Reasons for your main characters' names?

[LadyCyclone]

I'm particularly interested in answers from girls because I'm pretty sure I can predict what the guys' answers will be.

Why did you give your main characters in Suikoden their specific name?

For me it was always based on which boy I fancied in school at the time

[sticky-runes]

I gave all my heroes my real name. I don't like the "official" names, like Tir, Riou and Lazlo - those are names I've only ever seen on websites, so I don't feel any connection to them. I might refer to those names if I'm talking about the characters on a forum, since other fans know what I'm talking about, but that's about it.

In other RPGs, I might stick with the default names (like Ryu in the Breath of Fire series, or those characters in Final Fantasy games which I haven't played in forever) but since Suikoden doesn't have default names, I use my own name, because it helps me connect with the story better. And it's nice to have all my favourite characters like Viktor and Pahn calling me by my real name!

As for Suikoden 3, I did use my real name on my first play, but then I realised that if I had chosen Chris to bear the True Fire Rune, it would have looked silly if she had ended up with a masculine name, so for my second playthrough, I've chosen a name that is suitable for boys and girls.

[Hirathien]

I used the random name generator and got Kirk, I thought it had a nice ring to it and then I started the game. Later, I remember where I've heard of this name and was flabberghasted when I could get Viki (Scotty) to beam me up. Best day of my life! (So far.)

[Figo710]

I loved Dragonball Z as a kid, so I always choosed Gohan or Goten for Tir and Riou basically because I thought they resembled them, lol.

[Piisuke]

I always stick to the default names. I feel that developers have given the names to characters with a certain intent, it´s their inspiration and creativity. Who am I to say, no, Tir is not the correct name, it´s Jack.

When it wasn't known yet what the official names of Tir and Riou where, I usually searched for names in Norse mythology, seeing as the game borrows from it already and thus the names fit.

[FinalGospel]

Every time i can choose a main character name i put Henry or the name of my lover if the main is a girl ( Andrea )

[sticky-runes]

I always stick to the default names. I feel that developers have given the names to characters with a certain intent, it´s their inspiration and creativity. Who am I to say, no, Tir is not the correct name, it´s Jack.

It's not like those names actually appear in the games, or anywhere on the packaging or instruction booklet. To me, they're just names that people use on websites. When I played Final Fantasy 7, for example, then yeah, I stuck with the default names like Cloud and Tifa etc. but Suikoden games don't have these.

[LadyCyclone]

Random name generator???

[Hirathien]

I think it was Suikoden II that had it, if you left the name blank and just wanted to continue it would give you a random name.

[freshmetal]

I'm male, but never name my characters after myself, unless it's a game where I can customize my character's appearance to look like me (Mass Effect,Fallout 3 or WKC for example). In Suikoden, my first playthrough usually involve a nonsense name or something silly and stupid. The prince's name in SV for example was "Smackdab" lol. My first run though, is usually not a completionist game. For that run, I use the "official" names: Tir, Riou, Lazlo, and Freyjadour.

Since the Flame Champion in S3 doesn't have an official unofficial name, I always just call him "Champ".

[Nikisaur]

I use the default names because I like the main characters to be actual characters, rather than just a medium to play through. In Suikoden's case, it needs all the help it can get in that way, due to the silent protagonist and such.

[EstrangedIX]

Agreed. Having names that other people call them as well gives them an actual identity. Same with HQ names. Before I knew their names, Tir and Riou were named after other people but that never felt right. Having their accepted names made them more tangible and no longer random.

[patapi]

They are not really "default" if they are not implemented in the games themselves.
Even "Riou" isn't one of the many possible choices via Suikoden II's built-in name generator, is it?

Let's not even start with how the Prince had a completely different "default" name long before "Frey" came along and usurped its position.

[sticky-runes]

I agree with Patapi. Using the names Tir, Riou etc. does not feel like I'm using the official konami names, as they are names I found on websites, not the actual games themselves. Feels more like I'm borrowing from somebody's fanfiction. I would much rather use a name that has personal meaning to me.

[Piisuke]

It's not like those names actually appear in the games, or anywhere on the packaging or instruction booklet. To me, they're just names that people use on websites. When I played Final Fantasy 7, for example, then yeah, I stuck with the default names like Cloud and Tifa etc. but Suikoden games don't have these.

you forgot the second part of my post

When it wasn't known yet what the official names of Tir and Riou where, I usually searched for names in Norse mythology, seeing as the game borrows from it already and thus the names fit.