Let’s look at the simple example of titles or positions. Imagine I
asked you if you would like to meet one of two people. The first one is a SALES
ASSOCIATE and the other one is the PRESIDENT. Not everyone will choose the same
one but you can almost guarantee that more people will chose to meet the
president than the sales associate. The funny thing is that both of those
choices could be the same person. You can do this with any number of positions
from directors to custodians to workers. These are just words used to describe
someone. Now the sales associate could be more amazing in every way than the
president but people have to react to the only info you have provided. You can
see how powerful a simple label can be.
How about we switch gears and talk about descriptions. This
is where hyperbole can become a factor. Let’s say I offer you the choice
between and INCREDIBLE sandwich and a TERRIBLE sandwich! The sandwiches are
both technically the same sandwich but the choice is clear! How about a more
subtle approach? You can have a good sandwich or you can have an ok sandwich.
The choice is no longer so clear which is why people tend to exaggerate. Again
simple words have the power to sway a decision.
These principles apply to fame and advertising as well. The
more you hear a word the more familiar and comfortable you are with the word.
This leads to the word having more power. Let’s say you travel to a country and
you get arrested. While you are in jail you are given a choice between a COKE
or an INGLIOMDORETRIA SODA. Most people around the world would choose a Coke, even
if the ingredients are the same and even if they’d never had a sip of Coke in
their life. There’s history, familiarity and comfort there. They have heard
Coke so they feel more comfortable choosing that.
Words can be self-fulfilling prophecies as well. Have you
ever heard someone talk about how they can never meet anyone when they are
sitting in a room full of people? Have you ever heard some say I can’t do it
and then never make an attempt? Words have the power to manifest things by how
they not only influence the speaker but also those around them.
So now let’s look at games development. You’re making a
children’s adventure game and your team consists of 30 people who will all be
working on various things. You are in the process of making content for the
game and put together a list of assets that need to be developed. The list
might include entries that look something like this:
·
Levels
o
World 2 – Room03
·
Enemies
o
Generic Mover
If you are in development you might see the list and think
that style of content description isn’t uncommon. You’ll figure out what you
want to do with those along the way and then give them final names once you’ve
defined them. Now think about what we are discussing when looking back on that
list. It’s all up to random chance. Someone might figure out something cool to
fill in there but often time’s people have time pressure. They might not have
direct access to the writer or director. They might just have to make something
and then pass that on to someone else. So think about what happens when the
description they get is generic. How much character will they actually add to
it? What would someone think if they
hear about it from the outside and share that with another person?
Let’s adjust the list so that the assets now have some type
of name description.
·
Levels
o
Glowing Mountain – Cave of Wonder
·
Enemies
o
Laughing Leaper
These words have now created a description and an
expectation of the assets to be created. Even without any additional
information anyone that hears about them will be more inspired to think about
what they would do with those or what they mean. It’s not guaranteed that you
will end up with better results but based on what you call something, what word
you use, you have the power to change or improve whatever it is.
Another talking point is in regards to picking titles for a
game from existing words or making something up. Remember that a word will
define something and often times you only get one shot. You see 2 games behind
the counter at your game story, LEGENDARY or STANDORETHICA. Sometimes you can
gain interest by using a made up word as it’s mysterious, but the vast majority
of people will pick the familiar word. They will be able to say Legendary and
will understand it immediately. When people speak about other things and
someone says legendary then you might think of the game even though that wasn’t
the context in which it was said. Legendary has a history full of meaning. The
other title just can’t compete.
There are risks associated with using familiar words though.
Unless your use becomes known to begin with it might be swept away and lost in
a sea of other uses.
Look at your favorite Films, Music and Games. Think about
all of the content within them. Now look at some that haven’t succeed. Some of
the most famous and popular are familiar and defining in ways that describe
them in a superior manner. Would a game like Street Fighter have been as
successful if it had been called Shinku Hadoken? Would the Master Sword have
been as important or timeless if it had been called Garudo's Bane? Would Master
Chief be as iconic or memorable if his name had been Nathan Smiggles? StarWars, Batman, Superman, Tomb Raider,
Megaman and Avatar all had familiar words before you’d ever seen them.
There’s always going to be more to any subject but just
remember that what you call something defines it in ways that can expand beyond
your expectations. People can repeat those words, they can have prior meanings
and they can influence how something is perceived, received or even created.
Remember how much power your words can have the next time you name something or
describe it to a friend. It can make all the difference in the world.
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