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IF YOUR GAME HAS THESE WORDS IN ITS TITLE, IT'S A BIG RED FLAG
Posts
Max McGee
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CloseOr the archives. People who name their games like this do it purposely, trying to sway them is useless. I'm one of said creators, and I can tell you that generic titles are EXACTLY what you should be doing if you are trying to mimic the oldschool, so as not to trick your audience into downloading something bold and original. Users only get disappointed when they play it and find out it's generic all the way through. Some games are just suited to generic titles, as long as the gameplay and atmosphere support it.
Volrath
2760
Well, I'm definitely guilty of "X of (the) Y" and my next project is set to break these rules too. But there's another side to this. I may be in the minority, but Alter AILA's name is probably the reason I haven't yet played it despite the acclaim. (Never mind that "Genesis" is another word that gets used quite a bit in game titles) It just sounds incomprehensible to me, and while some people might be like "Ooh I want to play so I can figure out what it means," I just lose interest. I kinda like a title to let me know what I'm getting into.
Large
332
Agreed; and it's not like cliched titles don't belong in enjoyable, successful games: Resident Evil (Man, that's clichy), Xenosaga, and others.
Sometimes a name that strives for originality or personality is just so obscure, that, as Volrath just mentioned, you steer away from its general vicinity.
My game is called A Path of Darkness so by you're logic, it has to suck. That's up to the community to decide, if they decide to put aside stupid conventions and biases, and actually try the game for 30 minutes. (That's all I ask).
Sometimes a name that strives for originality or personality is just so obscure, that, as Volrath just mentioned, you steer away from its general vicinity.
My game is called A Path of Darkness so by you're logic, it has to suck. That's up to the community to decide, if they decide to put aside stupid conventions and biases, and actually try the game for 30 minutes. (That's all I ask).
Zeuzio
3787
"HEY GUYS BE SURE TO HAVE CREATIVE TITLES. You can't use these certain words though, because I said so."
I'm pretty sure you can make some great game titles using a lot of those red flag words. Path of Darkness is cool. I think it's more of how you use the words, rather than whatever the words are. And as Volrath said, A title that's too out there is just as bad as a title like "Legend of the Dragon". Just sayin'.
As a side note, I personally like generic titles. I would play "Legend of the Dragon" if the game looked interesting overall. :3
I'm pretty sure you can make some great game titles using a lot of those red flag words. Path of Darkness is cool. I think it's more of how you use the words, rather than whatever the words are. And as Volrath said, A title that's too out there is just as bad as a title like "Legend of the Dragon". Just sayin'.
As a side note, I personally like generic titles. I would play "Legend of the Dragon" if the game looked interesting overall. :3
...Yeah, I have to admit that I think this topic is far too cynical; it's being self conscious to the point of stagnation.
Besides, I would totally play "Legend of the Chrono Dragon King's Sword of Destiny".
Besides, I would totally play "Legend of the Chrono Dragon King's Sword of Destiny".
I agree that this thread is a little unnecessary. Over-complicated & original titles are in general a pretty bad idea. Keep it simple, and if it sounds too cliche, make people look past the title or change it.
Fun fact: "Star Wars" was originally called "Adventures of Luke Starkiller, as taken from the Journal of the Whills, Saga I: The Star Wars." You can pretty much guess why that didn't stick.
Fun fact: "Star Wars" was originally called "Adventures of Luke Starkiller, as taken from the Journal of the Whills, Saga I: The Star Wars." You can pretty much guess why that didn't stick.
There's a lot of consideration for picking a good name beyond a blacklist of words. Making your product stand out is part of what it's name is and what sort of response it creates in your audience. Does it, if intended, communicate anything about the subject matter to the audience? Is the name memorable or unique? If somebody knows nothing about it except the title, can they find it? Is there brand power behind it? (uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh to that last one)
I do agree that certain words and title structures, to me, make a game feel like just another ol' game that there's a bajillion of on the Internet and that little effort was put into choosing it. I'm not sure when most people decide on a title. I personally stick with a devname while making it and make a list of potential titles over this period. Eventually I go through them and see which one I like the best with a process that takes the factors I mentioned earlier into consideration and then stick with it for the rest of the way.
I do agree that certain words and title structures, to me, make a game feel like just another ol' game that there's a bajillion of on the Internet and that little effort was put into choosing it. I'm not sure when most people decide on a title. I personally stick with a devname while making it and make a list of potential titles over this period. Eventually I go through them and see which one I like the best with a process that takes the factors I mentioned earlier into consideration and then stick with it for the rest of the way.
