Image rights, creativity and videogames

Videogames characters and avatars have been inspired by ... The link between the videogame character and the real person from whom the developers draw inspiration may often not even be immediately recognizable when, for instance, only a few traits of the celebrity are reproduced and the level of decontextualization of the avatar is significant. For instance, it is hard to see Theodore Roosevelt behind Mr Robotic, the arch-enemy of Sonic, the iconic SEGA hedgehog, even in its most realistically designed version.2 Conversely, in other instances, developers might aim for the avatar to be easily and immediately linked to the celebrity, and this may, and often does, serve a specific creative purpose.