Do you view the player-character as "you"?

[EHKOS]

It's kind of confusing when I think about it. Usually when I play FPS games I'll take on the role myself, especially if the protagonist is silent. If it's a third-person game, I usually project myself onto them. I am them in the way that it's in my best interest to avoid bullets, but they still get to be their own character for story purposes.

Now in the case of games like...RE4, I see Leon as more of a tool in the environment that I control to manipulate a positive outcome. But with brawlers like the Mosuo games, it teeters back and forth depending on my attachment to that character.

Speaking of...why is One Piece Pirate Warriors 3 supporting PS3 but doesn't have a release date like the Vita version?

 

[Scarim Coral]

Err OP, isn't it kind of an escapism having your "character" in a frictional world, slaying monster or shooting some aliens? I pretty sure I can't experience that in real life! No I don't do LARP or lazer tag.

On topic- Yes I do half of the time or rather I view my created character to be an alter ego of me. It depending if the game has decision making or other means for me to act as I would in real life.

 

[spartan231490]

I view characters as an extension of myself, yes. But I think your problem might have less to do with character creation and more with the type of engagement. In the games you criticize, the core engagement is empowerment, that's why your character is the "chosen one." Maybe you're just not the type of person that gets enjoyment out of that empowerment. I have limited experience with the witcher series, but I didn't get the impression that it was about empowerment. It seemed more like it was built around overcoming challenges and learning about the world. Maybe I'm way off base here, but I thought it was worth bringing up.

 

[DarthSka]

No, not even when I make a male character. I'm able to immerse myself in games, but I'm always aware that whoever is on the screen is simply a character in that world that I'm controlling. I prefer to think of them as their own individual with their own story, not me.

 

[Fappy]

I'm a writer and tabletop gamer, so while I don't consider the PC me, I typically prefer roleplaying a character I have created myself. I like the Witcher series, but one of the reasons I like TES more is because I get to come up with and assume the role of my own character.

 

[endtherapture]

I recently made a thread here arguing against single-player games having create-a-character features:
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/9.877621-Single-player-games-shouldnt-have-create-a-character-features?page=1

Many people disagreed, and I believe the root of our disagreement is how we view the characters we play as in relation to ourselves.

I, personally, do not consider the character I play as as "me", or "representing me", or anything like that. I don't view them as someone I should "identify with" or "relate to" or "imagine myself as". As far as I'm concerned, they're just a third party that I happen to control. Even in games where I create my own character, I never try to make them look anything like me. I consider games a form of escapism (hehe, why do you think I post here ), so the last thing I want is for my player character to look like me.

Some people, on the other hand, feel very differently, to the extent that they'll only play games where they can create their own character, or if it has a set protagonist, will only play it if the protagonist is the same race/gender/etc as them. Clearly there are many players who feel this way, since even in games that offer large numbers of non-human races to play as (World of Warcraft, Skyrim, etc) the humans or human-like races still tend to be the most popular.

So, how do you view the characters you play as in relation to yourself? Are they just someone you control, or are they "you"? Or somewhere in the middle?

Typically, even though I know I shouldn't, I do.

For example, when playing Arkham City and Knight I get very frustrated that Batman's character is wrested away from your control in story sequences and he does utterly infuriating things and then it gives you back control to deal with the consequences of his silly actions.

 

[WolfThomas]

A bit of both. Most of my characters have their own personality, that influences their design and decisions. But they often aren't too far removed from myself or what I'd do.

For example all of my dragon age characters have been white male wizards. But I have some flexibility, my Hawke was gay (I'm not) and my Inquisitor was an older man with a lot faith tempered with insecurity. I'm not hugely religious but I tried to make him a truly messianic religious figure who did struggle with his belief and burden, while being the most noble and heroic person around.

In GTA Online I play a black male. Simply because most players are white and the black characters look better in their facial designs (less inbred). The character I play is an ex-soldier turned criminal with delusions of professionalism. He's still a cold blooded killer, but he doesn't rampage against cops or civilians unless there is a profit. That sort of matches my play style as I'm more often buying cars and clothes than racking up wanted levels.

In this way I guess I vicariously live through my characters. Close enough to empathize, different enough to have a meaningful experience. I have actually received racial slurs from 11year olds in GTA.

I guess another thing is that I sometimes make pastiches of characters. My first skyrim character was a clint eastwood and wolverine combination (imperial with the great sideburns). The funny thing is I gave him a facial scar (in homage to Outlaw Jose Wales) but Wolverine in the comics developed the exact same scar when he lost his powers. I played him as the reluctant hero.

In Mass Effect due to the restrictive polarity of the Paragon system. I simply made my Sheppard Steve Rogers/Captain America in design and personality. I figured if I'm going to be that good, I might as well embrace it.

 

[Zykon TheLich_v1legacy]

Not me exactly, but I do consider them "mine" and I guess in a way they are an extension of my personality as they are designed by me and they are basically my puppet, even if they behave in a way I normally wouldn't, I'm still the one driving them.
I don't really play games with a set main character or too rigid a story, Bethesda style FPRPGs are my go to game. Geralt or whatever other character you have out there might be a good character, but I don't really care, they're not my character, and I don't give a shit about their story.

 

[zombiejoe]

No, my player character is not me, but they are a creation of me. They can be independent, but I have influence over how they think and how they would act in a situation. In many WRPGs, when I make a character, I come up with a background and personality for them to follow, keeping it varied each game.

 

[Ten Foot Bunny]

The characters I create are never "me," though I occasionally make characters that look like me if a character creator allows it. Even blank-slate characters - like those in the Fallout series - are just random creations, not digital beings in which I'm the least bit invested.

Let's put it another way: if I get stuck on a part of a game, it's nice to think that some random dipshit is to blame, not me and my temporary incompetence. Yeah, so...

 

[darkcalling]

Nah I've never roleplayed a game, either as myself or as a particular character with a backstory I made up to fit like in say skyrim.

I much prefer characters with their own story and voice. It allows me to feel much more connected to what's going on. Silent protagonists actually pull me out of a story rather than "immerse" me in it.

As for making characters that look like me that's also a no. In fact I almost always play a female and never as a human when given other options. Oblivion I played Argonian. Skyrim also Argonian, 2nd playthrough is an orc. ESO currently Argonian with possible orc or altmer after. Dragon Age: Origins was an elf, inquisition a Qunari.

I'm me all day. Why would I want to play as me?

 

[Elfgore]

I act as I would, but I most certainly do not view myself as the character. I wish I was the character in a video game, as their live's are sure to be much more interesting.