Suggestions For a Game Studio Name?

[Joshua the Writer]

I'm trying to figure out what I wanna call my game studio (for now, it'll just be referring to me as a solo dev). What suggestions do I have.

I have come up with Barlow Games (or maybe Barlow GAMES, in case I want to make sure that people have absolutely know what the I/the company is all about). Just something I thought of randomly, but I wonder if anybody has anything any better.

Also, please no names that reference Autism in any way. Unfortunately, the internet would make fun of that.

 

[BraidedPony]

Dendrite Games

 

[Joshua the Writer]

Dendrite Games

I looked up "dendrite," and this is the definition.

Is there some sort of hidden meaning that I am missing?

 

[BraidedPony]

Not that i know of. It just sounded like a good name for a company that creates games, you know, engaging the brain...i always liked that word and dont get to use it often.
Just ignore it if you dont like it.

 

[Autistamatic]

When choosing a name it's best to focus on what you hope to achieve, and how you want to be perceived. The image of your company can be defined by it's name and have a notable impact on your future.

When I named my channel I wanted to incorporate elements that convey it's subject matter of autism, and why I'm grateful I was born this way. Hence "Autist" - pretty obvious - and "matic" to convey the machine-like way my thought processes and perception function. I bridged it with an "a" so we got "Autistamatic"

For a gaming example, when Take Two acquired BMG Interactive and with it, Grand Theft Auto, they renamed it Rockstar Games - which fits perfectly with the ethos of the product they are now associated with.

What kind of games do you envisage producing? Is there any subject matter that you expect to cover in particular? How ambitious is the scope of your future plans?

 

[Joshua the Writer]

When choosing a name it's best to focus on what you hope to achieve, and how you want to be perceived. The image of your company can be defined by it's name and have a notable impact on your future.

When I named my channel I wanted to incorporate elements that convey it's subject matter of autism, and why I'm grateful I was born this way. Hence "Autist" - pretty obvious - and "matic" to convey the machine-like way my thought processes and perception function. I bridged it with an "a" so we got "Autistamatic"

For a gaming example, when Take Two acquired BMG Interactive and with it, Grand Theft Auto, they renamed it Rockstar Games - which fits perfectly with the ethos of the product they are now associated with.

What kind of games do you envisage producing? Is there any subject matter that you expect to cover in particular? How ambitious is the scope of your future plans?

I plan on my first game being an RPG made in RPG maker XP. After that, I will shift into realistic FPS/milsim games. I might still be doing RPGs, but not that much. Most games besides the first will have a ton of game.

 

[Autistamatic]

So for the FPS games - do you have a preferred setting? Futuristic, historical, contemporary warfare? Do you foresee them as gung-ho shmups or stealthy and cerebral?

 

[BrokenBoy]

Choose Barlow Games.

 

[Joshua the Writer]

So for the FPS games - do you have a preferred setting? Futuristic, historical, contemporary warfare? Do you foresee them as gung-ho shmups or stealthy and cerebral?

Modern-day. Or maybe even a fictional armed conflict. Maybe somewhere where you'll have to survive anarchy. I'll have stealth as an important factor to players who choose certain play styles, but players are able to "go loud" if they want.

 

[Autistamatic]

If you want to steer clear of controversy and potentially harmful headlines, it's best to stick to fictional conflicts unless you're talking historical

Thanks for the info Joshua - that gives us all something to think on

 

[Judge]

Just be sure that whatever you decide, to research that your choice does not violate registered trademarks or copyrights. No telling what can trigger an attorney's response over such things.

 

[Joshua the Writer]

If you want to steer clear of controversy and potentially harmful headlines, it's best to stick to fictional conflicts unless you're talking historical

Thanks for the info Joshua - that gives us all something to think on

That is unlikely to happen, though. Plenty games are being set in the modern-day, mid-eastern conflicts, and they don't really get that much controversy besides the usual "video games cause violence" jargon.

 

[Autistamatic]

That is unlikely to happen, though. Plenty games are being set in the modern-day, mid-eastern conflicts, and they don't really get that much controversy besides the usual "video games cause violence" jargon.

S'up to you mate. I can't think of any that are household names, but I'm not as much of a gamer as you I imagine. I can think of a few that lost massive sales or were censored though.
Don't forget that there are millions of Moslem gamers in the world who might not want to buy a game where the aim is to kill (virtual) people like themselves. That's why WWII games have always been a safe bet - everyone with any sense hates Nazis, but even those get censored in Germany

 

[Misery]

A couple of things: firstly, take the word "games" out of it. Seriously.

That may sound strange, but there's a couple of reasons: 1. It sounds much more amateurish to have it in there. And that's partly because of 2. Everyone will already understand that you make games. Once they play the games, that is... which is the only time a developer or studio becomes memorable anyway. 3. Having "games" in there actually makes it HARDER to remember. Why? Because there's 5 billion other devs out there that also have that word in the title.

This is all stuff I've learned from years of dealing with indie devs. Indies dont have the advantage of a giant billionaire publisher with infinite marketing ability, so they have to become memorable mostly by quality, good gameplay, innovation, and of course the name. Understand though that the name is by far the least of those things.

But also remember one other tough fact: If you're creating an FPS, *particularly* a military one... it's going to be that much harder to get noticed. Reason: The market is FLOODED with them. Every developer out there seems to have this idea that they'll somehow be innovative/unique by doing that type of game... it doesnt work that way. Most such games end up forgotten. I've seen so many frustrated indie devs do exactly that, and then get all baffled when they cant quite grasp why the game bombed in terms of downloads/sales/attention/anything. And they're almost guaranteed to fail if there is a multiplayer focus (cant do that without having an established fanbase BEFORE development). Making it EVEN WORSE is that the AAA crowd has had an extremely heavy emphasis on that genre for many years. Believe me, most players will flock to something like Battlefield or CoD before an indie military shooter. Yes, it's irritating. But it's just what happens.


