New Player Initial Avatar Carousel
I get tired, like so many of you, with the anglo-western prestige symbols of caucasianism as the emotional and aesthetic center of the platform, when it's literally a tiny fraction of the players.
Without getting into the obvious issues, I think a STRUCTURAL fix for the game would be to simply communicate *DIVERSITY* by the initial sign-in and avatar selection to show a WHEEL, like a carousel, with premium and high-quality avatars of ALL varieties shown, where you can see slightly one on either side of the wheel (so you know it turns), *and the default signaling of angelo-saxon downplayed* (one of the ones in back).
So new users encountered first avatars with:
- diversity
- variety via non-caucasians,
- darker skin tones,
- natural black, brown, red hair,
- diverse facial structures that LOOKED GOOD, and
- mixed ethnicity, like
- Mixed Race, Asian, African, Indingenous
- Latin American, Middle Eastern,
- Mediterranean,
- South Asian
etc.
...vs the current teaching that *Westernized whiteness is the default social ideal*
which I find really alienating to massive groups of people (as well as a huge mistake for a business that is ABOUT people forming real emotional connections and reasons to return TO THE GAME, which they can't *if the platform keeps promoting disingenousness* indirectly even unintentionally).
I think having simply a WHEEL with the first avatar NOT being those usual noobs we see, would help communicate something better and healthier.
That would produce a healthier social environment, more authentic self-expression, and stronger long-term emotional investment in the community without stuggling with the issues that are difficult to talk about and shouldn't be limited anyway (it IS a role play and fantasy app in part)!
The current style alienates people and signals the wrong things as "most valuable" right off the batt.
I know lots of you who have been around are from a massively wide diversity of ethnic and cultural backgrounds and nations so I wonder if you see that this little change might really help new players better to feel attractive and cool right off the batt.
The game HAS been trying to address this a lot in the past year (with promotional art though only from what I see). A rotating carousel of pre-made diverse avatars again with higher value towards non-caucasian western media dominance might really represent the community AND our diversity better
...AND help new players feel better too.
And then they stay, especially IF they get talked to and included in events BECAUSE they matter.
It's not super hard to do (a week of work likely for 1 person, maybe twoto get perfect). And they've been trying to make better "Default New Avatars" (and doing pretty good, but this is the NEXT step)...
What's your opinion on the bias and having better representation?
ARE we only a white-caucasian community and somehow PROUD of that?
I'd love to see the game reflect the massive majority and show players it's valued, who and what they are, right off the batt.
-Thoughts?