Offer a name change feature for FFXI SE.

[Juri_Licious]

You shouldn't have to swap servers or delete your character for a name change.

I'm sure people wouldn't mind paying 5$ to be able to rename your character.
If you wouldn't mind paying 5$ for a rename like this post.

I'd also like to see others opinions on this subject.

[Gennadi]

I wanna change my name to GeNNadi but i dont know how.

[Greatguardian]

Why the hell would people want to pay money for a name change feature?

Static names are there for a reason. It wouldn't cost them a dime to let us change them. The idea is that people are held accountable for their actions in a community setting. I came up with my name nearly ten years ago, and sure I think it's dorky as hell now. But people's individual reputations are important in a community setting, good and bad.

Besides, the BlackList function would become fairly obsolete if people could just change their name and continue to harass you.

[Reiterpallasch]

Names might change, but people don't. If someone has such a bad rep that they need to change their name, the community will find it out pretty quickly. Hell, they already do that even if they jump servers where nobody knows them.

I like the idea for people that may have gotten shafted by server mergers in the past, or are just tired of their old name and want something fresh.

That and it's more income for SE to spend on something other than FFXI content.

[Alhanelem]

Name changes allow people to get out of their bad reputations for a price. I do not feel that should be allowed. switching servers does do the same thing, but at least that person is now someone else's problem instead of yours. :p

[Economizer]

I came up with my name nearly ten years ago, and sure I think it's dorky as hell now.

Yes, but at least people probably call you GG. That's a pretty impressive nickname, considering the general meaning of it on the Internet.

[Soranika]

Why the hell would people want to pay money for a name change feature?

Static names are there for a reason. It wouldn't cost them a dime to let us change them. The idea is that people are held accountable for their actions in a community setting. I came up with my name nearly ten years ago, and sure I think it's dorky as hell now. But people's individual reputations are important in a community setting, good and bad.

Besides, the BlackList function would become fairly obsolete if people could just change their name and continue to harass you.For possibly the same reason Xbox Live offer name change servers at $10 a pop... which I happen to know some one who changes his gamer tag literally three times a month.

For fun, to avoid harassment, or whatever reason they damn well choose. Also, it character id information is stored in blacklist, not names.

[Camiie]

I wouldn't want to see name/ID change but I'd love to see a race/appearance change.

[Dragen]

Until they offer me the chance to regain the name I had for 7 years before a server merge made me have to change my name since a mule on the new server had it... I'll remain hating SE in regards to name change issues. :P

[Juri_Licious]

Oh my goodness. Are you guys really arguing that the only reason people want a name change is to hide from some sort of reputation they may have?

And last I checked, changing your name on games doesn't magically remove them from your blacklist.
Doesn't work that way with Xbox Live, Forums other MMO's.

Also name changes on these types of things usually cost money.
So, if you guys can bring up a better argument other than "This guy is hiding from meeee!".

I don't see any issue with them adding this feature.

[Atomic_Skull]

You shouldn't have to swap servers or delete your character for a name change.

I'm sure people wouldn't mind paying 5$ to be able to rename your character.
If you wouldn't mind paying 5$ for a rename like this post.

I'd also like to see others opinions on this subject.

What did you do?

[svengalis]

For possibly the same reason Xbox Live offer name change servers at $10 a pop... which I happen to know some one who changes his gamer tag literally three times a month.

For fun, to avoid harassment, or whatever reason they damn well choose. Also, it character id information is stored in blacklist, not names.

World of Warcraft also offers a name change service for $10. I still have yet to see why SE does not offer this same service. You would think a company that has an MMO that charges you monthly would have seen how they can improve their bottom line with something so simple and effortless as a name change service but nope not SE. They rather try and put broken glass back together instead.(FFXIV)

[Tsukino_Kaji]

You shouldn't have to swap servers or delete your character for a name change.

I'm sure people wouldn't mind paying 5$ to be able to rename your character.
If you wouldn't mind paying 5$ for a rename like this post.

I'd also like to see others opinions on this subject.More griefing. {No thanks.}

[Zaknafein]

Until they offer me the chance to regain the name I had for 7 years before a server merge made me have to change my name since a mule on the new server had it... I'll remain hating SE in regards to name change issues. :P

Lost mine to someone who was inactive for three years prior to the merge... complete BS

[Juri_Licious]

What did you do?
I went into an Assault party with out equips on as BST and didn't use any of my pets.
I also proceeded to aggro a full room of monsters which got everyone killed because for some reason, they can detect me by hearing.

Can't believe SE would put in where they can detect you speaking on the mic on Xbox Live. Everyone was mad at me and created shouts in port jueno so I must rename myself to escape my troubled past.


More griefing. {No thanks.}
More? How is that? Blacklists don't change because of a name change.

