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TIGSource ForumsPlayerGeneralWhen did you decide a name for your game?
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vivaladav
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« on: December 29, 2020, 07:19:39 AM »

I have been working on a game for a while and finally I am ready to start to show something, but... my game doesn't have a name yet! Sad

Would you recommend to not show anything until I come up with a name or do you think it doesn't really matter?

At what stage of development did you come up with a name for your game and would you do that differently now?
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michaelplzno
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« Reply #1 on: December 29, 2020, 01:41:32 PM »

The definitive thread on names is in this forum:

https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=750.0

I've become a believer that the name can be the most important part of a project. The earlier in the process you can name your game the better imo.
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vivaladav
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« Reply #2 on: December 29, 2020, 04:15:48 PM »

The definitive thread on names is in this forum:

https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=750.0
Thanks, I saw that when I searched for similar threads, but I didn't post there because I am not really looking for feedback on my name (as I don't have any yet).
Also, the thread seems a bit abandoned (shame Sad)

I've become a believer that the name can be the most important part of a project. The earlier in the process you can name your game the better imo.
I totally agree that's important to have a name sooner rather than later, but I have to disagree on considering the name that important.

Would "Tetris" have been less successful if it was called something else like "Blok" or "Konnect"? I don't think so... even if there's no way to find out.
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« Reply #3 on: December 29, 2020, 06:04:24 PM »

That which we call a rose would still smell as sweet, even if we called them stench weeds.

It would be difficult to do an objective study of if the name mattered, its a bit like the nature vs nurture question: if you take a kid and raise them differently how would they turn out? Which factors are from birth and which factors are based on environment. Difficult to tell.

I know someone who considered changing his name because he thought his name would ruin his chances of success.

I know of someone who wrote a scientific research paper to bolster her agenda that the mother is the most important factor in how a kid turns out.

Will we ever get to the truth, the world may never know.
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ThemsAllTook
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« Reply #4 on: December 29, 2020, 07:46:06 PM »

Sometimes a name comes to me right around the same time as the concept; sometimes it's not until months later once I've gotten to know the project a bit. I find that once I have the right name, it serves as a helpful focal point for reminding me what the game is about.

There have been times I've shown projects to people before I knew what to call them. It can feel kind of weird sometimes, because someone has formed a relationship with and opinions about my work, and then I end up asking them to call it something different from what it was introduced to them as. Feels to me like it's worth a brainstorming session to come up with the name before showing.
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michaelplzno
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« Reply #5 on: December 30, 2020, 06:48:06 PM »

There is also the great clip I can't find of Tobias Funke talking up the name Funke all over the studio where he is planning to do an audition, and when they ask him his name he says Tobias and they pass instantly.
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« Reply #6 on: January 22, 2021, 08:18:43 PM »

Truly just wait for the name to hit me or something, actually believe naming a project right a way can jynx the project haha
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Mark Mayers
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« Reply #7 on: January 31, 2021, 02:29:47 AM »

2012 and it’s now 2021 and I haven’t released it yet lol.

DESOLUS(R) is now a registered trademark at least.
« Last Edit: January 31, 2021, 02:44:31 AM by Mark Mayers » Logged

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Mark Mayers
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« Reply #8 on: January 31, 2021, 02:38:12 AM »

But yea:

-I wanted the name to sound like a Latin word or the name of a Greek Tragedy.
-Solus is the Latin word for alone or by oneself, often used as a stage direction in a play.
-Desolus sounds like Desolate which is indicative of the themes I wanted to convey with the game.
-Sol meaning sun, and “de-“ is a prefix for without or against. The game is about black holes which are dead stars, without light, etc.
-The name is only seven characters and relatively symmetrical, since the center/anchor letter is O. It looks nice from an artistic perspective.
-It’s completely unique with a google/web search and nobody else has taken it. Good for SEO.
-It had a near 100% chance of being approved for a trademark, and it was.

I think the more reasons you have for choosing a specific name the better.



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vivaladav
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« Reply #9 on: January 31, 2021, 06:45:14 AM »

2012 and it’s now 2021 and I haven’t released it yet lol.

DESOLUS(R) is now a registered trademark at least.

9 years, wow! What's holding you back?

