Multiplicity, relationality, and petal avatars: Thatgamecompany’s Flower as an identity model

Abstract

This article explores non-human looking avatars as models for alternative conceptions of identity. Thatgamecompany’s Flower is used here as the specific example of a more general model for Game and Cultural Studies scholars to think about the representation and reproduction of relationality and identity through avatars that are not designed to resemble human or animal-like beings. The avatar is discussed here in relation to its visual and aural configuration, the actions it affords, and the way controls are designed around it. Flower breaks with many of the standards and expectations that can be found in most games and, in doing so, it puts forward a notion of identity as an entanglement of humans, nonhuman beings, and objects. Game and Cultural Studies scholars interested in finding a broader, more diverse way of discussing identity representations will find here a useful resource