How does one find a name?

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8 comments, last by BCullis 11 years, 3 months ago
The whole evening I tried to find a good name for a game company,but I failed.How does one create a good one?

I mean I find the following names amazing:
activision
electronic arts
coded illusions
idea factory

And there are the other types,so weird that stick in your mind:
valve
raven software

How does one create such an awesome name? Every time I think about something,it's already used,or it's very closed to something that already exists!
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It wasnt an awsome name when they first though of it, "Valve" was a weird name at the time and still is a weird name now, but because of all the games/tecnology they made they are now know across the industry and we all know the name and put a height onto it.

Same with all the others, most started out with a random name idea and then worked to become something out of their creations.

So what mattered in the end wasnt really an awsome name but awsome games

What Inu said. Most company names became awesome because of the awesome stuff they made.

Plus, I like alliterations so maybe

* big bloc games

* pixel perfect software

* redrock interactive

* ...

makes it easier to remember the name =)

id doesnt sounds that good. Bethesda Studios either (i mean, its [insert place] Studios lol). Steam sounds like the biggest online distribution system for videogames worlwide? Well no, it could have been called Microwave the same lol

(Codemasters sounds pretty cool though)

Anyway, the name doesn't says much, its more the image of the company attached to it. Even more speaking of companies that have been more than 10 years in the industry which have set their images in it.

"I AM ZE EMPRAH OPENGL 3.3 THE CORE, I DEMAND FROM THEE ZE SHADERZ AND MATRIXEZ"

My journals: dustArtemis ECS framework and Making a Terrain Generator

I tend to be more literal with my names.

I named my memory-hacking software “Memory Hacking Software” and I will likely name my company “L. Spiro’s Company”.

Try “noatom’s Company”. “noatom’s Game Company”. “Game Company of noatom”.

You can see how these would catch on easily and stick in everyone’s mind.

Other tactics I have seen employed are to use foreign words.

I worked at Sanuk Games in Thailand. “Sanuk” (sa-nook) is Thai for “fun”.

People typically pick Japanese for this.

My friend will name his company “Kurage Studios” because he likes jellyfish.

Pick your favorite animal, translate to Japanese, put “Studios” after it, and you have an instant winner. Just take these names for example:

Unagi Studios

Kuma Studios

Shishi Studios

Mekajiki Studios

Tanuki Studios

Names of cool objects work just as well.

Kasei Studios

Tsukimi Studios

And you can throw in Mega, Mecha, and Neo for added measure.

Mega-Tsunami Studios Neo

Neo noatom’s Game Company

Mecha-Suishin-ki Games

You can also dump the following list of random words:

Rock

Acti

Arts

Electronic

Vision

Red

Turtle

Bear

Games

Code

Master

Soft

L. Spiro

Factory

Idea

…into a hat and pull them out randomly. Repeat until satisfied. Translate some to Japanese for heightened satisfaction.

L. Spiro

I restore Nintendo 64 video-game OST’s into HD! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCtX_wedtZ5BoyQBXEhnVZw/playlists?view=1&sort=lad&flow=grid

I like a name no-one else has ever thought of. So I use http://www.guidgen.com/<br /><br />Must dash, it's time to put my child 2fe3608b-fe5f-41e1-b74d-13b5f92d7428 to bed now.
"Most people think, great God will come from the sky, take away everything, and make everybody feel high" - Bob Marley

I think in general you should aim for something simple. Pretty much anything simple can evolve to be something cool. A name that's complicated will probably just get shorthanded to something simple eventually, so why let somebody else decide your company's identity?

One thing I find works, is try to take two or three random words, and put them together. Sometimes it sounds awesome, even if it's completely meaningless. Like:

deep possum software

melons united

green pie games

etc..

IMO a name doesn't have to mean anything, it's merely a label to refer to you and your company, so why not make it fun and memorable?

“If I understand the standard right it is legal and safe to do this but the resulting value could be anything.”

I tend to be more literal with my names.

I named my memory-hacking software “Memory Hacking Software” and I will likely name my company “L. Spiro’s Company”.

Try “noatom’s Company”. “noatom’s Game Company”. “Game Company of noatom”.

You can see how these would catch on easily and stick in everyone’s mind.

Other tactics I have seen employed are to use foreign words.

I worked at Sanuk Games in Thailand. “Sanuk” (sa-nook) is Thai for “fun”.

People typically pick Japanese for this.

My friend will name his company “Kurage Studios” because he likes jellyfish.

Pick your favorite animal, translate to Japanese, put “Studios” after it, and you have an instant winner. Just take these names for example:

Unagi Studios

Kuma Studios

Shishi Studios

Mekajiki Studios

Tanuki Studios

Names of cool objects work just as well.

Kasei Studios

Tsukimi Studios

And you can throw in Mega, Mecha, and Neo for added measure.

Mega-Tsunami Studios Neo

Neo noatom’s Game Company

Mecha-Suishin-ki Games

You can also dump the following list of random words:

Rock

Acti

Arts

Electronic

Vision

Red

Turtle

Bear

Games

Code

Master

Soft

L. Spiro

Factory

Idea

…into a hat and pull them out randomly. Repeat until satisfied. Translate some to Japanese for heightened satisfaction.

L. Spiro

Oh my god... the secrets are revealed.

[quote name='Bacterius' timestamp='1357439429' post='5018005']
melons united
[/quote]

Quoting for awesomeness.

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