Get Rid of Name Exclusivity

[Shadowdrake]

27 minutes ago, KageSora said:

Personally, I'd rather if the problem is "I'm mad because I can't have the name I want because its on an inactive scroll" that the solution just be "after X amount of inactivity if somebody else tries to use the name it gets transferred to the new dragon and the old one is unnamed".

Good for you, but given the suggestion in general is to make people less inconvenienced in general, simply passing on the inconvenience to the original owner and letting everyone else stay equally inconvenienced isn't much of a trade-off.

[ShorahNagi]

8 hours ago, Arcy said:

I think people are greatly overestimating the number of Bobs, Smaugs, etc. that will crop up if this is implemented. people aren't going to stop giving their dragons "creative" names just because there's no longer a limit. 

Exactly this. [Ignoring the fact that names are exclusive right now] I'm proud that a lot of my dragons have really unique names that I've not even see variants of (be it capitalization, spacing. Etc)

 

My biggest reasoning for wanting exclusivity remove is simply time based. I don't have a lot of time to sit down and figure out how to pronounce codes like 4wAUq and turn them into a name. Or take the time to type out names like F l a m e t h r o w e r.

 

I just want the option to be able to click on a dragon and name it something quick and easy (such as Bucket, Bromangelon, Purple Horse, Sonicboom, Etcetera). Especially if it's a dragon I've no intention on using for anything and only have for sprite/encyclopedia/raffle reasons.

[SomeRandomCorviknight]

11 hours ago, Falorni said:

I have the names of all the Resident Evil Village vampires on my scroll - sure, it'd be a slight bummer to no longer have that little "aha I got 'em first" thing but it's sth I'd happily give up for the greater good.  Someone else naming their dragon Lady Alcina Dimitrescu does not take away from my enjoyment of my dragon in any way.  In the nicest way possible, the whole "but I got the name first so it should be MINE" thing feels like.... a really childish attitude to have about it.

 

Also, I never understood the "omg now everyone will name their dragons bob!" argument bc... they're not your dragons and it shouldn't be your concern how people name them.  Of course, it'd be nice to have sth like the uniqueness checker some ppl have brought up for those who do want their names to be unique at the time of naming.

ah ok, good points. I'm still against it but i think those are good points and if TJ was to add it i wouldn't be angry.

[KageSora]

7 hours ago, Shadowdrake said:

Good for you, but given the suggestion in general is to make people less inconvenienced in general, simply passing on the inconvenience to the original owner and letting everyone else stay equally inconvenienced isn't much of a trade-off.

Not really an inconvenience if you've left the site for years or something, IMO, though I'll acknowledge that some people would be annoyed by it.  And allowing people to take names from long-inactive scrolls (especially if "inactive" is defined as not logging into the site for like 2+ years or something) is something of a compromise between "names rot on abandoned scrolls" and "everybody can name their dragon the exact same thing".

 

But then, viewing not having the name you want as an inconvenience is a personal matter, too, not an objective fact--I don't consider not being able to get the exact name I want an inconvenience, much less one worth complaining about, and yet here we are with this topic because some users clearly feel differently.

 

Honestly I'd also rather go back to the days of "after being inactive a certain amount of time all your dragon names get wiped" than get rid of name exclusivity, at least if there isn't a way to guarantee you're the first person to use that name (and preserve the exact current function of the view/n/name link, but I've said that enough times by now).  I like the challenge of being the first person to use a specific iteration of a name.  I know not everybody does, hence the people complaining they can't get the exact name they want, but I'm never going to be terribly fond of a suggestion that removes an aspect of the game that I enjoy--just like I'm sure there are some suggestions I approve of that other people dislike because they prefer the current way things work to the suggested version.  It's not always possible to win users over to your side or to find a compromise that both groups find acceptable.  Lovely when it is, but sometimes, alas, it's not to be.

 

Can't please us all--it's just TJ deciding which of his users he wants to tell "too bad, so sad, get used to it" to.  (Which, to be completely fair, is kind of just how any change to a website that cannot be toggleable goes--there are times where that's unavoidable, through no fault to anybody.  There are simply some things where the desires of differing users are fundamentally incompatible and cannot both be appeased.)

[Keileon]

Unfortunately there's more big issues with name exclusivity than just "cool names stuck on inactive scrolls" or even "I want this cool name but it's taken". To restate an old point that I and others made (because I don't blame newcomers to the thread for not reading every single post) exclusivity makes lyrical lineages inconvenient at best and, for certain songs, impossible at worst. When the line "these trials make us who we are" appears eight times in one of my favorite songs, there's only so many ways I can rehash it.

[KageSora]

1 hour ago, Keileon said:

Unfortunately there's more big issues with name exclusivity than just "cool names stuck on inactive scrolls" or even "I want this cool name but it's taken". To restate an old point that I and others made (because I don't blame newcomers to the thread for not reading every single post) exclusivity makes lyrical lineages inconvenient at best and, for certain songs, impossible at worst. When the line "these trials make us who we are" appears eight times in one of my favorite songs, there's only so many ways I can rehash it.

I suppose it will depend if you think that on it's own is a good enough reason to suggest a change to the way the site works, and how far you're willing to defend changes to the site in the name of making certain lineages easier to create.

 

Personally, while I get the frustration (I've run into that issue as well as the issue of not being able to have the cool name I want because somebody got it first or because it's on an inactive scroll--I have been so annoyed before by being unable to get a name I wanted), that frustration is still not great enough for me to be interested in sacrificing other elements of the current system that I enjoy.  Especially as name exclusivity is far from being the only game mechanic that limits ease or possibility of various lineages users might want to make.

 

If you hate the current naming restrictions, or are neutral on them, I can see where to you it'd be worth sacrificing an element you don't care about/actively dislike to get what you want and tough luck to anybody who'd be equally or more frustrated by its removal as you are by its existence.

[Sextonator]

Name exclusivity can also be a barrier keeping newbies away, as not everyone would be super jazzed about having to come up with multi word names instead of just being able to use one word names.

 

Inactive scroll owners can and do come back, no matter how long they’ve been away no one deserves to have to come back and have to rename all or some of their dragons, especially if some or all of the names were special to them. And just because a name was special to them doesn’t mean it’s not special to someone else. No one can claim they have a right to a name and not let other people use it.

And naming dragons can be linked to a person’s play style. If I want to name all my dragons Bob or Billy or whatever, and I will if this goes through, that is NO ONE’s business but my own, as it is my scroll and you nor anyone else can tell me how to name my dragons.

 

In terms of the /n/ functionality, you can use bookmarks to keep up with dragons, or you can use a spreadsheet, or a word file.

 

And if you want to be the first person to use a name, you can ask for the feature. Otherwise… /shrug

[DragonLady86]

Its not so much wanting that specific name. Its the trying for 30+ minutes and at least 20 different names for one dragon is what some of us are sick of. I use a random fantasy name generator and still can't easily name things. At this point its been years since i bothered much with naming because it's such a chore. Which just makes trying to catch back up worse 

[Keileon]

21 hours ago, KageSora said:

I suppose it will depend if you think that on it's own is a good enough reason to suggest a change to the way the site works, and how far you're willing to defend changes to the site in the name of making certain lineages easier to create.

I was listing one reason beyond a couple already recently expressed. I did not say that that reason "on its own" was worth it-- I think it's worth it for many reasons, that being one of them, and a reason that not every issue would be solved by being able to take names from inactive scrolls.

[Falorni]

20 hours ago, DragonLady86 said:

Its not so much wanting that specific name. Its the trying for 30+ minutes and at least 20 different names for one dragon is what some of us are sick of. I use a random fantasy name generator and still can't easily name things. At this point its been years since i bothered much with naming because it's such a chore. Which just makes trying to catch back up worse 

In the same boat - was trying to name a Copper just now and after trying about every variant of the name I wanted I just... gave up.  It's not fun, it's not the good kind of challenge, it doesn't even encourage creativity for me anymore...  It just makes me put off naming my dragons because I already know the process will be a pain.   

[SkyWolf25]

Support. I see my reasons have already been stated by others here from just looking at the recent posts.

Don't know if others have suggested this already, but perhaps the view/n/ can change to a page showing a list of all dragons with that name, like now the 'view offsprings' page is. Then people can still look at dragons with that name and know how common/unique it is.