[Tsukino_Kaji]

Lost mine to someone who was inactive for three years prior to the merge... complete BSAnd just how is it you obtained this information? Smells fishy.
Also.
It's your own fault for being unoriginal.

[Zaknafein]

And just how is it you obtained this information? Smells fishy.
Also.
It's your own fault for being unoriginal.

I obtained it from AH history. You know that same website where you hide all your info, and gearsets. Up until recently it showed transactions with the last entry being march 08' For some reason now it is just blank which is odd.

[Invadaru]

if thier name was retardedmonkey or somthing dumb then they deserve to change it mmo names are like email addresses they seem like a good idea to name it one thing now then some ppl that picked badly regret it later would prevent ppl quiting cause they hate thier name

[Dragoy]

I know some people would like it. I don't need it personally, but I would not be against it either. Would be nice for those who want it, and no, not only 'bad people' would use it and I doubt it would create any more problems than what there already is.

Many others have this service already, and as mentioned, it is already possible to change the name, even though inconvenient. Besides, it would be more money for them so I'm actually surprised it already isn't an option.

[Twille]

I would support a Name Changing service, as well as a service to change your race.

[Yamimarik44]

I support a name changing service definitely. Me using it though, I'm not sure. It sounds very tempting. My Original name was taken by someone's inactive mule(I know this because after my friend found out my account got hacked and character got deleted he made a mule to make sure no one would steal my name.) Then he forgot to tell me he didn't delete the mule and when I made my new character I ended up with an extra "k" at the end of my name. Nothing too horrible, but maybe I could just be "Marik" or idk, make up a new name, if SE offered such services.

[Mirage]

If people were worried about some players changing names to get rid of a troubled past, SE could implement some sort of function that kept track of name changes for like a month or so after a change occured.

Like a 4th line in search comments saying "Formerly known as Insertnamehere".

[bliz1643]

I rather like my name Bliz. but i must say i created my taru about 5 years ago, honestly i picked taru cause i loved black mage at the time, but now 5 years latter i mostly play dd jobs, so not so much the name i want to change i wish i could change races i think id rather be elvaan.

[Soranika]

If people were worried about some players changing names to get rid of a troubled past, SE could implement some sort of function that kept track of name changes for like a month or so after a change occured.

Like a 4th line in search comments saying "Formerly known as Insertnamehere".Do not agree. That should totally be at the discretion of the player. Considering how tight nit FFXI's communities are, it would be hard for a person to completely mask their identity from everyone anyway unless their generally unknown and anti-social to begin with.

As stated before, there's a differences in character name and character id. I've honestly never used the /blist feature cause some people and shouts are just down right entertaining and I don't do anything for anyone to harass me, but I'm sure that even if that person name change, they'll still be on the be list due to character id. Much like befriending some one and they're on another account. The original name of the character you friend is there, but now you can pretty much stalk every one of their characters that they log on under that account.

Edit: Also, it's really hard to mask your identity through a name change if you still behave the same way before doing it.

[Mirage]

Do not agree. That should totally be at the discretion of the player. Considering how tight nit FFXI's communities are, it would be hard for a person to completely mask their identity from everyone anyway unless their generally unknown and anti-social to begin with.

You're missing the point anyway. I don't think it's necessary, I'm just countering the "but people will change names to clear their bad reputations" arguments. If that was a problem, this would be a way to solve it.

[Seriha]

No reason not to offer it, really, as it can basically be achieved via a temporary server hop, just at a higher cost.

Part of me finds humor in the fact that some arguing against it are hiding behind mule characters here.

[Psxpert2011]

I down for "Name Change" NPC. It should be a accessible process just like applying for a marriage ceremony. The freedom to change you name with a valid reason or desire shouldn't be restricted (unless you've broken the ToS).

Change a letter or the whole name completely should be just a simple as naming your newly created linkshell, I can be done! Buy it for gil... it shouldn't be RMT related, we pay for basic service anyways. Get it done. Come on, get down, lets be cool about it!

My name, fufufu (still wouldn't know what to change it to), I might just be "PSX". =P

[Alhanelem]

Oh my goodness. Are you guys really arguing that the only reason people want a name change is to hide from some sort of reputation they may have?The only other reason (and the only really valid one) I can think of is- you didn't take naming your character seriously when you started playing and either named your character some kind of gibberish or gimmick, and now you want to give it a real name. But even to that I say, "too bad, should have put more thought into it the first time."

For me, in any game, naming is the longest part of character creation. It's hard for me to think of a good name, and I don't want to regret it later, so I take my time with it. In a few cases i've sat staring at the comptuer screen for a good 5-10 minutes or more trying to come up with a name.

