@Yoshida> Please remove inactive lvl1-49 characters that take popular names!

[Keydah]

Also how would you propose defining popular names? It's against ToS to use a copyrighted name (though nobody actually cares): Naming Right. You may not use any name or other intellectual property belonging to Square Enix or any other third party in your use of the Game (for example, naming a character after a celebrity, company, product, or superhero).

So are we saying generic names which just happen to be widely liked around the entire globe and multiple servers?

There's no reason to define popular names...Just have a system where characters who haven't logged in in two years release the name, and if the person logs in again they have to choose a new one if someone else took their name.

[Nicobo]

@Yoshida> Please remove inactive Forum name that take popular names and not posting regularly.

I can't get the popular forum name i.e. Yoshida who doesn't post regularly! ^^;

[Stormrider]

Not necessarily, Square Enix would likely look at inactivity if such a system was implemented. I am well aware that this is not FFXI, but when I played that if you went inactive after three months, your character was moved to some sort of limbo area and it would become completely irretrievable after exactly one year of inactivity

The loss of characters after one year was somewhat a scare tactic. I quit in 06 and came back to 11 in 2011 all mine were fine. Friend left after the great R0 debacle and he just couldn't get back on so around 06 as well. He came back in 2012. He had the garden mule system. He got back any character that was past level 10 but all below 10 they were unable to restore. So they were saving data in some form for at least six years. That also included at least one merge since my name was gone when I came back.

Also I think I have played with every Game of Thrones character at least once. Also probably 3/4s of their cousins. 11 was bad for Inuyashu names at the time of launch so many Sesshōmaru versions.

[DaikiKiyoshi]

Yes, but it doesn't mean that they will do it by both either. Like I said, at the end of the day those level 1 inactive accounts aren't hurting anyone. They don't prevent you from playing the game at all in any way. If the name someone wants is taken they just simply pick a new one, its not the end of the world.

I also don't think a system like this should be implemented just because someone is miffed that a popular character name is taken. If it benefitted the actual game and community as a whole in some way, then I'm all for it but not because a few people want to be named the same thing as a character from their favourite TV show or game.

Not to mention that simply deleting level 1 accounts that are inactive might not necessarily free up a name. I have an alt on another server that I made to play with a friend, said friend never joined the game so that character is level 1. My FC mate also has an alt with the same name as his main on another sever and, you guessed it, its level 1. Just because a character is level 1 doesn't mean its on an inactive account.

No one is talking about deleting accounts...just changing the name due to excessive inactivity. And the inactivity can be on the service account itself rather than the character. Honestly all I'm seeing is "We're scared SE might not do it in a way we like and we enjoy holding certain names hostage on characters we never play anyway so we are against this." IMHO, even if said level 1 character is in an active service account, if it hasn't been played in a year+ it deserves to have the name forcibly changed to accommodate others who will use the name and actually play.

[Felis]

So, if I level up my inactive characters to level 2, I can keep all their names?

[Serilda]

There's no reason to define popular names...Just have a system where characters who haven't logged in in two years release the name, and if the person logs in again they have to choose a new one if someone else took their name.

Except it would cost money to develop this (and pay the support staff to deal with the complaints and inevitable cases of impersonation/theft) yet nobody has presented examples of why it is necessary other than wanting to play as Arya Stark, explicitly violating the published naming rules. Why would S-E spend time and money developing something solely for the benefit of people flouting the rules they made?

The ideas to change names by one letter after x years are even weirder. So people with original names already that nobody wants should have them changed to different original names for no reason?

[Lambdafish]

So, if I level up my inactive characters to level 2, I can keep all their names?

By definition, that would no longer be an inactive character yes. If you enter your house and log out again, the housing demolition timer resets. However, that would be you making a concious effort to keep your character name, OP is talking about people who have literally abandoned their characters.

[Sammix87]

Honestly all I'm seeing is "We're scared SE might not do it in a way we like and we enjoy holding certain names hostage on characters we never play anyway so we are against this."

All I'm seeing is "but I want "Special Snowflake" as my character name and I’m annoyed because someone got there first". If SE wanted this feature to be in the game then sadly it most likely already would be. FFXI had a system that deleted in active characters, if SE wanted to implement that then I imagine they could. This topic has been heavily discussed several times on this forum and vast majority of players were heavily against it.

As I said, not being able to be “Cloud Strife” because a level 1 who seems inactive has the name does not prevent any from playing and enjoying FFXIV. The game actually has more important issues SE should be focusing on than some possibly inactive people who were tempted by free trial and didn’t realise there is a monthly sub.

At the end of the day I pay for my account when it’s active, I don’t want to return and be forced to either remake my character and start again or have to think up a new name because I’ve had to take a break due to real life issues. This game was advertised as being friendly to people who also play casually, forcing this on them would kind of go in the opposite direction much like the grind fest that was FFXI.

It doesn't change the fact that there are a lot of casual players on this game and IMHO this could actually deter people from playing. A friend of mine on Phoenix plays very sporadically, he played at launch for 6 months, then quit and returned a month before Heavenward. I doubt he would have come back at all had his name or character been forcibly taken from him.

It also doesn’t change the fact that a system that requests you to name change would still not free up as many names as you think. If a level 1 is inactive but on an active account, nothing is stopping the account owner from logging in on that character and still prevent the name from being repurposed if they are so inclined.

The loss of characters after one year was somewhat a scare tactic. I quit in 06 and came back to 11 in 2011 all mine were fine. Friend left after the great R0 debacle and he just couldn't get back on so around 06 as well. He came back in 2012. He had the garden mule system. He got back any character that was past level 10 but all below 10 they were unable to restore. So they were saving data in some form for at least six years. That also included at least one merge since my name was gone when I came back.

Also I think I have played with every Game of Thrones character at least once. Also probably 3/4s of their cousins. 11 was bad for Inuyashu names at the time of launch so many Sesshōmaru versions.

The character I made a launch of FFXI legit got deleted after 12 months inactivity, to start again I had to purchase a new copy of the game to get an account. Starting over on that game from scratch was not easy, I didn’t stick with it long term after that which is partly why I don't think a system like that is a great thing.

It was bad for such names and while FFXIV has gone down the same path with names, there are times when I have played with people who were all named something more original.

Ugh, RO haven’t thought about that game in a while.….I was heavily in to that MMO but I was on Sakray and the constant rollback sucked lol.

Except it would cost money to develop this (and pay the support staff to deal with the complaints and inevitable cases of impersonation/theft) yet nobody has presented examples of why it is necessary other than wanting to play as Arya Stark, explicitly violating the published naming rules. Why would S-E spend time and money developing something solely for the benefit of people flouting the rules they made?

The ideas to change names by one letter after x years are even weirder. So people with original names already that nobody wants should have them changed to different original names for no reason?

This exactly. People don’t think of the wider repercussions having this sort of system in would bring. It would also be somewhat unfair for SE to implement a system, that for the most part, would really only benefit a minority of players who are unsatisfied that a popular name such as Arya Stark or Cloud Strife is already being used.

[Dualblade]

By definition, that would no longer be an inactive character yes. If you enter your house and log out again, the housing demolition timer resets. However, that would be you making a concious effort to keep your character name, OP is talking about people who have literally abandoned their characters.

I believe the point there was to level the inactive character to level 2, then leave it inactive again since OP specified inactive level 1 characters.

[addz3]

What a waste of time and resources this would be lol