Wolfenstein 3D initially appeared on IBM PC compatibles and has been called the foundation of the First-person Shooter (FPS) genre (Malliet & de Meyer, 2005). This avatar is well-defined: a caucasian male, with a military background. Blazkowicz, directly in the centre of the player’s view.
Keywords: First-person Shooter Avatar History Statistical survey Gender Raceįigure 1 shows Wolfenstein 3D (id Software, 1992), the face of the avatar, B.J. The analysis reveals definite trends, both historically and by platform. Characteristics of avatars within the surveyed titles are also examined, including race, gender and background, and how these vary across platform and time. The titles are compared by year of release, platform and game setting. In order to provide a wider context for such work this paper surveys 566 separate FPS titles, across a range of platforms. While there has been extensive study of the FPS genre, this has tended to focus on particular games, or at best a limited set of examples. The genre has an almost two decade history and is represented by hundreds of commercial titles. The First-Person Shooter (FPS) is a popular game form, with examples appearing on many different platforms. A Survey of First-person Shooters and their Avatars by Michael Hitchens