[Krashport]

^ Word! Take your time thinking of a name that you like, Then you wouldn't have this problem, If you really want to change your name swap servers just remember to take the time to pick the right server! ^^

[Zumi]

They already have server changes, but they could add race changes, character re customization, name changes if they wanted extra money. WoW has this and it does make them a lot of money. I know a guy who spent $100 race changing his shaman 4 different times.

[Jackstin]

I would support a name change feature for sure. I chose the name JinaJaina which I'm still relatively happy with. Except for some reason everyone in my LS assumes I'm a girl. Not a big deal, but a little off-putting.

Would it be that difficult to implement a feature where you can look at a character's previous alias'?

[Soranika]

You're missing the point anyway. I don't think it's necessary, I'm just countering the "but people will change names to clear their bad reputations" arguments. If that was a problem, this would be a way to solve it.
=\ Well then that still doesn't seem like a proper solution to the hypothetical dilemma. There are people who suffer from a bad reputation that would love to get away from it because, believe it or not, those people do change over time and realize what they did wrong. Rather unfair to be punished by both the community and the game.

[Mirage]

The idea was that it would only be for a limited time. People would probably still forget who changed to what if you stayed low for a while after changing.

[Juri_Licious]

Too many grudges these days.

[Greatguardian]

Too many grudges these days.

Not necessarily grudge-worthy, but if you don't want people to know your name and associate it with derp, don't do crap like this:

http://i55.tinypic.com/w9cpr4.jpg

[Juri_Licious]

Not necessarily grudge-worthy, but if you don't want people to know your name and associate it with derp, don't do crap like this:

http://i55.tinypic.com/w9cpr4.jpg
Hahaha, I still remember that good times.

Wait..you do realize I didn't make this thread to change my own name right? My name is sticking this way forever.
I don't see anything wrong with what I did, I play jokes on people(friends) all the time. Not that I need to explain myself or anything.

[Greatguardian]

Hahaha, I still remember that good times.

Wait..you do realize I didn't make this thread to change my own name right? My name is sticking this way forever.
I don't see anything wrong with what I did, I play jokes on people(friends) all the time. Not that I need to explain myself or anything.

I hope you still remember, what, a couple months ago at most! Not that you and the person in the SS are friends or anything. As far as they knew, that was the first in-game contact you'd ever had D:

I really don't care about name changes. Mine's dorky, but I can deal with it. No matter how cool/stupid someone's name is, all people are going to take from it is the association with the player themselves. Even if they did give me an option to change my name, I wouldn't do it. Believe it or not, I actually appreciate what little infamy I have. The majority of older Cerberus natives know me, and for the most part I'd like to think that's a good thing.

If there's something wrong with a name, it's far more likely that there's something wrong with the player behind it. Changing names won't solve anything. It'll just make everyone else have to try harder to remember the names of the server's resident retards.

[Juri_Licious]

I hope you still remember, what, a couple months ago at most! Not that you and the person in the SS are friends or anything. As far as they knew, that was the first in-game contact you'd ever had D:
Usually when I see people from the forum i'll wave or sometime crack a joke if we had discussion before. I'm rarely serious about anything. and lol

I really don't care about name changes. Mine's dorky, but I can deal with it. No matter how cool/stupid someone's name is, all people are going to take from it is the association with the player themselves. Even if they did give me an option to change my name, I wouldn't do it. Believe it or not, I actually appreciate what little infamy I have. The majority of older Cerberus natives know me, and for the most part I'd like to think that's a good thing.
If there's something wrong with a name, it's far more likely that there's something wrong with the player behind it. Changing names won't solve anything. It'll just make everyone else have to try harder to remember the names of the server's resident retards.
Well, that's your opinion though. I remember awhile back in like 04 I had a name on this game than 2 years later I just couldn't even deal with how dumb I thought the name to be.

However, what i'm really saying is, it's very possible to change your name already. But the current methods require you to mess with the system. They might as well make it more convenient and less expensive than server transfer.

[MishaRamuh]

Throwing my voice in that I want name change feature! I lost my name on the Ramuh -> Bahamut merge to an AH bot that I believe has been deleted. However the name is still reserved and like OP says theres no easy way to change your name. Please SE I'd pay RL money for this!

[Vaness]

I would like to be able to change my name personally.Came up with Vaness 4 years ago because I just had no idea how to name my character(Hell my RL name is Vanessa -_-) and I didn't expect playing for so long.

[Juri_Licious]

Yeah, hopefully a staff member responds to this. There obviously are quite a few people interested in this.

[svengalis]

Yeah, hopefully a staff member responds to this. There obviously are quite a few people interested in this.

And this isn't the first or second time this has been brought up.

[Juri_Licious]

And this isn't the first or second time this has been brought up.

Three times a charm?

