The Impact of Avatar Identification on the Attractiveness of VR Games: The Mediational Role of Immersion (Preprint)

Abstract

Research on avatar identification unfolds against the backdrop of the flourishing virtual reality (VR) digital gaming industry, where the allure for players is steadily increasing. According to the market research company Newzoo, the global online gaming user base reached 2.88 billion people in 2023. IDC's research indicates rapid growth in the VR and augmented reality (AR) market, with global expenditures projected to reach $288 billion by 2024. This shows that gaming has become an indispensable part of people’s lives; the VR industry is thriving, and it is poised to be integrated with gaming as a rapidly developing sector. According to a report by Hootsuite and We Are Social, the global social media user count surpassed 4.8 billion in 2023, with nearly 60% of the global population using social media. This highlights the indispensability of digital identity in online socialization and digital communication. Aligning with trends in the gaming industry, an increasing number of game developers are dedicated to providing personalized and customized gaming experiences to attract players. This includes enabling players to establish unique in-game virtual identities, fostering closer connections with the game world and characters. In the future metaverse era, the effective management of human digital identities will become a significant issue for governments, given concerns regarding network information security and information disorder. If, with the support of technologies such as iris recognition, facial recognition, and motion capture, avatars align perfectly with real individuals in terms of expressions, body language, and gestures, the merging of human and virtual identities will be achieved. When choosing avatars, individuals consider various factors, such as their real selves, ideal selves, preferred IP images, and the social relationships formed within the virtual environment.

Susan Sontag once said, “Art is the creation of symbols that represent human emotions.” In the realm of game art, the embodied interaction experience of avatars serves as an emotional sublimation of artistic creation. This allows the emotional expression of art to be presented to users in a more vivid form, which is a key factor in the high attractiveness of virtual reality (VR) games to players. Players derive a sense of achievement and are entertained by the gaming process, leading to joyful experiences. The pleasure experienced is derived from dopamine secretion in the brain. Through this reward neurotransmitter-mediated pleasure, players identify with the game’s avatars. Immersion, intertwined with players’ physiological and psychological responses, constitutes an important element of gaming attractiveness. Therefore, this study aims to explore how, in the digital gaming environment, player identification with avatars is established and, through the mediating role of immersive experiences, enhances the attractiveness of the game to players.

In our research framework, we characterize avatar identification based on four dimensions: identification with real self-similarity, disparity between the real and ideal self, ideal self-identification, and social behavior identification. Additionally, game immersion is divided into three types: emotional, perceptual, and behavioral immersion. Based on the impact of these dimensions on the attractiveness of games in the context of game design, we propose research hypotheses. Through experimental design and structured questionnaire surveys, we collected extensive data from participants varying in age, gender, and game preferences. Utilizing the SPSS statistical analysis tool, we performed correlation and regression analyses.

The results indicated significant positive correlations between the different dimensions of avatar identification and game attractiveness, with game immersion playing a partial mediating role. The findings of this study not only deepen our understanding of the role of avatar identification in VR games but also offer practical guidance for game design, enhancing user experience, and digital identity management.

Real self-similarity, disparity between the real and ideal self, the ideal self, and social behavior all had a significant positive impact on avatar identification. Avatar identification, in turn, had a significantly positive effect on game attractiveness, with immersion playing a partially mediating role. These findings indicate that embodied avatar identification not only directly influences the attractiveness of the game to players but is also influenced by the mediating effect of immersion. This provides valuable insights for future research and practical applications.