The Etymology of Video Game Names
Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009 - 2:00pm
I thought this was an interesting (and very long) read. For those who wonder where Bowser got his name...
Shamelessly stolen from Slashdot.
And for Final Fantasy fans, here's a page devoted specifically to the etymology and origins of those names.
XBL Gamertag: Minarchist | Steam ID: Minarchist
Podunk wrote:
I like the cut of your jib, Minarchist.Bullion Cube wrote:
well that's it. you just sent me off on a hunt for a delicious weiner.
Interesting stuff, Minarchist. Thanks.
trueheart78 wrote:
Wow... uhhh... too much time? Could it be some read way into this stuff? I really only read the FFVI portion, though.
Steam: mrtomaytohead
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Yeah, the guy clearly has a lot of time on his hands...however, as he said he's an English major, this kind of thing can actually be used to get a job, apply for graduate programs, etc.
The Street Fighter section is quite interesting, as well.
XBL Gamertag: Minarchist | Steam ID: Minarchist
Bullion Cube wrote:Podunk wrote:
It's like they said in PCU, you can major in Gameboy if you know how to BS. Somebody appears to have taken that to heart.
Interesting stuff, though. I'm a sucker for stuff like that-- my big weakness is the origin of figures of speech and slang, but that's a subject for another post.
Certis wrote:
Zigguratbuilder wrote:
PSN name: DoubtingTom396 Frie-hend meeeee uuuuup!
The novelty value of it might be quite good for that sort of thing, so long as the quality of writing and underlying research is sound. Granted I only have an outsider's perspective on it, but English as a field of research seems to involve a lot of retreading of well-covered ground. A piece like this on a new area would probably be more memorable than yet another analysis of Smith's analysis of Wodesley's analysis of Wernstrom's analysis of Blake's use of death as a theme in his works between 1789-1793.
SpacePPoliceman wrote:
Steam
That was epic. The post seemed like it would never end but I could not stop reading it. Awesome find.
I believe that many of the problems associated with Japanese to English names are from poor or lazy translations. I've noticed that over the years, these mistakes happen with less frequency and silly errors like "Congratulation! A winnar is you!" would never been acceptable now. Name changes in particular would always annoy me because the replacement would be something generic like the name "Mike." I'm so glad translators put a little more work into their craft these days. But honestly, a lot of these errors could've been avoided had they bothered to pick up the phone and ask Inafune himself "is it Dr. Right or Dr. Light?"
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Don't forget the Balrog/M. Bison/Vega switch that happened in Street Fighter II.
"The light at the end of the tunnel is just the light of an oncoming train." - Robert Lowell
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It's funny though, this guy claims that the names make more sense the way they're assigned in the English version than they did in Japanese.
XBL Gamertag: Minarchist | Steam ID: Minarchist
Bullion Cube wrote:Podunk wrote: