golden sun war of alchemy (hero names)

[Saturos]

Venus adept: Trevor
Mars warrior:???
Mercury adept:???(girl)

[Thunder-squall]

What was the idea behind the original GS names?  Were they random, or was there a strong biblical theme to them?

[Rolina]

Isaac probably has more to do with Isaac Newton than the biblical figure due to the themes of Alchemy.  Also, don't name characters until we have the setting.  That helps a heck of a lot, since it gives your characters a culture.  If you have a setting in a culture similar to the middle-east, for example, then you can target middle-eastern names.  That's why Sveta's name is Sveta in the US and not Stella as in the JP version - that area corresponds to Mongolia/Russia.

[KyleRunner]

What was the idea behind the original GS names?  Were they random, or was there a strong biblical theme to them?

Robin (Isaac), Gerald (Garet), Ivan (Ivan) and Mary (Mia).

Just wanted to point their original names... It makes easier to analyze :)

[Rolina]

Also, to point out where they're from geographically compared to earth:

Isaac:  Mid-Europe
Garet:  Mid-Europe
Mia:  Russia
Ivan:  South America/Brazillish.

Names tend to follow naming conventions in their region, so based on what culture a character's from, it helps to look up the to 500-5000 or so names from that culture pick one you like that works for the character.  The JP version didn't quite follow this, but the NA staff definitely seemed to notice when they did names.  Ivan's I think was based on where Hammet was from, though, as they didn't know his actual origins yet.

[Thunder-squall]

Why did the english translation feel the need to change the names?

[Rolina]

Well, for starters Garcia > 5 characters.  As is Gearald.

Thus, limited by space, as well the need to localize (Robin, where I live, is typically seen as more of a girl's name than a boy's).  Localization was actually a smart thing on NoA's end, because of the geographical and cultural parallels GS has to the real world.  Thus, names were changed to be culturally appropriate for the region the character was understood to be from.  Obviously, in some cases, like with Ivan, it's off a bit, but it does do a good job flavoring the world a bit better.

If you've got a problem with the changes to character names, wait until you see the JP spell and class names.  I am very happy we didn't get those.

[Thunder-squall]

So other than mirroring cultures, the names are random, and lacking any sort of symbolism?

In that case, who cares what the names are?  We may as well randomize them from a set, and/or let players pick their own, as they do at the beginning of GS1.

Personally I prefer descriptive names that tell us something about the character.  Hence elemental stuff, or stuff that's mythology or history related.

[Rolina]

As I mentioned, Isaac is a reference to Isaac Newton.  That's one heck of an instance of symbolism.  In the JP version, Mia is Mary, a reference to the Virgin Mary if her Angel class and heavy faith influences are to be believed.  In fact, Ply is likely a typo on Camelot JP's part - it's probably supposed to have been Pray.

Finally, on localization, there's also one more thing... Piers.

To me, Captain Picard is the captain of the Starship Enterprise, not the captain of generic fantasy boat #4. :P



Personally, I name based on two things:  First, I name based on culture.  From that list I gather, I pick one that fits the character.  This can be based on their element, their role in the party, or even their personality.  It's not random, and it's culturally appropriate and meaningful.

[Thunder-squall]

@ Dark Adept:  Will our definitions really change the appropriateness of the name "Vader?"

@ Setting:  Frankly, I don't think there is one.  The name "Trevor" reminds me of when I was a kid drawing a bunch of colored Yoshis, which I named after tv protagonists.  "Kevin, Daniel, Michael..." generic "white people" names, because that's all I saw on tv. So if you want any kind of cultural relevance, it's not going to come from any of the other people who've contributed to the thread thus far.  And if you want setting, well, when I was drawing my Yoshi-pals, I didn't really care about the setting as much as their names and colors...  I think we've got a similar situation on our hands at the moment.

[Rolina]

Two things:

First, define Dark Adept.  It means different things to me and to you.
Second, what is the setting?  I still don't know what culture that character is from, and what it's based on.

[Thunder-squall]

It seems I replaced my old post instead of making a new one.  It now contains the answers you seek.

[Rolina]

First:  Why'd you edit the post?  It'd have been fine to reply, silly. :P

Second:  Pretty sure Vader means "father", and the analogues to Star Wars would probably annoy people (it certainly got a groan and an eye roll from me).  Defining Dark Adept is actually very important here, though - how you define it determines whether it's even possible to put into the community hack.  I may have to have you reimagine the character because of the mechanical limitations we have to work with.  Also, what else is there about the character?  So you want them to be Dark-themed, I get that... but what is their personality?  Their drives and motivations?  What was the town like where they were born?  There's more that goes into a name than just a fundament - to give a good answer, I'd need to know more about them.