[Savlyn]

Bottom line is from a business standpoint, they should've done this years ago. For $5, I know a ton of people (myself included) who would have changed their name at least once- especially after the server merges. If they don't want to charge real money (Yeah right) then they could make it cost gil and be somewhat expensive. From the looks of the most recent ideas for taxes, they want to get excess gil out of the economy. If you don't support a name change... then don't change your name. As far as /blist goes, it tracks the account, so people won't be able to "get out of jail free". Having this would simply make it so that players would not have to get around the current system, either by the old way of deleting and reactivating a character, or by hoping servers to name change.

[Alhanelem]

If you don't support a name change... then don't change your name.It goes without saying that anyone who doesn't support name changes isn't going to change their name. They don't want other people to be able to do it either, and with good reason.

[Juri_Licious]

It goes without saying that anyone who doesn't support name changes isn't going to change their name. They don't want other people to be able to do it either, and with good reason.

The only reason so far is "I don't want them to hide from meeee!". Wouldn't call that a good reason.

[Soranika]

It goes without saying that anyone who doesn't support name changes isn't going to change their name. They don't want other people to be able to do it either, and with good reason.
Seriously, what "good reason" would that be?

[Alhanelem]

Seriously, what "good reason" would that be?
Seriously, haven't you read the thread? Name changing makes it easier for jerks/douches/etc to screw over other people after taking the drops/ls bank/gil/etc and running. It does and has happened with server transfers. If you're actively trying to figure out who's bad and who isn't, you can study the cross server boards on BG, but if you're not someone who lurks on community sites a lot, you're not going to be doing that.

Not being able to change things like this is also supposed to encourage people to put more thought into them. You see a lot more nonsense/silly names when you know you can just change it after it gets old. Not to mention the bandwagon namechanges when some new monster comes out or some character in some anime becomes popular. I see it all the time. After Odin came out, we got more than one server transfer resulting in a name change to one of Odin's TP moves etc.

Frivolous names and reputation escape attempts to me is something to be concerned about.

[Seriha]

This isn't 2005 anymore. Most any mob of importance can be spawned at will. As a result, the rarity of equipment isn't nearly as bad, nor the incentive to ninja lot (typically the highest risk when PUGing, so why not do such things with friends?) is as present. You certainly can't ninja VW or WoE drops. SE's added new BCs, but they don't seem terribly popular (no doubt because people don't have many seals).

And has been noted, name changes can be achieved in a roundabout manner. As someone who played on Fairy/Sylph, I certainly give a rat's behind to follow what was going on on Odin, Alexander, Bahamut, or whatever other server. Only those that craved and no doubt instigated drama would care. Pretty much anything you "fear" out of a bad apple can be circumvented by a good party/linkshell leader (arrange who gets drops beforehand, utilize QM or don't lot/pass as appropriate with the readiness to kick mysteriously "idle" players) or, in the case of ToS violations, GMed. The latter would follow them regardless of what name they adopted on a particular account.

[Greatguardian]

Because Ninja lotting and theft are the only reasons that people may want to escape their names.

Ever heard of Vigor or Xrela? Welfare?

[Soranika]

Seriously, haven't you read the thread? Name changing makes it easier for jerks/douches/etc to screw over other people after taking the drops/ls bank/gil/etc and running. It does and has happened with server transfers. If you're actively trying to figure out who's bad and who isn't, you can study the cross server boards on BG, but if you're not someone who lurks on community sites a lot, you're not going to be doing that.

Not being able to change things like this is also supposed to encourage people to put more thought into them. You see a lot more nonsense/silly names when you know you can just change it after it gets old. Not to mention the bandwagon namechanges when some new monster comes out or some character in some anime becomes popular. I see it all the time. After Odin came out, we got more than one server transfer resulting in a name change to one of Odin's TP moves etc.

Frivolous names and reputation escape attempts to me is something to be concerned about.
So you're worried about abuse of a few and stupidity of... well I guess a great mass? If that's the case, there's a lot of things that should have not happened through out the history of man that those could actually use as intended. For that stuff, I don't really care.

Trolls, thieves, and ect of the bunch will always exist. If you see it that way, nothing stops the people who would abuse said feature to just buy an account and go at it again.

[Alhanelem]

Buying an account generally costs a lot more than a name change does in most games that have them and effectively prohibits many who would otherwise do that.

[Juri_Licious]

If these guys have such tremendous horrible reputations and you guys are worried they will change their name.
Guess what, they can already do so. I mean you guys make it sound like a name change is some kind evil hidden plot device.

"It looks like my reputation has gone sour! Time for me to change my name and sneak my way back into this linkshell and screw my enemies ooooveeeeeerrr!!! Muahahahahaha!!" "Oh...wait...Name changes don't effect ID numbers! NOOOOOO!!!!"

[Alhanelem]

Guess what, they can already do so.Yes, but since they have leave your server in order to do so, at least they're not your problem for at least 3 months. It still sucks for whomever they victimize on their next server, of course, so it's far from a perfect world. But most people don't switch servers very easily unless they have no friends at all in the first place.


