Would you like a cardboard version of yourself? Mint Digital and Chris Beaumont, the people behind Foldable.Me, think you would.
The process is simple. You create your avatar through the Foldable.Me website, and then a foldable version of that avatar gets sent to your specified address. Once you fold your 8cm tall buddy, you have mini-sidekick you can take with you to the office, to the beach, or out for a beer.
The project reached its funding goal on Kickstarter within just a few days, which means that quite a few people (919 to be exact) saw the appeal of having a cardboard sidekick that can look like you or your friends. Upon discovering the project, I too initially thought the idea was kind of cute.
Despite the fact it would be nice to have more options to customize your avatar (especially if you want to make it look as much as yourself or your friend as possible), I think the platform is well developed, and the mini-buddies could work well as a fun gift, or a desk decoration at the office.
However, upon watching the video that accompanies the project, I started to see these cardboard sidekicks in a new light. In the video, you see people interacting with their cardboard selves (that look as much as themselves as being cubified allows), and the creepy part is: the avatars are reacting!
It could be that my mum scarred me as a kid, when, tired of seeing me destroy my toys, suggested I should be nicer to them or they would leave. As such, she must have planted the idea in my head that toys had a mind of their own and could even move on their own accord. The fact of the matter is that I find it hard not to think of Chucky, and all the things that could go wrong, while watching this video.
I guess the answer to the question whether a cardboard sidekick would be cute or creepy depends on how well you can control that tiny voice in your head that says your mini-buddy could be planning your demise….
originally published at EngagementDesign.co