What do YOU do with names?

[Captain Wrong]

Back when I was trying to like RPGs, I played one (FF Tactics, I think) as "Lil' Poopie" (ran out of characters for Pants.)

When it reached that point, I could tell I was barking up the wrong genre.

[o2william]

I usually use the default name, but sometimes I enter something that'll look funny in game dialogs:

Dork
Evil
fool
blah
ewww

In Dragon Warrior, this makes the Princess say things like, "Thou art brave indeed to rescue me, Dork!" and "Please accept my love, ewww."

I think I used to use the name "Evil" in Zelda: ALTTP. I seem to recall this makes a lot of the game's dialog -- where characters are praising your goodness -- come out pretty funny. (What can I say? I'm easily amused.)

[-hellvin-]

I'm all about using the original names. Except for one time. In Final Fantasy IX, I don't know why I thought this, but I thought that the princess was going to only have name change while she was in the town, so I'm like, ok, you can be "A Whore" for a little while. By the start of disc 2 I realized she was going to be a whore for a long time indeed.

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

It's no RPG, but I used to rename the computer players in GBC Monopoly after my cats and my horse. Now there's a picture for ya. :P

[tholly]

for things like zelda games...i name the character Link....for RPGs and stuff like that where a name is put in already i use that name....for games that just have Default or Player 1 or something like that i usually use my own name and for games that require you to name a profile i either call it Tony (my name) or Professor (nick name i use in Halo)

[Daria]

It's no RPG, but I used to rename the computer players in GBC Monopoly after my cats and my horse. Now there's a picture for ya. :P

Heh I do the same with my Genesis copy of Monopoly... well the cats anyway.

[Johnny Black]

I usually change the character names, unless they've got a name that I really like. If you keep the default it could get confusing if somebody else has a save file. Also, it makes it more... how can I put this... personalized.

[Aussie2B]

I always leave the default names. It just feels icky to have them changed. If there's no name in-game but one in the manual, I'll use that. However, sometimes I don't have the manual, so I find out later on that the main character actually has a name. :/

When I MUST name a character, I don't tend to use my own because main characters tend to be male, and giving them a female name is also icky. I remember naming the dude in Dragon Warrior "Tina", and then the princess talked about how much she loved "Tina". I inadvertently turned the princess into a dyke. :(

So instead, I have named the main male characters after rock stars and celebrities I like (such as "Paul" AKA Bono of U2), and then I had a phase in which I named them after boys I liked. :/ (All 2 of them. :P ) Doesn't work anymore now that I live with my boyfriend because we share games and naming a file after him when he frequently uses his name in games gets MIGHTY confusing.

Sometimes I don't know what to name characters so I just get silly. I named the dog in Secret of Evermore "Chicken Noodle", I have often used "asshole", "poop", etc., and when I first played Shining Force 2 I named the hero "Findsaw" because I bought Milon's Secret Castle the same day, hehe. :P In Secret of Mana, I always name the sprite Joey. For some reason he reminds me of a baby kangaroo or wallaby. o_O

When I have to name a whole bunch of people at once (such as in RPGs where you create your party at the beginning), I'll usually name one dude Andreas/Andy, one chick Kristina/Tina, one freaky little guy Tweeter (an online friend), and then something goofy for the last guy like Jesus or something.

[DigitalSpace]

I always go by default names. Doesn't feel right to me to change them.

[Dave Reinquest]

I generally leave default names. except where I like the Japanese name better. FF7 Aerith in place of Aeris...I know it's pronounced the same almost but it just sounds better to me. (EXCEPTION: I didn't like Steiner's name in FF9. I used Meioh cause it sounds better.)

Flight sims I am always "Longdong" .. Long Story.

Board Games I name peeps weird things. like Sonic, Bob, you name it.

Bob is pretty generic, and fits almost anyone male.

[NE146]

I've written about this before, but usually I put in my name like "YOU ASS" or "YOU SHITHEAD" etc. That way when they refer to me it comes out "Retrieve the sword of light YOU ASS" etc. or "come here YOU FAG" etc..

If it's other characters, I generally give them names that match their looks. Like in FF2 I know I had a character named "Faggy" (the bard), and Baldy (the kung fu guy). I name the girl characters stuff like "toots" or similar. Or in Chrono Trigger I named the prehistoric chick "Farah", the robot "C3PO", the chick with the glasses "Dyke", and the frog "kermy" (I think). For regular names I sometimes do like to name fighters ODIN in reverence to Phantasy Star 1. But in general I just like to make it as stupid as possible.

[anagrama]

On the rare occasions that I play an RPG, I'll always name my main character 'Boris'. I'm not really sure why

[Lemmy Kilmister]

I always go by default names. Doesn't feel right to me to change them.

Ditto. The only time i use a real name is in a game that i have to name the main character.

[calthaer]

I prefer RPGs that don't have any default names - the Might & Magic series, Bard's Tale, Morrowind, etc.

For the Square RPGs (i.e. - all console RPGs or the ones that imitate Square), I just leave it at the default. There are only so many ways to "personalize" an interactive movie.

[charitycasegreg]

I always change the names, I just love rpgs and how you can name them whatever you want... jk, I never play rogs, but if I did, I would probably change the name...