What’s the big deal about sig files?

Sig files or ‘signature’ files are a serious aspect of a gamer’s personality. Most forums these days allow their users to create their own sig files so their posts are easily identified. Some of these sig files can be anything from a simple URL linking to someone’s personal blog or website to masterpieces and works of art.

I’ve only just started really looking at sig files and what they represent. It’s an often overlooked part of a user’s profile but one that actually carries alot of importance. Signature files are a part of you, the person who is taking part in the community. It’s a graphical representation of who you are and without it, posts would be otherwise bland or meaningless. Sig files also enhance a communities’ sense of belonging and gives something back to the user – not all forums encourage or even allow sig files to be used in their forums.

What do you think a sig file represents? Do you use one and if so, why or why not? Do you think signature files are important to the users and should be allowed on forums?

I recently visited a few different forums and found some interesting ways in which people expressed themselves using their sig file space in their profiles. Here are some of the better examples:

And some real works of art taken from Deviant Art’s talented community:

Hmm makes me think I should be brushing up on my own image manipulation skillz. Watch this space

EDIT update:

Here’s one that I just made – it’s nothing special but not bad for someone with next to no skills at all I am currently using this on one of the gaming forums I frequent: