Names of Merged Characters "Second Chance"

[Antipika]

Forethought guarantees nothing. You fail to grasp this. I could have had 20, 40, 60, 80, even 100 back-up names in my head but that means nothing if every single one of them is taken, which is the complaint people have. You're basically saying "it's totally your fault for not thinking of 101 names instead of your initial 100 back ups, sucks to be you!"

I can guarantee that if you had lost your name in a merge, you'd be singing an entirely different tune at this stage. People get attached to their character's identities, and it's quite sad that you fail to grasp that for some people, this is a rather sensitive issue.

For a lack of better analogy, it does feel, to an extent, like identity theft.

EDIT: Rya said it better than I did /

Maybe it's time to use a nickname that isn't generic? Be a little more creative?

Hint : If you are constantly forced to add digits or alter your nickname spelling in games / forums / websites that requires account (youtube etc.), then your nickname is generic.

Never had an issue with my nickname, will never have one.

(I am not saying that any nickname is "good" or "bad", yet some are just overused, when you get 100K+ hits on Google with your nickname and most of these links aren't related to yourself, then you are not allowed to complain that your nickname is taken...)

[Crysten]

Nope. Because I've never had any problem what-so-ever coming up with any name at any time for any reason. And I am well aware of forthought, hence why I mentioned it in the first place. You're still not being particularly swaying why people should be able to rename, when they already had that option. It is the individual's fault for picking a name they didn't like the first time. If the entirety of the merger gets a rename, why not everyone else?
Which still leads me back to the main point. Why was so little thought put into renaming your characters after the merger leading to you thinking this is a major issue? We all only got one chance to pick a name, why do you need another?

"It's never happened to me therefore what's the issue?" is not a particularly swaying argument either. You seem to have a very narrow minded view of the situation, really.

Your core argument is lack of forethought. Forethought this. Forethought that. Ponder this. When the World Merge was announced, I would imagine the majority of people who were concerned would've done what I did at the time: log onto FFXIAH and check their character database or alternatively, attempt to create a PH mule on the destination world.

Is that a lack of forethought? No. The latter was sadly impossible for me as the servers were locked down less than 24 hours later.

The world merge rolls around, and you have a yellow name. OK, that's fine, you have a list of backups. The name change system in XI at this time is completely flawed at the moment though. The system, instead of checking name availability before confirmation, simply takes the first name available that is entered into it and automatically confirms it. As Rya mentioned in a previous post, this is not lack of forethought on the part of the player, but a design flaw to the character creation system.

In most MMOs, I can pick a name, and the system will tell me "That name is available!" or "Sorry, name taken!" Here, I can't even find out which of my back up names is available or unavailable, nor can I get an opportunity to experiment with potential new ones. The second I click Enter, that's it - I'm done. That is something I was not expecting. It's bad interface design. This brings up another flaw in your argument - the first time we created our characters, we had the option to change things we didn't like before we logged in for the first time - name, race, city and so forth. Didn't like your character model? Click back. The name not doing it for you? Click back. Wanted to start in Sandy instead of Windy? Back! This time we didn't get that luxury!

And no, I'm not spending a dollar for the privilage of a name checker via a new Content ID. That is retarded.

Your secondary argument is the idea of impatience. This I will agree with to an extent, but in a game with an addictive nature, you have to realize people wish to get back into the game ASAP. At the same time, it's naive to think that people didn't put thought into renaming characters they've had for several years.

[Rya]

I've never had any problem what-so-ever coming up with any name at any time for any reason.

That suggests to me that you actually put less thought into a name ... or you're just lucky. Either way, your first statement here did not support your arguments very well...

Consider what might make a name desirable:

Naming Goals
-- Short ("Rya" not "Ryaaaa")
-- Catchy ("Funtimes" not "Fnantaems")
-- Easy to type ("Palwalfal" not "Pqowmziiiin")
-- Wholly meaningful ("Zambam" not "Zambamxxxxxx")
-- Closeness to original name ("Ryaa" not "Nyoo")

As these factors approach convergence, two things happen:
-- Probability of invested forethought increases
-- Probability of availability decreases

Basically, the more of these goals you try to reach simultaneously, the more time it [probably] takes to reconcile them (one goal may contradict or impede another).

Also, because these goals are likely universally appealing, others may use similar tactics to devise new names (reducing the likelihood of availability):

Characters "Rya" & "Ria" both turn yellow:
-- Rya comes up with "Riya, Riyah, Ria, etc"
-- Ria comes up with "Riya, Riyah, Rya, etc"

--> Ria logs in first, and claims "Riya" (so, now taken).
--> Rya tries the same names and fails.

