It's time (Option to Hide other players Glamour)

[Penthea]

Anyway I was getting at how there are people who act like their character is actually an extension of themselves, like second life. Treat the game like it's reality.

Well real people with real feelings are behind every player character. Just because it's a game doesn't make the interactions between people any less real than interactions elsewhere. I met my boyfriend in this game, and we're far from the only couple I know of who have met in through online gaming. Some I know ended up getting married and having children.

For some people the game is the only place they can truly feel like themselves. I don't just mean those part of the LGBTQ group. People with bad health often find that gaming is the only way they can explore a place outside their home, make human connections without their health getting in the way, and not have to worry about being judged or asked intrusive questions about their health or employment status.

For some people games allow them to be themselves even more than the circumstances of offline life allow them.

Every character is an extension of the player to some degree. Everything about how a character looks does say something about the player. Their glam and dye choices hint at what they find aesthetically pleasing. Their character name could be referencing a character from other media, and that hints at the sort of stories they enjoy. If their name is silly or funny you know this is a person who likes to have a laugh. If their name is lore appropriate but not from the presets the game suggests in character creation, you know they care about lore at least a little. If a person's glam has current tier high-end savage or ultimate savage gear early in the tier you quickly know this is a player who enjoys a challenge. I could go on for a while.

Even in games like Overwatch or LoL, where you don't have the freedom of character creation that mmorpgs typically have and instead have preset character skins, can hint at what a player finds aesthetically pleasing, and their handle again can say something about them.

Any game that allows players some manner of visual customisation does give hints to other players as to what sort of person the player behind the character is.

Of course it's up to everyone how much they feel a character is an extension of themselves, but to imply that it is somehow weird to consider a character to represent something about a person means denying that choices players make about how they look and the name they choose to be known by are personal choices that only they could make.

Some players have suggested that if glam removal comes to the game, then a person using it should have some sort of visual tag attached to them so that others know they have hidden glams. If that comes to the game even that tag would say something about that player, as would the absence of the tag.

I feel that glam removal is a sensitive topic because some people are not comfortable with the idea that another person can remove things they feel define themselves a lot. It would especially sting if a player's character has visual aspects of themselves that society would normally shun them for. It can make a person feel that not even in games do they have the freedom to be themselves without someone denying that people like them do or should be permitted to exist.