The Effects of Viewing Formats and Song Genres on Audience Experiences in Virtual Avatar Concerts

With the recent advancements in multimedia and computer graphics technology, virtual avatar concerts have become increasingly popular among both well-known celebrities and subculture-based virtual YouTubers, attracting large audiences. Although this new form of performance art can be delivered through various platforms that use different viewing formats, research on the components of enjoying virtual avatar concerts and their effects on the audience experience is lacking. This study aims to explore the effects of different viewing formats and song genres on sickness, presence, and immersion and identify preferences for enjoying virtual avatar concerts. We first analyzed data from 64 virtual avatar concert cases to identify the most commonly used viewing media, methods, and song genres. Based on our analysis, we designed and conducted a user experiment with four virtual avatar concert scenarios. The experiment compared two viewing methods (audience's point of view and director's edited view) and two song genres (dance and ballad) for 2D display and a head-mounted display. The results show that the audience's point of view and a dance song can be advantageous in increasing the immersive experience irrespective of the viewing medium. Furthermore, the participants show different expectations regarding performances according to song genres. We discuss these findings and propose guidelines to help design and conduct virtual avatar concerts effectively.