The Name's The Thing

[JallaAllah]

Shock them, shock them hard!!! Maybe autodeinstallation if someone enters Drizz't. Or automatically set the enemies damage on "infinite".

[AlKim]

I tend to give my characters a normal-ish first name and a surname along the lines "of place X" or "the X". This saves me the trouble of coming up with two original names (yeah, I haven't got much imagination, thank you), but it does feel stupid when an NPC goes "Yes, this is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you so much, Garreth of the First!" when just "Garreth" would suffice. Separate boxes it is, then, possibly with the option to choose what NPCs should call you.

[.Leif.]

Thanks for putting up this poll, I hate NPCs saying 'Moonshadow' or whatever every time they see my character.

[Amentep]

Two fields for first name last name. If a player only wants one name, they should be able to enter it as the last name. No real point in symbols since its a single player game and it doesn't matter how many "1337Dudes" are on the server. Spaces, hyphens and extended characters (so you can have diacritics) though should be included.

 

Not really sure the best way to handle players who might want a name like "Hoagrin the Grim" or something though...

[kabaliero]

if i was a dev, i'd make a script that detects stuff like more than 1 capital in the name, "x"es or "z"s on both ends,

or friggin NUMERALS or any other webdings piece of crap symbols

plus names of all famous fantasy characters like effin Gandalf, etc

and if it does detect stuff like that, just activate a string for all npcs in game;

so that after you tell them what your name is - they surprisingly reply "wow, what a stupid name", or just laugh at you for a while rly hard

 

might also add a perk to the profile aka fallout

"genious name" with that lil genious meme pic

Edited October 24, 2012 by kabaliero

[Juneau]

First name Second name.

First name Double-Barrelled Second name.

My name has three parts to it.

 

So, make it a string for first name, second name and allow symbols. Script wise, why do just ONE choice so everyone calls you by your first name or second name.

 

Surely it would make sense story wise/geographically/station wise etc.. to have some people call everyone by there first name, others to call people Sir Surname, others to call people by there full name, others to call you by your race/type/achievements/rank etc..

 

The more varied it is the better and the more immersed you feel.

 

EG. Juneau Daley, some characters would call me 'Juneau' Others might call me 'Sir Daley' others could call me 'Juneau of *insert town of birth* others might just called me 'Juneau Daley slayer of Dragons' and so on and so on.

[Kane_Severance]

No reason to have a fixed last name for people to call you by since they're not voicing most of the game. It's trivial to insert whatever name string you choose into dialog text.

 

I prefer first and last name fields. I would also like a random name generator. I usually click through those for a while to get inspiration, then find one close to what I want and modify it.

[Brannart]

If I want my character to be named "His Excellency, the Baron-Elector Wincelas XIV Thorborad of Crownguard" then I expect the game to accomodate me

Edited October 24, 2012 by Brannart

[lolaldanee]

don't care, i'll gonna name mine Drizz't anyway

[Brannart]

don't care, i'll gonna name mine Drizz't anyway

 

Not Raistlin?

[kabaliero]

I'm guessing the only way to avoid stupidity is a smart name generator.

The one that, on click, randomly generates a name out of 2-3 pre-made bits.

For example, smth like, Ran - dol - fer, Chan - fom - berg, Ben - nin - gton

And then let us operate with random parts. (Like, let the player at least pick the parts or skip it if they don't care)

Say, take Ran, then - nin -, then - berg. Ranninberg.

 

would take some time to make a rich parts' base for that, though

 

or maybe it's all stupid and i just failed miserably

Edited October 24, 2012 by kabaliero

[Moonlight Butterfly]

I'd like boxes for a first and last name. That way if there is a note from a friend a dev can use the first name field or if it's a more formal note it can say Mr. Smith or whatever

[Water Rabbit]

I would also like the option of an alias if the game involves any intrigue at all. It would be silly for your character to use his "real" name if dealing in subterfuge.

