Hey PH Community. My name is Reggie and I am the co-founder, CEO of Eternal. I'm excited to launch our first game with you, ICON.
ICON is a social role playing game where you compete to win the @POODLES account on Instagram. The account has over 100k followers, making the winner an instant avatar influencer.
Players compete by submitting a video or photo as an avatar, using our app.
In our world the year is 2040 and you are living in Instagram City, previously known as Los Angeles. You are competing to be the new Poodles. They are a multiracial teen heart throb with over 100k followers.
Icon is a very simple game
1 - Download the app - No login required.
2 - You see an Animoji like avatar on screen
3 - Record your video as Poodles
4 - Share it everywhere
We want you to be fully you through Poodles. Record and post it to your Instagram. At the Poodles account. We will be viewing posts for a couple of weeks, and then our team will select the new Poodles and hand over the keys to the account.
Minting you an avatar superstar.
Aside from the competition, the app seems like an incredible way for anyone to create content as a virtual influencer.
Any plans on adding different influencers that users can replicate?
Really love it 🙌
I was playing with this over the weekend. Fun and memorable branding.
@hipcityreg on the surface this looks like an experiment toward something bigger (nothing against POODLES). What are you plotting!? 😊
@rrhoover This is definitely an exercise in toy -> platform. We learned a lot about the current limits of photorealism, scenekit, etc... But we've also had some users really surprise us within the apps own limitations. Like @poodlescityy on Instagram!!!
You can't not get excited when you see something so different and surprising. That's how I feel about ICON. So many interesting pieces coming together, from avatars, to (huge air quote) "virtual second lives," to turning social influence into a game. Look forward to seeing what this leads to. Manuel Castells would be proud.
Playing around with it and it feels fun & lightweight — like I don’t have to commit to something forever to enjoy the experience, which is fresh!
What does success look like for an app / competition / experiment like this?
And a huge congrats @hipcityreg and team!
@esthercrawford Thanks Esther!!! I think success for an experience like this breaks into two buckets. The first being everything we learned while building it (apple limitations, photorealism limitations, etc). The second is individual user behavior. My favorite thing are the people that have started secondary instagram accounts using Icon to power their avatar identity.
If we hold the idea that that the digiverse is inevitable to be true, then digital avatars becomes a necessity. I think we're seeing the first step towards that reality with Eternal.
Pros:
Creates a level of immersion into the body that really isn't captured by current games (Skyrim, LoL, Mii)
Cons:
Super basic atm and would love to see more accurate capture of my facial features, particular tongue
Replies
it is what it is 👁👄👁
No-Code Tees by Maker Threads
it is what it is 👁👄👁
Product Hunt
it is what it is 👁👄👁
Lolli
it is what it is 👁👄👁
it is what it is 👁👄👁
Go, @hipcityreg, go!
Pros:High fidelity avatar makes me feel like I’m really someone else
Cons:I want more customization options!
Antimetal
it is what it is 👁👄👁
Squad
it is what it is 👁👄👁
Trace AI
it is what it is 👁👄👁
I feel like this is the start of something new... I can’t imagine this is the last company to launch with a contest like this
Pros:The competition for Poodles is an amazing idea Love the variety of settings and how expressive you can make 🐩
Cons:Some minor visual glitches, but nothing big!
VCWiz
If we hold the idea that that the digiverse is inevitable to be true, then digital avatars becomes a necessity. I think we're seeing the first step towards that reality with Eternal.
Pros:Creates a level of immersion into the body that really isn't captured by current games (Skyrim, LoL, Mii)
Cons:Super basic atm and would love to see more accurate capture of my facial features, particular tongue