As long as you understand those things though... make what you want to make. And good luck to you. It's a very difficult thing, game development. Been there, done that, more than once now.

 

[Joshua the Writer]

A couple of things: firstly, take the word "games" out of it. Seriously.

That may sound strange, but there's a couple of reasons: 1. It sounds much more amateurish to have it in there. And that's partly because of 2. Everyone will already understand that you make games. Once they play the games, that is... which is the only time a developer or studio becomes memorable anyway. 3. Having "games" in there actually makes it HARDER to remember. Why? Because there's 5 billion other devs out there that also have that word in the title.

This is all stuff I've learned from years of dealing with indie devs. Indies dont have the advantage of a giant billionaire publisher with infinite marketing ability, so they have to become memorable mostly by quality, good gameplay, innovation, and of course the name. Understand though that the name is by far the least of those things.

What would you suggest me to use after "Barlow," then? Should I go with "software?" That would just make it sound like I program much more than games.

Also, some games have managed to gain tons of attention with only little to no advertising at all. How would you think Five Nights at Freddy got popular? Scott Cawthon certainly didn't have much of an advertising budget at all, considering all the games he made and put on Steam before Fnaf 1 kinda (understatement) failed.

Also, what about Apex Legends? EA didn't advertise it at all, but, all of a sudden, it gets popular out of nowhere. Well, Apex Legends is a triple-A game that takes place after the events of Titanfall 2 and published by EA, but it still wasn't advertised, but still got popular.

But also remember one other tough fact: If you're creating an FPS, *particularly* a military one... it's going to be that much harder to get noticed. Reason: The market is FLOODED with them. Every developer out there seems to have this idea that they'll somehow be innovative/unique by doing that type of game... it doesnt work that way. Most such games end up forgotten. I've seen so many frustrated indie devs do exactly that, and then get all baffled when they cant quite grasp why the game bombed in terms of downloads/sales/attention/anything. And they're almost guaranteed to fail if there is a multiplayer focus (cant do that without having an established fanbase BEFORE development). Making it EVEN WORSE is that the AAA crowd has had an extremely heavy emphasis on that genre for many years. Believe me, most players will flock to something like Battlefield or CoD before an indie military shooter. Yes, it's irritating. But it's just what happens.


As long as you understand those things though... make what you want to make. And good luck to you. It's a very difficult thing, game development. Been there, done that, more than once now.

I think an FPS is a tad bit too complex for my skill level right now, so I'm putting that off and focusing on my RPG right now. I'm using RPG Maker XP until I can buy RPG Maker MX and port the game's assets over to that.

When I do make a shooter, I'm probably going to try to have some unique mechanics added to the game to make it fresh. However, that is something to figure out once I get to making an FPS.

 

[Joshua the Writer]

S'up to you mate. I can't think of any that are household names, but I'm not as much of a gamer as you I imagine. I can think of a few that lost massive sales or were censored though.
Don't forget that there are millions of Moslem gamers in the world who might not want to buy a game where the aim is to kill (virtual) people like themselves. That's why WWII games have always been a safe bet - everyone with any sense hates Nazis, but even those get censored in Germany

Don't worry. I'm going to go with one set in an apocalypse such as an anarchy or nuclear wasteland (not to copy Fallout). Both will be more "realistic milsim" than a CoD/Battlefield type of game. Will also have survival mechanics. Oh, yeah. When you are scavenging for ammo for your gun(s), you have to make sure that the caliber(s) are compatible with your gun(s).

 

[Autistamatic]

Don't worry. I'm going to go with one set in an apocalypse such as an anarchy or nuclear wasteland (not to copy Fallout). Both will be more "realistic milsim" than a CoD/Battlefield type of game. Will also have survival mechanics. Oh, yeah. When you are scavenging for ammo for your gun(s), you have to make sure that the caliber(s) are compatible with your gun(s).

Sounds good. If you can crowbar a time-dilation sniper mechanic in there along the lines of Bulletstorm or Singularity, I'd pick it up for a blast for sure

 

[Joshua the Writer]

If you can crowbar a time-dilation sniper mechanic in there along the lines of Bulletstorm or Singularity, I'd pick it up for a blast for sure

I've never played either of these games. What is a "time-dilation sniper mechanic?" Are you just talking about holding shift to stabilize the scope or is it something else?

 

[Autistamatic]

You'll find plenty of YouTube videos showing it. Both are amazing, story driven shooters. Up there in the Half Life leagues for quality and story.

Both games dilate time when a sniper bullet is fired allowing the player to guide it for a short time after it's left the barrel. Completely unrealistic but tremendous fun and makes sniping much more engaging.
The Sniper Elite games have a similar trick the allows you to "ride" the bullet but that's passive.

 

[Joshua the Writer]

You'll find plenty of YouTube videos showing it. Both are amazing, story driven shooters. Up there in the Half Life leagues for quality and story.

Both games dilate time when a sniper bullet is fired allowing the player to guide it for a short time after it's left the barrel. Completely unrealistic but tremendous fun and makes sniping much more engaging.
The Sniper Elite games have a similar trick the allows you to "ride" the bullet but that's passive.

Too unrealistic for what I'm going for. Maybe slow-motion when you headshot somebody will satisfy you? Maybe even with that one sound effect you hear during a Slow-Mo Guys video? It sounds like this: