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With social media having as big an impact as it has, it’s not at all strange that more and more attempts at revolutionizing it are popping up. Just like it happened when Hi5 or Myspace went down, innovation generally begets an increased user base… as long as that innovation follows a wide array of other factors.
In their newest attempt to take over a large segment of the market, Nintendo releases Miitomo social media game for smart phones in most countries worldwide, after it broke all records in Japan. So far, people seem to be very pleased with their experience, so we’re going to talk a bit about how you can get started.
Of course, some will find the experience very similar to IMVU, a platform launched in 2004 that worked pretty much on the same premise, but that wasn’t developed by big-shot Nintendo.
Mii yourself
Acting pretty much like a social media/video game fusion, the first step you have to do in order to get started is to create a Nintendo account. After that step, you can get right to creating your own Mii avatar in one of the most ingenious character customization features to date.
Although it has very cartoony graphics, the platform allows for huge customization, as your Sim-ish avatar is based on a selfie you have to take at the start of the character creation. From there, with your face as a foundation, you can go about customizing your avatar’s hair style, facial features, personality traits, and even voice (you can play with an accent, your pitch, speed, etc.).
Social media aspects
Of course, since it is a social media app, most of the app relies on socializing with others. For this, you have to start by answering a series of questions about yourself so that other Miis can get to know you better. The more detailed the answers to the questions, the better.
You will eventually meet up with friends from other social media platforms, as there is a function to help you find them, but you won’t be able to search for someone by name. The questions are designed to be open-ended, consisting of queries the likes of “How would you like to spend your retirement?” or “What is the latest thing that made you smile?”.
Mii Money
But as with most free to play apps, there are a lot of in-game purchases. Fortunately, you can enjoy the full experience without actually having to pay any money, and also without any annoying ads. The platform’s monetary system consists of gold coins, which you mostly get by buying them.
However, you can still get plenty of coins anyway by answering questions, listening to answers, and even for logging in. Plus, the only thing coins can get you are sets of clothing and other esthetic items, some which you can get for free during a daily Pachinko-style event/mini game.
Image source: Flickr
