HOW'D YOU DECIDE ON A GAME TITLE?

Posts

halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16873
from Max
Everyone here LOVES pokemans!
You know it!

But joking with my series aside, I do have to put SOME thought into titles, because unlike the Final Fantasy series, my games have tag lines. Like Pokémon Hunter 2: Hostility, or Pokémon Hunter 3: The Search for Curly's Gold.

Usually, the tag line I pick has something to do with the plot of the game that isn't immediately obvious. I mean, you can tell what PH3 is going to be about, but that tag line was for comedic purposes and an homage to the joke sequel always being the search for Curly's gold (or more money!).

I also try to pick tag lines that sound cool to make up for the lameness that precedes it.
Puddor
if squallbutts was a misao category i'd win every damn year
5702
I come up with a cool sounding title and then base the story around that.

Well, more I get a plot idea, come up with the title, and then I flesh it out. Titles give me an idea of what I'm writing.

I'm currently working on Darkseed: Revivial, which both titles are important to the game itself. 'Revival' is the tag line because it's a sequel of a short story I wrote. Darkseed is basically 'Seeds of Darkness' title-ified.
Which is also very plot relevant.

Usually I pick a title relating to the game's theme. Usually.
WeaponBirth just sounds cool and makes little sense. All a title has to do is sound cool, although it probably helps if it's much more related to the story. Fire Emblem Path of Radiance actually has something called "The Fire Emblem", for example while the other games (at least of the many I played) do not.

Final Fantasy sounds cool too even though it was only called that because the original creators thought they were going out of business when they made the first game.
Decky
I'm a dog pirate
19645
I've been on a WIthin Temptation kick. The lead singer's name is Sharon Den Adel. When I learned how to pronounce her name ("Dehn--Uh-Dell", not "Dehn-Eh-Dull"), I loved the sound of it. Hence, Legend of Denadel.
post=136518
WeaponBirth just sounds cool and makes little sense. All a title has to do is sound cool, although it probably helps if it's much more related to the story. Fire Emblem Path of Radiance actually has something called "The Fire Emblem", for example while the other games (at least of the many I played) do not.


Uh... The first Fire Emblem game has an object (shield) called the Fire Emblem that is a plot element.
Every other game in the series also has a "Fire Emblem" except Fire Emblem Gaiden (I think it doesn't at least)...
Max McGee
with sorrow down past the fence
9159
I want to know why some people have colons separating their name into two parts when they have only one game and it is for all intents and purposes standalone.

Also I did lie a little bit in my initial post. The name that I agonized the most over was Iron Gaia which I was TOTALLY DISSATISFIED WITH but couldn't think of anything better. Since then I've had a lonnnnnnng time to get used to it.
"The Looming Spire" is called what it is called because the entire game takes place in a big huge tower atop a mountain that overlooks most of the known world.

"Darksteel" is named after a material in the game called Darksteel. Not entirely plot-centric, but it IS used in the end-game. Don't know if that project will ever see such an endgame.
post=136914
I want to know why some people have colons separating their name into two parts when they have only one game and it is for all intents and purposes standalone.

shut up max:mcgee
Max McGee
with sorrow down past the fence
9159
post=136917
"The Looming Spire" is called what it is called because the entire game takes place in a big huge tower atop a mountain that overlooks most of the known world.

"Darksteel" is named after a material in the game called Darksteel. Not entirely plot-centric, but it IS used in the end-game. Don't know if that project will ever see such an endgame.


I like Darksteel as a name. Are/were you an M:tG player?
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16873
from Max
I want to know why some people have colons separating their name into two parts when they have only one game and it is for all intents and purposes standalone.

Mine has colons, and it has multiple iterations (both made and planned). Though I can see why a non-serial game might need one. It helps the title stand out among other similar vague fantasy titles.
post=136914
I want to know why some people have colons separating their name into two parts when they have only one game and it is for all intents and purposes standalone.
A hypothesis: It's so that it can have both a catchy title which is unsubstantial and a substantial title which isn't catchy.
post=136939
post=136917
"The Looming Spire" is called what it is called because the entire game takes place in a big huge tower atop a mountain that overlooks most of the known world.

"Darksteel" is named after a material in the game called Darksteel. Not entirely plot-centric, but it IS used in the end-game. Don't know if that project will ever see such an endgame.
I like Darksteel as a name. Are/were you an M:tG player?


Yes, very much. And I won't lie, I totally stole the name from the Mirrodin block.
Max McGee
with sorrow down past the fence
9159
That's what I figured. : )

I have been playing Magic since the first Portal set was new...around Tempest, I think? On and off. Mostly off.
I hate calling any project Final Fantasy, or any fan based project in general. With game design, you have the ability to be creative and original, why waste that on a fan based project. With that said, the reason I went with my title was because it was based off of the planets name (Ebon Scape). The other half of the title, (the beginning of the End) Was because it's in the middle of a 3 part series I'm planing on building if time allows.

Basically, all these events that occur in the title happen before the final battle or final story.

Though, a games name is trivial compared to what you put into the game itself.
I'd rather go for quick snappy names rather than Legend Of The Crystal Retarded Sandwich Making Sword.
Unless I was purposely making a game to sound old school.

A fun fact for me is that I don't like starting a new project until I know exactly what I want to call my game.
post=137921
I'd rather go for quick snappy names rather than Legend Of The Crystal Retarded Sandwich Making Sword.

This. The title--while it can be catchy or interesting--doesn't always have to deeply relate to the plot of the game. Final Fantasy is a prime example: the series title has never had any relation to the story at all...and that's okay.
"Legend Of The Crystal Retarded Sandwich Making Sword"



I DEMAND THAT THIS GAME BE MADE!!!11one!!1!111one!!
I'm going to make a topic about my game's logo design soon but as I'll explain there It takes me ages and I mean hours and hours of googles and generators to find the perfect set of words that work with the game and aren't already used by something.

I can't tell you how many times I came up with an awesome game name only to find there was already a game with that exact title.
Think Outside the Box

There are boxes, and the game requires abstract thought.