"Oh...wait...Name changes don't effect ID numbers! NOOOOOO!!!!" Who the hell even notices, much less pays attention to the handle ID numbers? You can't see them unless the person is on your friend list anyway.

[Juri_Licious]

Who the hell even notices, much less pays attention to the handle ID numbers? You can't see them unless the person is on your friend list anyway.

Because /blacklist will remain the same.

[svengalis]

Seriously, haven't you read the thread? Name changing makes it easier for jerks/douches/etc to screw over other people after taking the drops/ls bank/gil/etc and running. It does and has happened with server transfers. If you're actively trying to figure out who's bad and who isn't, you can study the cross server boards on BG, but if you're not someone who lurks on community sites a lot, you're not going to be doing that.

Not being able to change things like this is also supposed to encourage people to put more thought into them. You see a lot more nonsense/silly names when you know you can just change it after it gets old. Not to mention the bandwagon namechanges when some new monster comes out or some character in some anime becomes popular. I see it all the time. After Odin came out, we got more than one server transfer resulting in a name change to one of Odin's TP moves etc.

Frivolous names and reputation escape attempts to me is something to be concerned about.

People have already said how name changes can't take a person off your blacklist but of course you must have missed that.

[Savlyn]

Frivolous names and reputation escape attempts to me is something to be concerned about.

You're a paranoid schizophrenic who is afraid people will steal your in game items and then run away; we get it. The only way you seem to make your point in all these threads is by saying the same thing over and over again until people get so tired of hearing it that they stop posting.

If you're really so afraid of all of this, there are ways around it. I.E. only allowing a name chance every 30 days or longer. Only allowing one even. I'm sure SE could think of a ton of ways to prevent abuse if they implement it.

Fact is, a ton of people want this and have been screwed over by the forced merges. We get that you don't want it, but you're reasons why are moot.

[Alhanelem]

You're a paranoid schizophrenic who is afraid people will steal your in game items and then run away; we get it.No, actually, I'm not, and I haven't had it happen to me in the game. That doesn't prevent me from being opposed to name changes on that basis. Though when people violate your trust a lot, yes, you do become a little suspicious of motives- but not to the point of paranoia.

I don't understand this bit about people "screwed over by server merges." If there's a name conflict, someone has to change their name. Which one should it be? the incoming user or the already existing user? Those people get to choose their new name, it's not like the server assigns them a random one.

Fact is, a "ton" of people don't want it too. Using exaggerated superlatives doesn't enhance your point.

[Greatguardian]

Personally I just like being able to walk down Port Jeuno and know who 90% of the people there are. Relearning names is confusing.

"What? Vigor? Who's Vigor? Oh, you mean Barbarossa? Wait, he was banned and bought a new character? Again? God dammit"

[Alhanelem]

Personally I just like being able to walk down Port Jeuno and know who 90% of the people there are. Relearning names is confusing.

"What? Vigor? Who's Vigor? Oh, you mean Barbarossa? Wait, he was banned and bought a new character? Again? God dammit"
It's amazing how many names you tend to recognize after a while, even if you're bad with names in real life. Especially common with Galka comradery- more than anyone else I can recognize most of the galka on the server, JP or NA alike.

[Yuriko]

Hey that's a good idea... Have some kind of 'cool down' after changing a name.

[Meyi]

The only other reason (and the only really valid one) I can think of is- you didn't take naming your character seriously when you started playing and either named your character some kind of gibberish or gimmick, and now you want to give it a real name. But even to that I say, "too bad, should have put more thought into it the first time."

For me, in any game, naming is the longest part of character creation. It's hard for me to think of a good name, and I don't want to regret it later, so I take my time with it. In a few cases i've sat staring at the comptuer screen for a good 5-10 minutes or more trying to come up with a name.

I had to go through about 40 minutes of name cycling for my taru before I finally found one that hadn't been taken. I wouldn't be so quick to judge people as 'careless' with names, as not everyone has access to their first pick... or even their fifthieth.

At the time I thought Meyi sounded pretty darn cute. A little taru, a little name. But damn, every single person automatically assumes I'm a chick because it apparently sounds girly. The thought never crossed my mind when I made it, but it can be nerve grading when I have to explain every day to someone new that no, they're wrong.

It is hilarious listening to people try and pronounce my name though. I've gotten May-ee, May-yee (how I pronounce it), Meh-yai, Mee-yay, My-yee, and the most common, meh-yah. Hell, they even spell it Meya! Or Mayi. I think I got Maya once, even...


Name changing makes it easier for jerks/douches/etc to screw over other people after taking the drops/ls bank/gil/etc and running.

