Investigating gesture-based avatar game representations in teenagers, younger and older adults

•Compare three avatar game representations across three age groups.•Examine differences in homophily, attractiveness, expressiveness and engagement.•Age differences in the awareness of facial expressions and bodily movements.•Negative stereotypes of older looking avatars evident in all age groups.•Game and life experience important factors in the perception of avatar representation.

In game design, avatars are an important means of representing behavioural traits of the player. Designers are often faced with decisions on how the avatar’s appearance may affect the game experience. Despite this, relatively little is known about how age influences self-representation in gesture-based avatars. In this paper, we present the findings of 54 mixed-age participants (i.e. teenagers, younger adults and older adults), who were asked to compare the design of three different avatar-types (i.e. cartoon, humanoid and silhouette). Comprising of a post-game questionnaire and individual semi-structured interviews, participants were asked to rank avatar preferences, and were questioned on their perceptions towards age representation. Our results show that there were significant group differences in the identification and awareness of visual features in the avatars for those below the age of 30, compared to those above 55 years old. This included variations in attention to detail and behavioural representation. The paper concludes by reflecting on game design challenges for these target groups, and recommends further avenues of pursuit.