[ShorahNagi]

On 10/6/2021 at 6:03 AM, SkyWolf25 said:

but perhaps the view/n/ can change to a page showing a list of all dragons with that name, like now the 'view offsprings' page is.

Problem with that is a lot of people use view/n/ to find certain dragons, though thay has just given me an idea that would (potentially) appease those wanting to know how many dragons have a name AND those who use view/n/.

 

Simple solution - two different variants of view/n/

 

Variant one:

View/n/ = brings up a dragon with that name (if there's only one) OR (as suggested) a page akin to the offspring page showing all dragons with that name [with the first to have the name at the top and decending from there]

 

Variant two:

View/n/username/ = brings up that/those specific dragon(s) owned by that specific player (preserving the functionality of using it to find  certain dragon(s) without needing 20+ bookmarks or groups)

Edited October 8, 2021 by ShorahNagi
Clarification

[kiramaru7]

I have spent the past several days reading through this thread & I want to say I totally SUPPORT Name sharing/having several dragons on ones scroll with the same name, for the simple reason that I am NOT the only Kira on the planet nor is my pet Cookie the only one with that name. In fact, I'm sure I'm not the only Kira with a pet Cookie on the planet.

 

I DO NOT support at all name stealing/swiping from inactive players. I had a dear friend, who sadly passed away a few years ago, who used to play this game. she's the one who introduced me to it & the thought of visiting her scroll & seeing all her dragons with NO names saddens me deeply. I have dragons on my scroll that are related to hers, I'm an old player that had to learn the art of "egg-tossing" in order to gift & trade via the AP, and she's got dragons on her scroll related to mine. I recently started naming my dragons for her.

 

I also DO NOT support wiping the names off dead dragons. I like dead line lineages & they look kinda sad when the tombstones have their names removed.

 

Anyways, I personally would think it's kinda cool to find an egg/hatchie in the AP with name that's the same as one of on my scroll! It would be like meeting another Kira.  I also think people would have fun making up linage projects where the egg is passed on to the next person in line & every dragon is "Bob" or "Sam" or even "Pretty Dragon." Honestly, I really don't get the whole "My Dragon won't be special anymore if there are others with the same name." Seriously, it's still special as it's on your scroll, so who cares if it's a popular name & there are TONS of other dragons with that name out there? Are you any less special to your family if you have the same name as someone else? Your scroll is like your dragon family, whether it has thousands of dragons on it or 4 cuz you're just starting out Each & every dragon is special to you & you alone, just like the next person's are to them.

 

But what about finding Dragon X? If it's on your scroll, then it shouldn't be too hard to find it. I don't use that /n/ function, cuz I have nearly 10 thousand dragons & I simply don't remember all their names, so I go to grid custom sort & find the general area where it should be & work from there. I also don't sort into pages for what its worth. If it's not then you should have an idea of whose scroll it's on, & you could just PM them, just like you'd do now, for the link.

 

To summarize here: I support name sharing for reason listed above.  And since it's been pointed out numerous times already, if you want to avoid inbreeding, use any one of the off site ones that other users have mentioned, since inbreeding doesn't affect game play. Also PLEASE DON'T WIPE and/or SWIPE names from inactive scrolls or dead Dragons for the reasons listed above. Thanks!

[Keileon]

On 10/6/2021 at 7:17 AM, ShorahNagi said:

Variant two:

View/n/username/ = brings up that specific dragon owned by that specific player (preserving the functionality of using it to find a certain dragon without needing 20+ bookmarks or groups)

The way this is worded makes it sound like one user wouldn't be able to use a name multiple times, so I'm just poking in to make sure the clarification is here: I want to be able to use the same name multiple times.

[ShorahNagi]

2 hours ago, Keileon said:

The way this is worded makes it sound like one user wouldn't be able to use a name multiple times, so I'm just poking in to make sure the clarification is here: I want to be able to use the same name multiple times.

 

I didn't mean for it to sound like I'm against a user using the same name multiple times. I just kept it simple in explaining...

*goes back and edits post*

[Keileon]

On 10/7/2021 at 10:50 PM, ShorahNagi said:

 

I didn't mean for it to sound like I'm against a user using the same name multiple times. I just kept it simple in explaining...