...
.....
.......

PLUS! You still didn't address the "forethought" issue:
Forethought guarantees nothing.
(which invalidates the whole "shoulda prepared better" idea)

[Volkai]

That suggests to me that you actually put less thought into a name ... or you're just lucky. Either way, your first statement here did not support your arguments very well...

Consider what might make a name desirable:

Naming Goals
-- Short ("Rya" not "Ryaaaa")
-- Catchy ("Funtimes" not "Fnantaems")
-- Easy to type ("Palwalfal" not "Pqowmziiiin")
-- Wholly meaningful ("Zambam" not "Zambamxxxxxx")
-- Closeness to original name ("Ryaa" not "Nyoo")

As these factors approach convergence, two things happen:
-- Probability of invested forethought increases
-- Probability of availability decreases

Basically, the more of these goals you try to reach simultaneously, the more time it [probably] takes to reconcile them (one goal may contradict or impede another).

Also, because these goals are likely universally appealing, others may use similar tactics to devise new names (reducing the likelihood of availability):

Characters "Rya" & "Ria" both turn yellow:
-- Rya comes up with "Riya, Riyah, Ria, etc"
-- Ria comes up with "Riya, Riyah, Rya, etc"

--> Ria logs in first, and claims "Riya" (so, now taken).
--> Rya tries the same names and fails.

...
.....
.......

PLUS! You still didn't address the "forethought" issue:
Forethought guarantees nothing.
(which invalidates the whole "shoulda prepared better" idea)

Everything I was going to say, phrased better than I would have phrased it.

[Kari]

I have a similar issue with names.
I never lost a name to a merge.
However, when I started the game, I was playing on Remora, where my original character name was already taken, so I took an alternative that is "okay", but not quite what I wanted. [After trying tons of names that you wouldn't even think would be taken.]
Since then, I've transferred to Shiva. Obviously, my current name wasn't taken there...
But, I never got the chance to check if the name I WANTED was available at Shiva.

IMO, renames should be a paid service option. I would gladly fork up $5 to at least attempt changing my name to what I wanted it to be originally.
Just as well, names should become made available after a certain amount of time.
Plenty of games these days automatically delete old characters/guilds/etc to make sure there isn't a clutter of unused names, or at the very least have a system allowing people to use inactive names.
This game, being alive for so long, has a huge list of names per server that are just going to waste.

[Sarick]

Greetings,

If you made a mistake while renaming your character (or feel that your new name isn't quite as good as you originally thought it'd be) after the World Merge please consult a GM in-game. Please keep in mind however that this is a one-time offer.

I also wanted to say that I understand the frustration that can come from a forced rename in these situations, and that we do read and take your feedback seriously. I'll continue to gather your comments and put them forth to the teams so that your concerns are heard.

Update: I was able to get the friend name changed.

When contacting the GM using help desk select "report a violation",then select "yes I have." Using this line "Second chance name change one time opp please." seems to be very effective.

ORIGINAL POST >>
I told a friend this and they sent him an automated "sorry we can't do this." So who is giving these gms updates on their jobs? Sorry Bayonne but, this information isn't helping if the GM's refuse to allow players to speak with them so the offer can be utilized.

[Kaida]

Name changed. took 6 days

[Sarick]

Things to note before contacting an in game GM.

Important: This is only for characters of the May 13th 2011 merger at this time and your name must have been forced to change on the merger to be applicable.

#1 Remove the items in your characters auction house.

#2 Clear your mog mail send and receive boxes on your character.

#3 (Optional) Attempt sending one gil using mog mail to names you're interested in. If the name is taken then it will allow the item to be placed in the send box. You don't actually need to hit send because the game will reject non-existent characters. Be careful this isn't 100% verification that the names rejected are open for use. They may still be reserved or could've been banned in the past.

#4 Contact the GM using help desk select "report a violation",then select "yes I have." Using this line "Second chance name change one time opp please." seems to be very effective.

#5 After speaking to a GM and being accepted log off game and return to the character select screen. Your character name should be yellow forcing a name change. Just select it and choose a new name. GOOD LUCK!

[Tsukino_Kaji]

#5 After speaking to a GM and being accepted log off game and return to the character select screen. Your character name should be yellow forcing a name change. Just select it and choose a new name. GOOD LUCK!

And please put some thought into it this time. lol

[Crysten]

And please put some thought into it this time. lol

We've been over this.