They already do this. Speeding up the process won't make douche bags any more douchey. That's just who they are by nature, and they'll strike when the time is right regardless.

I heard the same lame excuse against race/face/hair change and it's ridiculous. Apparently we should hinder the enjoyment of innocent players because of a few rotten apples. And just because you don't want it doesn't mean other people shouldn't have a right to it; I don't like PvP, but I don't mind if other people play it. FFXI is not just my game, it's a game meant to be enjoyable for everyone who plays it. If someone is miserable on this game because of things they cannot control (harassment, being bullied, utter disgust with initial choices) then they should have options to make the game fun again.

Thankfully SE made the game so easy that taking up a new character only takes a month or two, at best. I am very thankful that I dropped my Elvaan and took up my new taru. To anyone else who wants a current fix to names/race/face/hair changes, this option is always available. It really is easy to catch back up to your past character's accomplishments.


It does and has happened with server transfers. If you're actively trying to figure out who's bad and who isn't, you can study the cross server boards on BG, but if you're not someone who lurks on community sites a lot, you're not going to be doing that.

Odds are high if someone feels jipped by a LS leader/douchebag, they will be looking this information up. Otherwise, the person with a new name will just be a new douchebag and will find their way on everyone's blacklist relatively quick.


Not being able to change things like this is also supposed to encourage people to put more thought into them.

See my dilemma above. :/ Most names that aren't ridiculous have already been taken.


You see a lot more nonsense/silly names when you know you can just change it after it gets old.

Does it really matter if someone has a ridiculous name?


Not to mention the bandwagon namechanges when some new monster comes out or some character in some anime becomes popular.

Does this matter? Can only have one per server.


I see it all the time. After Odin came out, we got more than one server transfer resulting in a name change to one of Odin's TP moves etc.

Cool. I personally like seeing FFXI based names running around. I named my Alchemy mule Romidiant after my adventuring fellow.


Frivolous names and reputation escape attempts to me is something to be concerned about.

At least you made sure to leave this as an opinion.


Hm, I have to wonder if naysayers to this suggestion would also be against people leveling up a new character on the same account. Someone could easily run away with money, or items (preferably mog house deliverable ones), or be a jerk, then create another character on their account and swipe all of that information over. If they go invisible on their Friend's list, previous people won't see them as online. This might still be trackable, but it's a possible loop around the current system. The punishment here is, instead of $5-20 to change names, the person just has to relevel a character and catch it back up. As I said earlier it's not hard.


Personally I just like being able to walk down Port Jeuno and know who 90% of the people there are. Relearning names is confusing.

"What? Vigor? Who's Vigor? Oh, you mean Barbarossa? Wait, he was banned and bought a new character? Again? God dammit"

This I will agree with. I always tell people I was Kin so that they know who I am (I didn't create a character to 'hide'), but I'm sure it was confusing for some. I've had a few friends who had to change their names because of the server hop and it was sometimes difficult remembering their new spelling/new name.

I'm not sure I would change my name. I'd like the option to be available, should I ever break down and want it, but for now Meyi is pretty unique. If I did change it, I'd definitely change it to something incredibly masculine, like Butch, or Tom, or maybe even Iamamandaysu. Mm, that last one rolls right off the tongue...

[Volkai]

The only other reason (and the only really valid one) I can think of is- you didn't take naming your character seriously when you started playing and either named your character some kind of gibberish or gimmick, and now you want to give it a real name. But even to that I say, "too bad, should have put more thought into it the first time."

For me, in any game, naming is the longest part of character creation. It's hard for me to think of a good name, and I don't want to regret it later, so I take my time with it. In a few cases i've sat staring at the comptuer screen for a good 5-10 minutes or more trying to come up with a name.

I'm disappointed in you for this post. You can do better than this in thinking of valid reasons.

I don't know about you, but I've taken my time in thinking up some good character names, and I have a LOT of them.

I shouldn't need to 1) make a mule 2) buy a server transfer 3) wait three months, and then 4) change servers again as well as 5) shell out USD$50 (see steps 2 and 4) to change my character name without changing servers or starting over.

SO hey, here's another Valid Reason to want to do a Name Change: Roleplaying.


Also, 5-10 minutes is a pretty short amount of time to think up a good name.


Seriously, instead of asking "why should someone be able to change their name?" let's ask why someone should NOT be able to change their name, and see if the possible answers to that can't be effectively neutralized.


Reasons someone should NOT be able to change their character name in FFXI:

1] They're trying to avoid the consequences of abusing other players (in a manner that violates ToS)
-- counterpoint: Character IDs do not change where names do, with a zone and time the offending character can still be tracked down by GMs.

2] Blacklist evasion
-- counterpoint: Blacklist based on character ID instead of name makes it impossible to evade blacklist by name change.

