Game names

[Rainman]

What do you guys usually name your guys? Do you have different names depending on what game it is? How do you try to make up an original name if you need to?

Simple questions... I'll answer first.

I guess my most used name is Rainman. It's a well established screen name that I can identify easily. When I want to get "creative" I'll give names from random fictional charaters or even I'm feeling bolder I'll use a slightly altered version. For example I've used Bilbo at some points and eventually dared to use the name Philbo. Mostly because I thought it was a funny name.

When I'm doing a game where originality is important I'll use the "keyboard smash" technique where I'll randomly hit a series of key. From that I'll try to extrapolate a reasonably cool name. If that's not possible I'll retry.

One of my oddest naming rituals pertains to how I name my Zelda games. From some weird reason when I created my Zelda OOT game long ago, I decided to use the name Bobby. As usual it was probably because I thought it was a funny name. I must not have been thinking because I ended up not with Bobby, but with bObbY. I kept it for some reason and now almost ritually name all my zelda game with this name. :shrug:

[Archibaldo]

Hmmmm... Intresting. If its an RPG like pokemon I use my real name, Dave. Other wise I just make up a name like, Rintroda or Fritlek. Theese are names just off the top of my head.

[Yoshiman]

Depends. If there's a name already given to the character (Link), I just keep it. But all of my Pokemon characters have been named "Duo" (Gundam Wing).

But in other games like Diablo II, I usually use random names. I named my Necromancer "Bob", and my Sorceress "Limstella" (Fire Emblem USA).

I really don't have to think up names for my own characters too much. Back when I created the characters that I frequently draw, I looked in a baby name website :p . I got three names I liked out of there. Cassandra, Matthew, and Tasuku.

[Ganon's Minion]

For the last while I've been naming all of my characters in games 'Skye'. Why? Beats me. I've taken a serious liking to the name. Meh, simple as that.

[AtmaWeapon]

Depends.

For Zelda and RPGs, my first play through is traditionally (read always) the default character name (I.E. Link, Ness, Chrono, etc.) For games where the name serves to identify your file rather than your character, I use Owen. For games like Animal Crossing and Harvest Moon that let you live the life of an alter ego, I use Atma.

For other characters, I tend to follow the same rule; first game is default name, then I name based on names I find pleasing and friends with matching personalities. Usually I don't rename male characters, but I have a list of female names I find pleasing I go through when I can (Sara, Ann, Nadia, and a few others, my g/f's name never fits.) Or sometimes I pick a name that is a parody of the character, for example naming Jeff "Nerd" in Earthbound.

Dogs are always named after my first dog, Lucky. Cats are always named after my favorite cat, Pretty Cat (usually "Pretty" for short). Otherwise names are somewhat fitting but usually random. When I know a character will be expendable I choose comedy names. For example, the phrase Takakura says when selling a chicken in Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life is "So... you want to sell <name>?". Therefore I named chickens I planned on selling "Cock", "Soul", "Sperm", and many other fun items to sell.

For games with lots and lots of characters, like FF3, I leave the names alone because I can't remember who's who.

[vegeta1215]

I usually name the main character after myself, and leave the other characters the same, mainly so that if I need to look up help on gamefaqs, I don't have to think about what I named my guys. One time I played through FFVII on my PC and I named all the characters after my friends. It was fun.

[gdorf]

Yeah, I leave all the character names the same, if possible, and if there is no "default name" I name it "ravix". Just a name I picked out of the blue.

[goKi]

I'll generally use my real name, or goKi. In some cases (such as replays of zelda games, i'll name my character 'Link'). In diablo 2, my brother and i have a strange system for chosing player names, that gives us a suitable name. the strange names that we have are endless.

[Fanblade101]

Okay, well i'm a pretty messed up person. So...when i choose game names, sometimes i will use names from other games. One of my most used names is Xan. I play alot of older classic NES series and original gameboy games so a 3 letter name is a must. Also, I was playing The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind the other day and i decided to start a new file. When the time came for me to be named, i came up with Aeldorn. I think its really cool. But I never use anything except Link in a zelda game.
:weirdo:

[Dechipher]

Usually I am Dechipher, or more often, Amal. On Offline games I'm usually Amal.

[vegeta1215]

In some cases (such as replays of zelda games, i'll name my character 'Link').

I do that too :D After always playing Zelda under my own name, its weird to actually be called 'Link' in the game.

[skidphyzz]

I usually name the character after myself the first time I play the game, if I have to name other characters in the game I'll name them after someone they remind me of (friend, cousin) so that its like me and my friends on a journey together like in chrono trigger, also one of my brothers' has a pretty cool naming technique. He names the character after whatever band he happens to be into at the time, he often uses weezer, blur, cream, of cake of something usually weezer though partially because it sounds kinda funny I think.

[Rainman]

Also, I was playing The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind the other day and i decided to start a new file. When the time came for me to be named, i came up with Aeldorn. I think its really cool.

I have many games saved for Morrowind. I always have a hard time making names for it because I don't want to have just any dumb name. My most recent one is a dunmer named Valden. I remember when I made it I thought a name that started with "v" might be cool. and somehow came up with the rest.

[Master Ghaleon]

In UO I use Master Ghaleon

PS2 games I use my name David

RPG games the main guy is my name, then if i get to put in names for the other char. I use my friends names