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Avatars Offline
Other // Unrated // July 1, 2002
List Price: $24.99 [Buy now and save at Avatarsoffline]
Anyone who's reading this review on a computer– as I'm sure most readers are, given that this is an online review – has probably at least heard the names Everquest or Ultima Online. These are computer games: specifically, two extremely popular "massively multiplayer online roleplaying games," in which players take on the role of a character (an "avatar") in an online virtual world in order to have adventures in the company of other avatars, belonging to people who might be sitting at a computer next door... or halfway across the world.
Who are these players? Why do they find online roleplaying to be so interesting? How does online gaming affect players' self-image, their social relationships, their lives? What does the popularity of online gaming tell us about the future of entertainment? These are some of the questions that come up in Avatars Offline, a documentary that takes a look at the people involved in online multiplayer roleplaying games.
The 75-minute-long main feature gets off to an odd start with an introduction involving a tour of famous game designer Richard Garriott's house. It's not that Garriott's house is boring; far from it, as he has a basement "dungeon" with assorted goodies such a vampire-killing kit and a miniature moon lander; it's that I was unclear why we were being shown this. To suggest that computer gamers are a bunch of weirdos? As it turns out, the program treats gamers entirely fairly, so it looks like the opening was likely a case of "cool interview footage that we can't bear to entirely cut."
After the opening, the program moves to talking about players' experiences in online gaming, particularly with respect to the social interactions in the game. There's no narrator; instead, the program is entirely constructed out of interviews with various people associated with gaming, from the players themselves to the game developers to academics trying to make sense out of the phenomenon of online play. It's clear that the filmmakers were aware of the perils of too much emphasis on talking heads, and they've resorted to a number of tricks to liven things up (some more artistically successful than others). Clips from the online games discussed in the feature are included as well, often illustrating moments that are described by the interviewees.
An interesting element of Avatars Offline is that it very conscientiously avoids making an argument for one side or another of the issues it raises. Are online games a healthy social experience or a shallow substitute for real relationships? Is gaming genuinely addictive? Are games too violent? Is the future of entertainment shifting to virtual reality? For each topic, the filmmakers always offer interviews that provide contrasting points of view. Many documentaries will pay lip service to multiple points of view but still clearly be pushing the viewer in a particular direction; to the credit of Avatars Offline, the presentation remains entirely balanced throughout.
The down side of this even-handedness, however, is that the program doesn't really delve into the depths of any of the issues it raises, limiting itself to presenting the general facts and some different interpretations, and leaving the viewer to come to his or her own conclusions. It seems likely that the documentary's intended audience is people who are not entirely familiar with either roleplaying games or online massively multiplayer roleplaying games, which is probably a reasonable approach, given that players of computer games are outnumbered by the folks who don't play computer games at all, much less online roleplaying games. As a computer gamer myself, I was hoping for a more in-depth exploration of the issues surrounding the topic than Avatars Offline offers. Even so, I found Avatars Offline to be interesting, and it should be doubly so to those who are looking at the subject for the first time.
Video
Avatars Offline is presented in its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The image quality is satisfactory, considering that this is not feature-film material. The problems that do occur with the image seem to be mostly the fault of the original camera work rather than the transfer: several of the interviews are out of focus, and the light levels in a couple of the others are too high, resulting in a washed-out image.
Audio
The Dolby 2.0 audio track is generally adequate for the uses to which it's put, which is primarily conversational-level dialogue. A few times it sounded a bit strident when an interviewee raised his or her voice, but on the whole it conveys the dialogue clearly. Some reasonably catchy original music is used in the title sequences between chapters.
Extras
Avatars Offline contains a substantial amount of additional footage: an hour and fifteen minutes' worth of extra footage, to be exact. Some of this additional material consists of extensions of interviews with figures like Richard Garriott who are featured in the main program; also included is new material, such as information on fan sites and an extended look at games such as the in-development Star Wars Galaxies. It's also worth checking out Avatars Offline's website for some excellent supporting content: the site includes information on all the people interviewed for the DVD and links to their own personal web sites as well.
Final thoughts
Avatars Offline is an interesting and well-balanced look at a growing segment of the entertainment industry and what it might mean to our social and emotional lives. It will have its primary audience in viewers who are curious about the whole "online game" phenomenon, but gamers themselves will also find the program to be interesting, even if only to see the interviews with "game god" Richard "Lord British" Garriott. You may have to go off the beaten path to find a copy, but it's worth picking up.
Who are these players? Why do they find online roleplaying to be so interesting? How does online gaming affect players' self-image, their social relationships, their lives? What does the popularity of online gaming tell us about the future of entertainment? These are some of the questions that come up in Avatars Offline, a documentary that takes a look at the people involved in online multiplayer roleplaying games.
The 75-minute-long main feature gets off to an odd start with an introduction involving a tour of famous game designer Richard Garriott's house. It's not that Garriott's house is boring; far from it, as he has a basement "dungeon" with assorted goodies such a vampire-killing kit and a miniature moon lander; it's that I was unclear why we were being shown this. To suggest that computer gamers are a bunch of weirdos? As it turns out, the program treats gamers entirely fairly, so it looks like the opening was likely a case of "cool interview footage that we can't bear to entirely cut."
After the opening, the program moves to talking about players' experiences in online gaming, particularly with respect to the social interactions in the game. There's no narrator; instead, the program is entirely constructed out of interviews with various people associated with gaming, from the players themselves to the game developers to academics trying to make sense out of the phenomenon of online play. It's clear that the filmmakers were aware of the perils of too much emphasis on talking heads, and they've resorted to a number of tricks to liven things up (some more artistically successful than others). Clips from the online games discussed in the feature are included as well, often illustrating moments that are described by the interviewees.
An interesting element of Avatars Offline is that it very conscientiously avoids making an argument for one side or another of the issues it raises. Are online games a healthy social experience or a shallow substitute for real relationships? Is gaming genuinely addictive? Are games too violent? Is the future of entertainment shifting to virtual reality? For each topic, the filmmakers always offer interviews that provide contrasting points of view. Many documentaries will pay lip service to multiple points of view but still clearly be pushing the viewer in a particular direction; to the credit of Avatars Offline, the presentation remains entirely balanced throughout.
The down side of this even-handedness, however, is that the program doesn't really delve into the depths of any of the issues it raises, limiting itself to presenting the general facts and some different interpretations, and leaving the viewer to come to his or her own conclusions. It seems likely that the documentary's intended audience is people who are not entirely familiar with either roleplaying games or online massively multiplayer roleplaying games, which is probably a reasonable approach, given that players of computer games are outnumbered by the folks who don't play computer games at all, much less online roleplaying games. As a computer gamer myself, I was hoping for a more in-depth exploration of the issues surrounding the topic than Avatars Offline offers. Even so, I found Avatars Offline to be interesting, and it should be doubly so to those who are looking at the subject for the first time.
Video
Avatars Offline is presented in its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The image quality is satisfactory, considering that this is not feature-film material. The problems that do occur with the image seem to be mostly the fault of the original camera work rather than the transfer: several of the interviews are out of focus, and the light levels in a couple of the others are too high, resulting in a washed-out image.
Audio
The Dolby 2.0 audio track is generally adequate for the uses to which it's put, which is primarily conversational-level dialogue. A few times it sounded a bit strident when an interviewee raised his or her voice, but on the whole it conveys the dialogue clearly. Some reasonably catchy original music is used in the title sequences between chapters.
Extras
Avatars Offline contains a substantial amount of additional footage: an hour and fifteen minutes' worth of extra footage, to be exact. Some of this additional material consists of extensions of interviews with figures like Richard Garriott who are featured in the main program; also included is new material, such as information on fan sites and an extended look at games such as the in-development Star Wars Galaxies. It's also worth checking out Avatars Offline's website for some excellent supporting content: the site includes information on all the people interviewed for the DVD and links to their own personal web sites as well.
Final thoughts
Avatars Offline is an interesting and well-balanced look at a growing segment of the entertainment industry and what it might mean to our social and emotional lives. It will have its primary audience in viewers who are curious about the whole "online game" phenomenon, but gamers themselves will also find the program to be interesting, even if only to see the interviews with "game god" Richard "Lord British" Garriott. You may have to go off the beaten path to find a copy, but it's worth picking up.
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