I think the more reasons you have for choosing a specific name the better.
That's a good point actually.
From a marketing point of view it's good to have unique selling points in all you do. It doesn't guarantee anything, but it's better than nothing!
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Mark Mayers
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« Reply #10 on: January 31, 2021, 12:24:49 PM »

2012 and it’s now 2021 and I haven’t released it yet lol.

DESOLUS(R) is now a registered trademark at least.

9 years, wow! What's holding you back?

I came up with the name before I even started making the game!
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« Reply #11 on: February 01, 2021, 02:14:02 AM »

Sometimes I get a catchy name and then dream up what it would play like. Works for game jams only, at least for me. Sometimes I code for ages at some large projects and it's name is placeholder.

From a tactical point of view you can change the game's name whenever you want until you get a serious grip on public attention. Changing the name then will hurt your success.

From a emotional point of view, a suitable name will boost your own morale and make it easier for others to emotionally invest in it. If it says as it plays, your vision stays on point better and people will remember it better. This could very much be the reason why someone sees it through while someone else gives up along the way.
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« Reply #12 on: July 08, 2021, 10:08:50 AM »

For most creative projects I tend to switch things around. Sometimes I change the name of something I'm working on 2-3 times. For the game project I'm working on, it just came with the premise. I imagined the opening 'scene' and from that I couldn't imagine it being called anything else.

From what I can tell, names just come to you when you need them. I hate starting a project without them, though. I almost always do. like I never really can get myself to give things project names or working titles for whatever reason and end up having to change everything later.
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nitronova
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« Reply #13 on: July 08, 2021, 01:18:41 PM »

There's no need whatsoever to have a name ready if you're just showing off some clips on Twitter of a work in progress. If you're planning a marketing campaign, however, that's a different matter. Basically, it doesn't matter while you're still building your audience. Games can even have their names changed mid-campaign, but I don't recommend that, haha.

I'm noticing that there's a bit of lean in this conversation toward the art of naming things and I wanna share my opinions on this, too. Personally (this is not advice, this is just me), I name projects as soon as possible! I like to plan before I commit to creating assets and code, and I like my planning to be attractive and catchy and exciting. I don't know if I'd call myself a naming expert, but I've been told by strangers and friends alike that my names are good. I consider three factors in my names.

(0). Money (damn near anything works with enough paid marketing pumped into it)
1. Relevance (to the game's content)
2. Uniqueness (in naming scheme and phrasing)
3. Punch (will it make people look at it?)

To me, memorable names are relevant and lend you a frame of reference. Jump Man: man that jumps. Final Fantasy: a world with swords and armor and elves. Snowboard Kids, Robocop, Duck Hunt, 7 Days to Die, Hacknet, Rocksmith, etc. A relevant name expedites the idea behind it as efficiently as possible. Of course, this can sacrifice other factors, like uniqueness or punch. Simple names can be difficult to search online, longer names are harder to remember, and names can be too "on the nose" and have other unwanted effects. Of course, names can still be successful in spite (or because!) of these problems.

Names that are unique aren't actually unique, they're exploiting its lack of common occurrence in everyday language or web searches. Having a unique name and structure is the difference between naming your sci-fi 4X game "Clash of Alien Civilizations" and something like "Through the Great Filter", or "QuadriFermi." Of course, you might have some companies that will assert that having a name with zero uniqueness resulted in better sales, but there might be a bit of rule zero in that one.

Names that have punch is that "it sounds good" part that rarely gets an explanation. They're relying on a media trope or pattern that people latch on to. It's powered by an idea that their little pattern-matching brains are grabbing at. "Through the Great Filter" grabs at those nerds that fantasize about aliens and how cool space is. They are ready to spend long periods of time in their game. "QuadriFermi" is rhythmic and each half ends in a similar sounding syllable, and is ideal for a more arcadey-feeling game. Each one makes a difference. To me, punch is a committal factor for choosing which of your name candidates to go with.

But that's about where I limit myself to it. It's easy to way overthink it and go all Redesign Your Logo on how you brand your game, when in the end your game's financial success depends more strongly on the actual marketing promoting it to people.
« Last Edit: July 08, 2021, 01:45:42 PM by nitronova » Logged

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« Reply #14 on: September 01, 2021, 06:34:52 AM »

It honestly depends on how confident you are that you're going to release your game. If its just a prototype that you're not sure about you could post a gif and say something like "Was messing around with X". Just make sure that when you do it sums up what you do in your game and/or is catchy. Whatever you do make sure its not misleading.
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