Ironically, the only game on RMN I've had qualms with getting, where the sole basis of my qualms was the title, was Three the Hard Way. I did get around to playing that game, but didn't get very far with it.
Saying that, I got Three the Hard Way it from Home of the Underdogs, not from RMN. But that's a different story.
Saying that, I got Three the Hard Way it from Home of the Underdogs, not from RMN. But that's a different story.
I got Dream and Story in my titles, though.
If I choose Legend of Ligara. It would be little cliched anyway.
"Story of" isn't used much on rpgmaker.net Properly outside like if I search gamefaqs.com
If I choose Legend of Ligara. It would be little cliched anyway.
"Story of" isn't used much on rpgmaker.net Properly outside like if I search gamefaqs.com
Jparker1984
2008
author=iishenron
I'd skip right over Hero's Realm because of the name.
i think to skip a game simply because of its title is shallow (maybe not the right word, but still)
That dose not mean the game will suck, or be boring for that matter.
Corfaisus
"It's frustrating because - as much as Corf is otherwise an irredeemable person - his 2k/3 mapping is on point." ~ psy_wombats
7874
Legends of Destinies
Dawning of a Dragon's Valor
Redeeming Legacy
Tales from Zilmurik
*feels bad man*
Dawning of a Dragon's Valor
Redeeming Legacy
Tales from Zilmurik
*feels bad man*
eplipswich
2728
Judging a game by its name is just dumb. It also depends on the creator of the game, his reputation in the community, the presentation in the game blogs, the popularity of the game blogs etc.
A game with a cliche name doesn't mean it will suck, though a name is certainly the first step to get people's attention. Like if it begins with "Final Fantasy", I would avoid it not because it sucks, but because I'm not a fan of fangames. Also, I don't agree with iishenron that the title "Hero's Realm" is anything cliche or generic.
If it's a title like "The Four Crystals" though, that's kind of a different story, unless...there's a twist to it.
A game with a cliche name doesn't mean it will suck, though a name is certainly the first step to get people's attention. Like if it begins with "Final Fantasy", I would avoid it not because it sucks, but because I'm not a fan of fangames. Also, I don't agree with iishenron that the title "Hero's Realm" is anything cliche or generic.
If it's a title like "The Four Crystals" though, that's kind of a different story, unless...there's a twist to it.
Large
332
author=eplipswich
It also depends on the creator of the game, his reputation in the community, the presentation in the game blogs, the popularity of the game blogs etc.
Disagree; a game is not good because it was made by "Ezra McSharkington", the guy everyone in RMN knows, it is good because of the story, graphics, music, gameplay and other stuff Ezra put into the game. At the same time, the blog page and stuff has nothing to do with it: Ezra might have created the best RMN game of the year, but he doesn't know how to make the game profile pretty with CSS, so he just uses the default profile. How that is presented has ZERO effect on the quality of the game.
Ultimately, it all depends on what you do IN the maker of your choice. Nothing else.
The real advice to take away from this is that your title ought to be representational of the game OR be completely off the wall and wacky (Space Funeral anyone?)
Gavaroc Fevinor
510
The title is the first thing that's seen, but people are different and will be drawn to different things. I don't go by title that often, myself, instead I'm generally won over by interesting screenshots.
Still, a catchy title can grab attention, and I think the rhythm of the words matter more than the words themselves. For example, a story idea that I have (if, hypothetically, I were making it as a game) could have one of three titles - 'Fevinor: Demands of Destiny', 'Fevinor: Distorted Destiny' or 'Fevinor: Confounded Fate'. Personally I believe the third would have the greatest effect.
Destiny and fate are both common tropish cliche-ish title words, but I think the third option there is the sort that would stick in one's head infectiously. The first two have a fairly good rhythm, but the 'Fevinor' at the beginning is a contrast. I'd need to include that first word, as the main protagonist is Gavaroc Fevinor (not me, of course, but the character from which I've taken my username. Gavaroc is in fact an old man, an elderly Red Wizard, in my attempts to defy the HEROES MUST ALWAYS BE YOUNG cliche). Plus, the story would be the first in a series, so they'd be connected through the naming trend 'Fevinor: (subtitle).'
