Would you like the option to have custom/character forum avatars?

Tigerseye

So, I think it would be nice if we could use custom screenshots of our own characters (or other ESO-related stuff), as our forum avatars, if we wanted.

I think it would help add personality and visual variety to the forum.

However, I do understand that there might be a possibility of people uploading inappropriate and/or non ESO-related pics.

Although, I guess that is already possible with regular uploads/links, so not sure an inappropriate, thumbnail-sized avatar is any worse?

Especially as it could be moderated/removed, like anything else.

A possible alternative would be a screenshot that the game provided, of the face of a character you selected.

Assuming that would be feasible to implement.

Which it should be, given that some other games show thumbnail sized avatars of your (customised) char's face, when you are in a group, for example.

Either way, would this be something you would be interested in?

Carespanker

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

I would settle just for sweetrolls to not be muffins but hey give me my 6 year old main's face and ide be happy too.

SlasherZ

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

Should be like in WoW's forum, Your character's image and the level.

FierceSam

No, custom/character forum avatars don't interest me.

Genuinely could not care less about my forum avatar.

Sylvermynx

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

Yes I would. I do understand why they might not want to do that, as it's a lot of policing not to mention storage space.

Aelorin

Other (please explain).

Yes for the character avatar, no for custom avatars.

As it is, I like the way it is now, where you unlock certain avatars through achievements. I suppose they could do an update on that. (Last update was since Morrowind).

Linwen

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

I'd like an option for custom but still, ESO related avatars for Forums, only I think this can be really hard to accomplish.
Also, my character's avatar would be nice.

And for now - I'd love to see more bosmer avatars to choose, it's such a poor choice here.

VaranisArano

Sure.
It would have to be moderated though, and I wonder if there'd be liability issues with unoriginal artwork. At least ZOS knows they own all the current assets.

Danikat

Other (please explain).

I like the idea, but I understand why they don't do it.

Option 1 is ZOS hosts the images, and then they have to have space for it. Yes a forum avatar is quite small so it won't take much space to store, but according to the badges 60,454 have changed their avatar on this forum. 60,000+ small images quickly adds up to a not insignificant amount of storage space required.

Option 2 is external hosting and then any ability to moderate the images goes out the window because anyone who wants to can submit an image, get it approved and then edit it or replace it with one that has the same file name which could be anything at all.

Either way someone has to take the time to moderate the submissions, not just one per poster but every time they want to update it. Imagine the demand when a balance patch changes which characters players are focusing on and suddenly thousands of people want to update their forum image to their new favourite.

Maybe if they could somehow automate the process, so you take a screenshot of your character in-game and then it's automatically uploaded with no ability to edit it then it could work. But that requires someone building that system and finding a way to make it compatible with Vanilla forums.

(The other possibility of course is to heavily restrict it. Currently community reps get custom avatars, maybe that could be expanded to a minority of forum users who are unlikely to risk getting banned for trolling with a stupid avatar, so for example when you get to 10 stars or something you're allowed to upload your own one, but I doubt that would be very popular with the majority of people on the forum.)

CMDR_Un1k0rn

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

I'd settle for a character portrait. That's all most people want.

The off-topic bois can be safely ignored on their wishes for Non-TES stuff.

Custom avatars where people can upload whatever really cause moderation hell. More than once they have been used for "protests".

rpa

No, custom/character forum avatars don't interest me.

Nah. Think about [snip] moderators. And not particulary interested of having whatever I logged out last as avatar.

[Edited to removed Baiting]

rexagamemnon

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

Don’t see why not

Gythral

Other (please explain).

Would rather the time, effort and mopney spent on a decent PC-EU srever!!!

Starlock

No, custom/character forum avatars don't interest me.

Normally I'd be down for this sort of thing, but I wouldn't use it here.

Destai

No, custom/character forum avatars don't interest me.

No, if any change happens on the forums I'd rather see unique icons for moderators vs actual ZOS commentary.

zaria

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

CMDR_Un1k0rn wrote: »

I'd settle for a character portrait. That's all most people want.

The off-topic bois can be safely ignored on their wishes for Non-TES stuff.

Custom avatars where people can upload whatever really cause moderation hell. More than once they have been used for "protests".

Most other serious forums has this including the old Bethesda forum we used for Skyrim.
Avatar abuse has never been an issue even on all ages forums.
This is my avatar on the kerbal space program forum.

An crop down of this render of an alien catgirl trying to eat an probe.

tomofhyrule

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

It'd be great if we could link the forum account with out in-game account and we could use our main as an avatar. Be easy enough to make sure that nothing inappropriate popped up since it would just be the character mugshot that we're walking around in game with anyway.

Bonus points: it also gives us a nice way to get mugshots of our characters as well...

Tandor

No, custom/character forum avatars don't interest me.

It wouldn't be of any interest to me, not least as I have no interest in linking my ingame characters with my forum persona. I don't have any problem with it being an option for those that want it, provided it was handled sensibly and didn't cause forum performance issues, but that wasn't the basis of the poll.

kichwas

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

Yes - I'd love it if there was a tool to specifically make a screen grab of one of my characters.

But no - not an upload option or they'd be bogged down moderating inappropriate images...

I'd like something like WoW and FFXIV's forums have - just a screenshot of a character you select in it's current outfit / gear from a "modeling head shot" style / posing.

Sylvermynx

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

kichwas wrote: »

Yes - I'd love it if there was a tool to specifically make a screen grab of one of my characters.

But no - not an upload option or they'd be bogged down moderating inappropriate images...

I'd like something like WoW and FFXIV's forums have - just a screenshot of a character you select in it's current outfit / gear from a "modeling head shot" style / posing.

Yes. I loved that part of both the WoW and RIFT forums. I could select an avatar from one of my many alts.... It was really nice.

barney2525

Other (please explain).

I don't care one way or another.

IMHO

xXMeowMeowXx

Other (please explain).

An option to have our pictures to be able to be used

xXMeowMeowXx

Other (please explain).

barney2525 wrote: »

I don't care one way or another.

IMHO

@barney2525 you always bring a smile to my face thnx

idk

No, custom/character forum avatars don't interest me.

I answered no because it was the choice closest to my answer.

Would I like custom avatars? Ofc. Who wouldn't?

Do I think it would be a good idea? No. While I am sure Zos could easily afford the costs of the additional storage required for all the customer images, it would be something else Zos would have to police since we can be pretty sure some people would choose some copyrighted images or even offensive ones.

Edit: Grianasteri notes in their post two down from this one the reality of the problem custom avatars does bring to a game, the trolling, rude, and insulting avatars some posted.

mikikatze

Yes, I would love to be able to have either a custom forum avatar, or a forum avatar featuring a character I selected.

I'd love to have this (don't 90+% of forums enable this without having trouble with traffic or moderation?), even though I can live either way. This forum software seems quite old school anyway and probably need an overhaul... the registration process alone, good lord!

Grianasteri

Other (please explain).

Sure fine, I am all for it... however... I do recall the Call of Duty franchise allowed players to create their own "avatar" picture which displayed in game and in lobbies etc...

The inevitable outcome was an avalanche of trolling, rude, insulting pictures. There were also a lot of them that were extremely funny, and a lot of them were extremely creative and artistic.

Could be fun to see what the community do with a similar function here...