3] They're trying to avoid the social consequences of abusing other players (in a manner that does not violate ToS)
-- counterpoint: It's not SE's responsibility to manage this since the behavior they are partaking in is within the terms of service. Deal with it. Also, remember this is more of a niche case than you might think, considering that all manner of harassing violates ToS.


I don't understand this bit about people "screwed over by server merges."

Ask Pikko about it.

[Kristal]

Ask Pikko about it.

The only people that got screwed over this way were the people from the 1st merge when SE forgot to disable new character creation on the destination servers. Those people should be given a chance to reclaim their name, although it would have to be on a case-by-case basis. A lvl 1 mule has little right to the name, since it was most likely made in an attempt to grief the source server player. But if that name was taken by someone actually playing the game, it's a different matter and they should keep it. Regardless if it is held by a 3-year inactive player.

As for other people wanting to change their name.. keep in mind that your ideal name is very likely taken. As is anything remotely like it. And even if you did get one you like, what's to keep SE from reducing the number of servers even further? Then you paid for your name change in vain. I'm sure some server jumpers must have had that happen to them...

[Modoru]

Honestly, I wouldn't pay for it, even if it's kinda dorky to have this name at this point; but does it *really* bother anyone?

Like, does it really break the game? Let people change their name if they want, it's their money; let them figure it out if they can't get the name they want.

[svengalis]

I see Square Enix is avoiding this thread like the plague.

[SNK]

I would be also honestly. :|

[Juri_Licious]

I see Square Enix is avoiding this thread like the plague.

I know right.

[FrankReynolds]

If this became a problem, SE could easily remove the feature again. Really nothing to argue about.

[Tsukino_Kaji]

I had to go through about 40 minutes of name cycling for my taru before I finally found one that hadn't been taken. I wouldn't be so quick to judge people as 'careless' with names, as not everyone has access to their first pick... or even their fifthieth.I would wholy atribute this to a lack of unoriginality. If it's the 15th one you've come up with, then you should have been able to put more forthought into it then most and be satisfied with what you have now. Therefor, there should be no reason for you to want to change it. So then, what's your reasoning for supporting it?

[FrankReynolds]

Really? Are people really gonna claim that naming a character is this important? Guess what! It's a game. Most of you people claiming this are the ones who really should be considering changing theirs. Come up with a better reason.

[Serei]

i think one thing i would like to see.. would be the abilty to give your charcter a last name.. if i remember right some of the other MMO's out there allowed that. (everquest, lineage, guild wars..i think.. D.o.C) just to name a few..

[Soranika]

You mean like FFXIV has done as well? Something or another about PS2 limitations or spaghetti coding or something like that deters from implementing a first and last name.

[Greatguardian]

Remembering two names is hard. It multiplies the effort you have to do to keep names straight by a factor of 4 (inb4 someone herps and thinks it's a factor of 2).

Yes. I'm lazy. I know a lot of people. Screw last names. It also makes sending tells a royal pain in the ass.

[thinktank909]

The feature should be offered, but you should have a perma title for 30 days stating Formerly Known as FomerPlayer. So people cant easily escape griefing or other stuff like that.

[Dragoy]

i think one thing i would like to see.. would be the abilty to give your charcter a last name.. if i remember right some of the other MMO's out there allowed that. (everquest, lineage, guild wars..i think.. D.o.C) just to name a few..
I imagine they might have to do a lot of (too much) work to allow spaces in names. I generally support even 3 part names, but as they did with XIV, they force players into having 2 part names, and that is not good either. Similarly, even there I think it may be a result of simply bad design, so they will not be able to change it, unless they re-do that part of the game on the way to 2.0 release as well.

Here is a thread (http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/threads/7006-Make-surnames-optional.) about it in the XIV forum.


As for the topic, I would still support the feature. Obviously there should be a limit as to how often one can change a name as has been mentioned I think, and I don't see how people could abuse it, really, as long as certain counter-measures including the above would be taken.

I was/am part of a game that introduced such a feature quite late in the game, it's a bit older than FFXI, but it happened around the same age. Sure it was a bit silly at first, but no one thinks anything of it anymore. Perhaps the only big difference to this game is that the game offers a lot more what comes to the community in the official web-site. You can search for characters and view their old names (for a certain amount of time) on that page, among other information.

They did something like that with FFXIV (the lodestone), but FFXI certainly lacks this feature. But as mentioned, if the character stays in your blacklist, it would be rather obvious it's an 'evil-doer', and those who care will likely know who it is if one does not remember the original name anymore.

Et cetera.

[Nidhogg]

Deactivate your account before the start of the next month, wait 7 days, purchase a new ID if you do not have a mule character, name it your main characters name, then reactivate your main character and whalla you can change your main characters name.