'Fevinor: Confounded Fate' rolls off the tongue and sounds interesting when read mentally, too. The repetition of the 'F' sounds, most obviously, and also the syllables. Fev-ih-nor, then a pause for the colon, Con-foun-ded Fate. With the added pause, it becomes two sets of four syllables, and thus forms a catchy, memorable pattern that stays in someone's head and makes them think about it. 'Confounded Fate? What does that mean? I want to read the story here.'
SCIENCE! :D
And for anyone interested, the story involves a fantasy world wherein there had always been predestined fate; a divine plan decided upon by the Gods. This lasts up until the story starts, as the big bad (a dark god) creates a new being and sends him to Earth with instructions to cause some serious shit. This new element completely disrupts the 'divine plan' and the future of the world can no longer be foretold. Thus, fate is confounded. I particularly like the word, too, as it gives me a window to write a (hopefully) humourous title drop where a character, in an angry outburst, would shout something about 'Confounded Fate!!'
God dammit I wish I wasn't technologically useless, since I can't actually use this idea in the RPGMaker context. XD
Still, a catchy title can grab attention, and I think the rhythm of the words matter more than the words themselves. For example, a story idea that I have (if, hypothetically, I were making it as a game) could have one of three titles - 'Fevinor: Demands of Destiny', 'Fevinor: Distorted Destiny' or 'Fevinor: Confounded Fate'. Personally I believe the third would have the greatest effect.
Destiny and fate are both common tropish cliche-ish title words, but I think the third option there is the sort that would stick in one's head infectiously. The first two have a fairly good rhythm, but the 'Fevinor' at the beginning is a contrast. I'd need to include that first word, as the main protagonist is Gavaroc Fevinor (not me, of course, but the character from which I've taken my username. Gavaroc is in fact an old man, an elderly Red Wizard, in my attempts to defy the HEROES MUST ALWAYS BE YOUNG cliche). Plus, the story would be the first in a series, so they'd be connected through the naming trend 'Fevinor: (subtitle).'
'Fevinor: Confounded Fate' rolls off the tongue and sounds interesting when read mentally, too. The repetition of the 'F' sounds, most obviously, and also the syllables. Fev-ih-nor, then a pause for the colon, Con-foun-ded Fate. With the added pause, it becomes two sets of four syllables, and thus forms a catchy, memorable pattern that stays in someone's head and makes them think about it. 'Confounded Fate? What does that mean? I want to read the story here.'
SCIENCE! :D
And for anyone interested, the story involves a fantasy world wherein there had always been predestined fate; a divine plan decided upon by the Gods. This lasts up until the story starts, as the big bad (a dark god) creates a new being and sends him to Earth with instructions to cause some serious shit. This new element completely disrupts the 'divine plan' and the future of the world can no longer be foretold. Thus, fate is confounded. I particularly like the word, too, as it gives me a window to write a (hopefully) humourous title drop where a character, in an angry outburst, would shout something about 'Confounded Fate!!'
God dammit I wish I wasn't technologically useless, since I can't actually use this idea in the RPGMaker context. XD
hima
4237
I don't think judging a game by its name is dumb at all. Attention is scarce. People don't download every game and play all of them to find out that they are great. Heck, they don't even click to see the info page of every game.
Unless known beforehand, your game's name, icons, and screenshots are the only resources that players use to make a decision. I kinda agree with the red flag list here, that if I only see these names without an impressive screenshots, I'd most likely look pass them.
No, this has nothing to do with the quality of the game itself, but it's about luring player to get to play the game in the first place. You might say that 'Well, you'll miss one of the greatest games!' The thing is, I doubt that. If the game is great, I'll hear about it one way or another. And I can always come back and play it later after I have more information on the game.
OT : I find mixing the name in the red flag list to create a new title pretty entertaining. Would be funny if there's a contest based on these names or something :P
Unless known beforehand, your game's name, icons, and screenshots are the only resources that players use to make a decision. I kinda agree with the red flag list here, that if I only see these names without an impressive screenshots, I'd most likely look pass them.
No, this has nothing to do with the quality of the game itself, but it's about luring player to get to play the game in the first place. You might say that 'Well, you'll miss one of the greatest games!' The thing is, I doubt that. If the game is great, I'll hear about it one way or another. And I can always come back and play it later after I have more information on the game.
OT : I find mixing the name in the red flag list to create a new title pretty entertaining. Would be funny if there's a contest based on these names or something :P
