Emote, buy, enjoy: mapping the intensity of emotions for virtual skins with Plutchik's Wheel

The abstract (approximately 150 to 250 words) should briefly describe the background, methods, results and conclusions of your research. It should be written in a single paragraph using single line spacing, Virtual skin significantly influences players' engagement and purchasing decisions in the constantly evolving mobile gaming landscape. This study explores the emotional intensity that virtual skin in PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) Mobile evokes. It uses Plutchik's Wheel of Emotion to measure these responses and their influence on players' purchasing intentions and visual enjoyment. A quantitative survey was implemented to gather data from 204 participants and use statistical analysis to show the frequency of emotion intensity appearing towards the virtual skin elements. The Emotion Wheel visually categorises human emotions by intensity and similarity. Helping individuals describe their feelings improves self-awareness and emotional management. In addition, its vast emotional vocabulary makes communicating sentiments and comprehending others simpler. Close emotions are similar, whereas opposed emotions are more contrasted. In order to map the emotions of the participants in this study, only one polar opposite emotion—the intensity of Disgust to Trust—was examined. This research suggests that virtual skin can evoke diverse emotions, including Trust and Disgust, through elements such as colour, style, uniqueness, texture, and theme. These emotional responses substantially determine a player's acceptance or rejection of a virtual skin. Furthermore, a significant correlation exists between the intensity of these emotions, the level of visual enjoyment the user experiences, and their intent to purchase. The study underscores the importance of emotive design in virtual items, highlighting its potential to enhance user experience and loyalty by catering to aesthetic preferences and emotional connections. These insights offer developers valuable guidance for optimising virtual skin to increase players’ engagement and retention. Times New Roman, 11pt, italic, justify and A4 format. Do not include reference citations in the abstract.