NDLI: Virtuosos on the Screen: Playing Virtual Characters Like Instruments in Competitive Super Smash Bros. Melee

Content Provider	ACM Digital Library
Author	Ford, Colin M.
Abstract	Previous research on virtual sociality in games suggests that players use custom avatars to reflect, alter, and perform new identities in digital spaces. However, this study explores an alternative theory of social performance by analyzing a competitive game, Super Smash Bros. Melee, where players face off in timed matches and interact through pre-designed characters. This study shows how Melee players treat virtual characters as performative instruments, similar to the violin or the piano. In forum posts and player-created media, Melee players emphasize the need to train one's hands, eyes, and mind in order to master a character's complexity and express style and skills in live matches. Instrumental embodiment in a competitive game like Melee thus positions players as virtuosos who perform for perceptive audiences. This research points to a range of ways that players may relate to virtual bodies, connected to distinct kinds of social activities.
Starting Page	1935
Ending Page	1948
Page Count	14
File Format	PDF
ISBN	9781450346559
DOI	10.1145/3025453.3026053
Language	English
Publisher	Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
Publisher Date	2017-05-02
Publisher Place	New York
Access Restriction	Subscribed
Subject Keyword	Play Instrument Embodiment Performance Esports Avatar Player-character relationship
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article

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Virtuosos on the Screen: Playing Virtual Characters Like Instruments in Competitive Super Smash Bros. Melee