Heidi Klum has been noticing virtual fashion games — specifically the ones her 14-year-old daughter Lou has been playing — and the supermodel and “America’s Got Talent” judge has a verdict: meh.
“What I didn’t like is that the avatars all looked the same, and they all had a specific kind of body type,” she told WWD. “I thought this is not a very good message, especially for young kids.”
So she came up with her own — just in time for Lou’s 15th birthday next week.
Modelverse, officially launching on Thursday, is a new Roblox game developed by Klum in partnership with virtual world creative agency Supersocial. The game features runways, competitions and environments inspired by real-world places, parties and events, like Klum’s famous Halloween party.
The game kicks off with a plan to deliver 13 runways, starting with scenes in New York, Hollywood, Hawaii and more, as well as seasonal themes such as Oktoberfest or newly conceived areas, like the “heart hub.” Others, such as Haute Couture, Paris and Carnaval, Rio de Janeiro, will roll out over time.
The virtual Klum on the Oktoberfest runway, one of the 13 runway sets debuting with the game.
Courtesy image/Exclusive for WWD
The best part for Klum is that players can be creative with their avatars.
”I wanted them to have possibilities,” she said. “Be curvier, for example, because there are people with different shapes and sizes, and I feel like this was not represented in any of the games that I saw her play.”
They can go off-script too. Sky’s the limit, creatively. If they want to be a marshmallow or a triangle, people should feel free to express — especially kids.
“I feel like if someone wants to come dressed and be a sausage, you can be a sausage,” Klum said.
Catwalk competitions judged by the “Project Runway” star and the global Roblox community allow players to show off their best looks, whether that’s a gown or a hot dog bun. Winners receive virtual assets, or coins, to spend on virtual items.
The Modelverse Ball, NYC runway
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Award Show, Hollywood
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Another Hollywood runway
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Halloween, Transylvania
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The looks aren’t stranded in this one Roblox game either.
“[Players can] carry those virtual goods in their backpack, essentially, which means they can wear those items across millions and millions of different experiences in the Roblox platform,” said Yon Raz-Fridman, chief executive officer and founder of Supersocial.
That should please players, maybe to a surprising degree. According to platform data, 56 percent of Gen Z Roblox users consider their avatar’s fashion more important than their own real-world style.
They won’t be able to get a real-world version of their avatar fashion, however. At least not right now.
Modelverse is a labor of love for Klum intended for players of all ages, so it doesn’t prioritize product placements, shopping or other commercial capabilities. If that changes, Supersocial could make it happen. The firm has worked with Nars, E.l.f. Cosmetics and Gucci, and has experience in virtual commerce.
But that misses the point. Modelverse wasn’t built by brands to pitch things, and it doesn’t have business goals.
For Raz-Fridman, this is something different, and that’s because of Klum herself.
“Heidi is making a real stand here,” he said. “She’s saying, ‘I want to bring something new, something fresh as Heidi, but I want to build something that is not about Heidi. It’s about the community, and I’m doing it by myself, together with my partner studio.”
