Is there still a wide spread use of virtual personas? Interacting on the world wide web offers a whole new plane of existence. Many of us that have laid hands on a game have had the opportunity to create the ideal character; a character that makes up for all the short comings that we see in our physical selves. We create new identities online that allow us to be the type of character we have always imagined ourselves to be. As the internet has aged over the past couple of decades, new avenues of usage have popped up overnight; mixing up this concept of virtual identities. The internet has taken on numerous levels of complexity from social networking to gaming, leaving many users living multiple online identities.
It was such an exciting opportunity to create one of my first usernames… it was chance to create an awesome online version of myself. I remember creating my Red Alert 2 multiplayer account, I sat for hours thinking of a username and sadly… all that came to mind was Smokey3000. Although not the greatest username to choose, it was still a start to a whole new virtual life. Since I began that life, it has multiplied into several different virtual lives; all with a different purpose in mind.
Since the era of “Smokey3000“, the internet has evolved, making many of these lavish virtual personas take a back seat when it comes to things like social networking. Although virtual personas still exist, they more or less co-exist with our “real” identities online. Ever since many services like Friendster, Myspace, Facebook, and Twitter have made their appearances on the web, users have let down the mask they hide behind and actually let some of their real self shine through. This evolution of the internet and introduction of these services has made many online social venues a little less fake.
With a more security conscience internet society and relatively safe places to interact, internet users have stepped out of their shells and are more willing to be honest and just be “themselves.” I wasn’t very quick to jump on the social networking bandwagon. I perceived many of these social sites as playground for identity theft and perverts. Once this concept of putting yourself out on the internet matured, I eventually made a Myspace account. This wonderful notion of being yourself on the web quickly caught on with me and eventually much of the world followed suit.
On the web today, there is more of a balance between fictional characters we’ve created for ourselves and the real us. Many users still enjoy living a virtual life, but this is not done so to an extreme anymore. What is more common nowadays is striking a balance between the two. There is a great deal to benefit from letting a little bit of your true self hang out on the internet from staying in contact to friends to blogging/commenting about your opinions. But don’t get me wrong, I still love kicking a little butt on Team Fortress 2 as DeltaDart.
