Vtuber

Short for "Virtual Youtuber"(originating

with youtube anime personas, but not limited to

youtube itself),is a virtual personality

that uses motion capture to record an

actor which is translated to its avatar actions:

typically a simplified/anime design is used

, the avatar voice may also be altered from

the actor voice using various voice

modification software.

The idea of 'virtual youtuber' parallels the concept

of game broadcasts(videogame streaming) where players customize their avatar

and showcases its interactions with the world:

motion capture technology allowed people to control

virtual avatars in games like Second Life and VRChat to

a degree where a human-like presence could simulated by

the avatar unlike rigid 'game avatars' of the past.

This shift also made possible the creation of independent avatar software for purely visual interaction: the avatar is a custom made 3D model that

is overlaid on the video to simulate 'human presence'(similar to videoboxes of player faces in streaming content).

Vtubers are more appealing to stream viewers due

their abstract nature and perceived lack of human

flaws - the direct control of avatar allows the actors

to roleplay any situation as in film/anime in realtime.

The qualities of cuteness and quirkiness characterize most popular vtubers due their anime origins, the

3D models are capable of much wider range of designs:

the subculture of vtuber streaming is currently

rapidly expanding where former 'game/lifestyle streamers' adopt a virtual avatar persona to roleplay

their preferred identity as a streamer - the transition

shifts subculture towards more anonymous and abstract

context where personalities are 'custom-made' for exploiting various content niche,

unlike streamers who build

their 'generalist' persona to fit all context scenarios(though early vtubers are generalists, due lack of specialization and low competition in the field).