[HeedlessHorseman]

I would like a box for the character's title. For example, if I make a character named Bob the Inept. I don't want people calling him Sir the Inept nor do I want people calling him Bob the Inept all the time.

Edited October 24, 2012 by HeedlessHorseman

[SunBroSolaire]

I like thinking up first names, but I really do not like coming up with appropriate last names. I don't know what reasonable last name choices are in the PE world, don't make me choose!

 

I would be happy with a default name, or maybe one for each gender/culture combo, but let the player change it if they so desire. I will only use letters, but there's no reason not to allow other characters.

 

Regarding the voiceover... Just avoid calling the PC by name, is my suggestion. Use a nickname or title. Lots of games do this, and it works fine. Calling me "Shepherd" might be more casual than "Commander", but it's still pretty formal. Kind of awkward when Ashley is confessing her love, but still won't use my first name due to the fact that I'm her commanding officer. Makes me feel quite skeevy.

[TheTeaMustFlow]

Dammit, why can I only pick one option? How can you make me choose between freedom and electric shocks?

[jivex5k]

Why shouldn't we be able to name our characters whatever we want?

How does it affect anyone's game but your own?

 

If I want to name my character 1337PWZJ00 I should be able to.

Edited October 24, 2012 by jivex5k

[Brannart]

Why shouldn't we be able to name our characters whatever we want?

How does it affect anyone's game but your own?

 

If I want to name my character 1337PWZJ00 I should be able to.

 

Because you suck and knowing you have any joy in your life makes me sad.

 

Ok I may not be completely serious there.

[kabaliero]

Well, actually they've got a point. It's not a mmo, so~

2 slots for 1st and 2nd name is ok i guess

 

1st for friends and close ones, ans 2nd for business and greetings

 

coz it sux when Liara calls you by your sirname after all the blue love scenes

[Matthew]

In a single-player game with no online interactions, I don't care what others name their characters (unless they're exceptionally funny, brilliant, or stupid).

 

I'd like a first and last name slot, because, for example, if I enter a first and last name in one box and a character who's supposed to be, say, my character's love interest, calls me "Jared Tinson" rather than just "Jared," I might feel a little awkward. Unless it's polite for lovers to address each other by both names in the Project Eternity universe. Pretty much what Kabaliero said.

 

Also, a name generator would be cool if I want a name that fits with the game's lore (more than my own name or Jared Tinson or something) and don't feel like digging through the lore to figure it out myself.

Edited October 24, 2012 by Matthew

[Tamerlane]

Regarding the voiceover... Just avoid calling the PC by name, is my suggestion. Use a nickname or title. Lots of games do this, and it works fine. Calling me "Shepherd" might be more casual than "Commander", but it's still pretty formal. Kind of awkward when Ashley is confessing her love, but still won't use my first name due to the fact that I'm her commanding officer. Makes me feel quite skeevy.

Unnecessary. There won't be enough voice acting in the game for that to be a Big Thang.

[Larkaloke]

I would like a box for the character's title. For example, if I make a character named Bob the Inept. I don't want people calling him Sir the Inept nor do I want people calling him Bob the Inept all the time.

 

Yeah, this is why I'm not always so wild about first and last name boxes. Of course, with only one field, it can get a little bit odd when people call your character by their first and last name all the time, but it only occasionally stands out (at least to me).

 

Title box would be nice, though.

[PsychoBlonde]

don't care, i'll gonna name mine Drizz't anyway

 

Well, due to some semantic ambiguity this may mean that you can deliver shocks to other people's reproductive organs.

[Merin]

I almost always create unique names for my characters.

 

I almost never even make passing references to existing pop culture or literature in my names.

 

I like creating whole characters to play, not play myself.

[Tsuga C]

First and last names are just dandy. I dislike voiced protagonists and want the NPCs to actually use the name of my PC when referring to him or her. If I'm taking the time to christen my character with a good name, I certainly want to see it come up on a semi-regular basis.