she plays so much cause she works for the game. :rolleyes:

That's almost worse than playing Second Life. She's one of the people perpetuating its very existence.