Creator VS Character Identity

[Kain Nobel]

Introduction

This is kind of an oddball topic, but I'll start it off by clarifying that I am not making a game about myself, but... there is an issue I need to figure out as far as separating my identity from the lead character I am designing. I mean I am I and he is he and whatever is whatever but...

Funny thing is I've never thought about my lead character's name. Okay, maybe once like six years ago I thought about his name; I started calling him Chance, but then I hated that name as I realized that is the name of the betrayer in Syphon Filter 2... oh, and the dog from the movie Homeward Bound. Anyways, from then on I kind of thought like "fuck his name, we'll let the player decide, we'll just call him Kain for convenience, a sort of default name." Is this lazy design?

The Importance of Character Names in Games

Should it really matter what your lead character's name is... or any of the characters for that matter? It seems that most/all RPGs have characters whom names can be changed, but I kind of seen it a few different ways depending on the game...

Legend of Zelda

This game is a freaking identity crisis only because in all games you play 'Link', who is in fact not Zelda, and moreso the fact that there is a game I think which Princess Zelda isn't even in it. You can change the name to whatever you want, still doesn't change the fact that I'll forever know him as Link.

Final Fantasy series...

In early Final Fantasy titles, while the creators (as far as I know) did give characters names, they were always changeable so I don't really think it mattered as much. I always changed the names in the earlier titles (up until FF6), because who the hell wants to run around as a guy named Butz? (Haha, Buttz, getit?). However, later titles, for one reason or another, I kind of found it absurd to see somebody renaming Cloud, Tifa, Barret, etc... to anything different, that kind of thing makes me want to drive a spike through somebody's heart. I'm not sure the reasoning or psychology behind this, maybe its because the games from 6 and on were a big deal, but their names started to actually matter to me.

Shining Force

While the first game was epic I barely remember it, but I remember in SFII the lead character's name was Bowie. I hated that name, it didn't bother me to name him Aurthur, but everybody else had great names; Sarah, Chester, Sir Astral, Rhoads, Lemon, Kaizen, etc. Everybody aside from the lead character had a memorable and respectable name, you can say them and I immediately know exactly who you're talking about.

While I'm at it...

Does there really need to be a 'Lead' Charactor?

As I get deeper into writing, while my 'lead' character doesn't really lose any importance, he tends to share a lot of the lime light with other folks who are also major players in what goes down. I know that in alot of games, you always have the one guy (or gal) that acts as the player's avatar in the world, but my game passes the baton between a few 'lead' characters. Should I emphasize and let the player know, "hey, there IS a main character in this game and he is..." or does it really matter?

Being that my game revolves around life in a military conflict, I've started focusing less on a single person and panning out to focus on leaders and their interaction with their teams, as well as some internal bantering here and there. If there was a lead character, it would be mainly two groups; the assault team and the recon team, some personalities would stand out brighter than others.

Conclusion

I'm going to stop here, I think I'm thinking too hard on trivial bullshit right now haha. Just discuss what you think about character development, if having a leader is important, if you think names are important and why, etc.

[Pherione]

Character Names
While I have discussed the fact whether characters should have meaningful names or not on my blog, I find your discussion about whether characters should have names or not in games quite as interesting.

First, my personal thought: I believe characters should have names as I hate it if I have to spend hours trying to come up with a name while all I wanted to do is play a game. It's easy when you can change them but I don't care as much when the characters are decent enough (and if they're not, I refer them to the group of characters I never use).
If their name is imperative to the story, then of course I wouldn't ever allow the player to change it.

Trivia stuff
Then some sidenotes about the FF series you talked about, just as trivia. FF1 had character creation where you had to create your own party so no standard names there. Butz only appears in the American version of the series ^^ The rest of the world gets to play with Bartz. From FFX on I believe, you can't change your character's names anymore.

Does there really need to be a lead character?
Nope. It doesn't matter if there is a lead character or not. Some stories have one and some don't, but a good story is a good story; it's not dependant on whether you have a lead.

[Samven]

I like to be one extreme or the other. Either give me a blank slate I can build up and establish on my own (ie: Commander Shepard) or give me someone who's already got a fully-fledged personality so that I can see it develop further (ie: Luke fon Fabre). I'm not a massive fan of the wishy-washy, "Put your name in this lead character but he doesn't do much because he's a silent hero who is actually not important to the plot" stuff.

[yamina-chan]

The name issue really is something that you will think about at least a few times when you're making a game.
Personally I think wether or not the character should have a name allready or not depends on the type of game. If it is a silent protagonist, like in the Pokémon games for example, it is okay to have the player choose the name. Or if you build your character from scratch (MMO sytle for example), then of course the player should give the character a name. In games however where the main character (or characters) are talking, have a personality and everything I belive the names should be there as they are a major part of the character.
While back when me and my sister played FF7 for the first time the main Character Cloud was renmed Jani (and to this day I think of him with that name first and his real name second) and while we did add an 'o' at the end of the Name Vivi in FF9 (and again, that's the name I think of XD) I prefere given names over player choice in that regard.
We don't usually choose our own names as well, do we? -Nicknames not included.
In Wild Arms there is one place in the world where you can change your name midgame if you really want to. To this day I think this might be the best option. Have a name, but give the player eventually the choice to change it. -Not right away, but after some time to familiarizize yourself with the character, the world -and the name.

[Taylor]

I'm pretty much with Samven. If you've established a world or all sorts for your character, letting the player name them could be a little ridiculous in hindsight. Bear in mind, I mean a world your character is tied with, and that world has an important key to play in the way they developed before you started the game - heck, during play too.

Persona 3 had the MC as a blank slate, and while he did have some backstory, it didn't really pay any key part in his personality or development. (P4's MC is even more of a blank slate, so lets leave him aside.) Atlus really did a good job and leaving him open to interpretation. One player could put him out as a freaking sexual maniac with loads of girlfriends, trying to cope with the loss of parents by having many girls. :D ...I just forged bonds with the party members, and about three outsiders. And only one girlfriend. But only because you couldn't avoid an intimate relationship until P4.

While he does have the pseudo-canon name of Minato Arisato, I still think of him as me when I play "Jaabi Taylor" in my file. ... it helps his hair matches my (internet) persona colour and actual hair-style. :3

In my current play through of FFVI, I've been trying to name everyone. Either based on their Japanese name, only sharing the first letter only. At least, usually. Admittedly despite adding some touch to this party, I will often forget about the names I've established because I've known them by their defaults for so long. Perhaps it's because I haven't touched the game in a while, or perhaps because the characters aren't blank slates like the above.

[MetalRenard]

The Power Of A Name
Not much to say honestly, just that a name is one of the most powerful tools in giving identity. I prefer for a game to have defined names for that reason (unless it's more of a sandbox game or a pokemon-style game). It's a part of a history and that character has their place. They deserve a name.