Third:  I'll suggest you develop the setting first, and the characters second.  Your characters will have a lot more depth and inspiration then.

[Saturos]

Allright...
We shall return to this later...

[Thunder-squall]

1. I was editing when you made your new post, so I forgot that I was in editing mode and not replying mode.  I suppose I was just tired and didn't realize it.

2. "Vader' was a joke, my point being that I have nothing serious to offer in terms of name.  Left to me, I'd name then after the Ghost Busters, and also name someone Khan.

3. As far as setting, I thought people were going to invent more about Amemos of something.

4. As far as characters, I was hoping there'd be more people providing input on that.


But really, if people aren't involved, then this can wait a while.  I know that I've certainly got other stuff I can work on.

[Today]

Today at 19:17:24

Teawater: http://forum.goldensunhacking.net/index.php?action=downloads;sa=view;down=51

[Today]

Today at 19:05:48

Luna_blade: @.gba Nope. Where is it?

[Today]

Today at 18:00:23

Teawater: By the way, I was wondering, did anyone else notice the ".gba" ROM in the Downloads section?

[Today]

Today at 16:54:26

JamietheFlameUser: Well, that particular Briggs fight was from a long time ago. I haven't been working on my current hack the past few days because of other stuff.

[Today]

Today at 16:40:10

Luna_blade: @Saturos: Your english exams?

[Today]

Today at 16:33:40

Teawater: Can't remember exactly what shae of yellow it was, so not sure it would be too close or not.

[Today]

Today at 16:30:58

Teawater: @KoP: Wouldn't Shiny Gold be for the Sol Clan?

[Today]

Today at 15:37:37

Salanewt: Oh wait, tag doesn't work down here. But yeah, how is your hack going Jamie?

[Today]

Today at 15:37:00

Salanewt: [me] considers giving him the Sol Blade...

[Today]

Today at 15:36:00

Salanewt: Oh my. To be honest though, I'd be more likely to give Briggs stuff from later regions; him being a pirate from another continent and all.

[Today]

Today at 09:36:58

JamietheFlameUser: How not to design boss fights: give human-type bosses stats and equipment on par for what the Editor says their level is and what equipment is available where they're from. You get stuff like an actually scaled to level 21 Briggs with a Great Sword, Silver Plate, Silver Helm, Vambrace, and Leather Boots. God, that was BS.

[Today]

Today at 09:09:49

Saturos: Wow first part of exam is ower (in english) tomorow speaking part.

[Today]

Today at 07:11:35

JamietheFlameUser: Eh, I didn't know the exact chance of Curse screwing you over. Still, that 6% chance to fail to act at all could screw you over when it matters most. The obvious solution, of course, is to stick that armour on a character who doesn't do anything but spam attack moves anyway.

[Today]

Today at 07:10:52

leaf: ...assuming I'm remembering the chance of curse taking effect correctly as 25%

[Today]

Today at 07:09:50

leaf: in fact, you get two turns the majority of the time (~56%), and only completely fail to act ~6%, the remainder of the time getting one action

[Today]

Today at 07:07:49

leaf: I like that stealth armor buff. it wouldn't make sense to do that with the clerics ring available, but if you remove that, it's actually an interesting item. On average, you get ~1.5 turns per round. it's potentially very strong, but carries risks

[Today]

Today at 07:04:59

leaf: lol

[Today]

Today at 06:39:21

JamietheFlameUser: Reading the Venus Psynergy topic and 'lol'ing at Role's reaction to a very simple spell idea I'd had (and still think is awesome), where rock explodes out of the ground from a single point in a focused, cone-shaped burst. Role read me the riot act about not combining elements again. lol.

[Today]

Today at 06:17:58

JamietheFlameUser: Well, one thing I came up with that was actually potentially cool is a modification to the Stealth Armour. I gave it +1 turns, under the assumption that the Cleric's Ring would be removed. You might get 2 actions that round, or 1 action, or maybe no actions at all! RNG at its finest.

[Today]

Today at 06:15:32

Knight of Purgatory: Nice orange text kain. Maybe it should be a shiny gold

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