[Dragoy]

Deactivate your account before the start of the next month, wait 7 days, purchase a new ID if you do not have a mule character, name it your main characters name, then reactivate your main character and whalla you can change your main characters name.
Might work a bit differently now, since you don't pay for each month in advance the way we used to. ^^;

Moreover, I did try to test due to another reason, to name a new character with a name that a friend has: It's not available even though the account is inactive, and has been for several months. I think I remember this way working at some point, though. Is it treated differently if the name is tied to the same account already? I do doubt it.

I do think a bit that they should have just had the names restricted server-wide, that way merging them would have never had any issues like that. On the other hand, though, since FFXI only allows one part names, it would have been quite restrictive, so I'm not sure if I would have gone with server-wide either after all.

But I digress.
I just wanted to say that I have my doubts on simply de-activating the content ID, as well as from when it really is considered inactive (would likely depend on the payment method, if it's Crystanonsense or the other, too).


Blubb.

[Juri_Licious]

Deactivate your account before the start of the next month, wait 7 days, purchase a new ID if you do not have a mule character, name it your main characters name, then reactivate your main character and whalla you can change your main characters name.

I wonder how this would work with the current setup? How are you able to create a character with the same name if it exists?

[svengalis]

Deactivate your account before the start of the next month, wait 7 days, purchase a new ID if you do not have a mule character, name it your main characters name, then reactivate your main character and whalla you can change your main characters name.

Gonna try this, pretty sure it does not work though.

[Alhanelem]

Cool. I personally like seeing FFXI based names running around. I don't. Such names should be blocked in the name filter. Everyone wants to be Cloud or Sepiroth or Squall, naming their character that as if it makes them that character, and as if no one else is going to come up with such an ingenious idea. It would be fine if only one person did this, but that's not the case, so you end up with xXCloudXx, xxxxCloudxxxx and so on. It got to the point where there's more than one NPC in FFXIV that actually makes fun of this trend.


Does this matter? Can only have one per server.No, it doesn't. See above- people just add x's to their name until it's different from someone else who came up with the same great idea.


If this became a problem, SE could easily remove the feature again. Really nothing to argue about. Or just never offer it in the first place, then it won't ever be a problem.

[Meyi]

I don't. Such names should be blocked in the name filter. Everyone wants to be Cloud or Sepiroth or Squall, naming their character that as if it makes them that character, and as if no one else is going to come up with such an ingenious idea. It would be fine if only one person did this, but that's not the case, so you end up with xXCloudXx, xxxxCloudxxxx and so on. It got to the point where there's more than one NPC in FFXIV that actually makes fun of this trend.


Except, I said FFXI names, not just FF in general. I have an Alchemist mule named Romidiant, named after my Adventuring Fellow. And I've seen some Shantottos running around. I wanted Ealdnarche for my taru but naturally that was taken. I think it's enjoyable, especially if obscure NPC names from NPCs that are rarely interacted with have someone named after them. I had a friend named Lobison who named his Galka way before WotG came out. Was pretty neat to see monsters with his name above their heads wandering around.

As for names like Xxxxcloudxxxx yeah, that's silly. But names like Romidiant, Simmie, Arpetetion, or Baunise are interesting.

[Kimble]

Dazinosuk will always be the best.

[svengalis]

Deactivate your account before the start of the next month, wait 7 days, purchase a new ID if you do not have a mule character, name it your main characters name, then reactivate your main character and whalla you can change your main characters name.

Just tried this method. It does not work. It would not allow me to name my mule my main character's name even though my main character was deactivated.

[Kristal]

Just tried this method. It does not work. It would not allow me to name my mule my main character's name even though my main character was deactivated.

That's because deactivated characters aren't removed. It needs to be deleted or moved to a different server for the server to free up the name.

[macross]

What they should offer is a race change, so all those taru who want to be melee can be non gimp.

[Tsukino_Kaji]

Just tried this method. It does not work. It would not allow me to name my mule my main character's name even though my main character was deactivated.
That's because deactivated characters aren't removed. It needs to be deleted or moved to a different server for the server to free up the name.Yeah, it helps if you move the charater first like everyone told you to. Yes... that means you have to wait a month to move your character back.

[Kimble]

Yeah, it helps if you move the charater first like everyone told you to. Yes... that means you have to wait a month to move your character back.

3 Months. and 50 bucks just to change your name, lol.

[Aramyth]

3 Months. and 50 bucks just to change your name, lol.


lol That's so ridiculous, that it's funny.

I think they should have a name change service as well, it's unfair to assume that everyone who wants to change their name is running from their reputation. Some people may use it that way, but if they are that much of a jerk then it will just catch up with them again anyway.

[Zaknafein]

SE! I want my name back I had for 6 years before the merge. If I had lost it to an active player then fine I could accept that. However, losing it to someone that has been inactive since March of 08' is not acceptable.