*goes back and edits post*

I getcha! I just felt it important to clarify, is all~

[BringsTheSnow]

I like name exclusivity and hope it stays. It seems to be an unpopular opinion but I feel quite strongly about this so I am saying it anyways. I hear others frustrations (and I am not trying to diminish that in any way) but I have yet to experience the same difficulty with finding names. It rarely takes me more than 3 attempts to find a name I am happy with. I don't know why I am having less issues than others.

 

I am also against removing dragon names from inactive scrolls. As a player who has taken multiple multi-year hiatuses, I would be crushed if all my dragon names disappeared because I was "inactive" for too long. Similarly, this would mean lineages with all-named ancestors might suddenly have the names disappear if those ancestors belonged to inactive users. I feel this would cause more problems than it would fix.

[Fuzzbucket]

Cheer up Snow - me too !

[IzzyCat91]

On 9/30/2020 at 2:27 PM, animatedrose said:

I wouldn't mind this being a thing, but I've always used a surname because all of the names I tried when I joined were always taken. Aside from Thuweds and Dorkfaces and SAlts, few dergs are really well-known for their names. Others only hold personal significance and such a thing can be shared between totally unrelated people. You're not the only person who might be attached to the name "Sally Lu Drew" or something for whatever reason, but why are you the only one who gets to have it? There's no justification to lock others out of it beyond "I just want it for myself only".

 

This likely won't affect me either way, but it'd make lyrical lineages and such easier on breeders.

 

I'm against name-wiping though. That'd suck for the guys who return after several years only to discover some or all of their names taken from them. And recently on the discords, a lot of people have returned after several years. I know I'd hate to come back from a hiatus and be stuck having to rename anywhere up to 5k+ dergs because of an inactivity wipe. As much as I'd love to name steal a few things, I don't know if there was a special reason why the current owner used that name. That would also suck to realize I swiped a "cool" name, only to find out it was their great grandma's cat who was there at their birth and was their best friend through school...and I just took it "because I want it".

This. I haven't since 2015 until recently. I have over 300 dragons. I STILL had to rename a few when I came back, but a few compared to 300 is preferable. I also agree that not having the name exclusivity would be beneficial for things like lyrical lineages, and that many people might have different attachments/reasoning for using a name, so limiting it to one person seems kind of....I don't know, silly? That's not the word I want but my brain is malfunctioning currently.

I DO Support the 'can only have one of this specific name per account' idea though.

[Piano]

No support from me, just because one of my favorite things to do on this site is hunt down available names. I just find it really fun and satisfying lol 🤷‍♀️

[Uther_Pendragon]

On 9/18/2021 at 3:25 PM, KageSora said:

Suppose you have 500 dragons named "Bob", how are you supposed to find a specific one?

For me, If I named all my dragons Frank, then that's on me if it takes a long time to find the specific Frank I'm after! 😆 I do NOT support limiting a specific name per scroll. That would defeat the purpose for the lyrical namers, and I may just want 3k Frank's.

 

KageSora: and a simple solution would be retain the "this name is in use" function only have it not prevent people from using the name, just letting them know their dragon won't be the first to use it.  Or include a directory of all dragons with a given name)

 

MissK: Bolded is mine. Maybe I've said this before, but I would still really like it if we still saw if a name is unique at the time of choosing it. It might not make a big difference to some, but there is a satisfaction in it for me (and possibly some others) even if more people end up using the name later. 
 

 

(Ugh I'm awful at quoting) I love this idea! Yes, I do get that little A-HA! when I stumble upon a name I love (or think is hilarious) that isn't taken, but that's a fleeting feeling after the initial rush and patting myself on the back. I wouldn't want to prevent anyone else from using the same one, either from dreaming it up themselves, or naming it after seeing mine.

 

Please no on name wipes or swipes! I had a few very long, fabulously named lineages all cobbled together from multiple friends, and the ancestor's names got wiped after a couple people's inactivity, and I finally ended up releasing said dragons, because there was no record left of their fabulosity and history. Life sometimes interferes with dragons, and people shouldn't be penalized for it.

 

I do currently use the N function when I want to see who got a name before me, so I can shake my fist at them (kidding!) and see what type of dragon they put it on (it's always different than my choice), So, the list option would be really cool, imo, with my dragons on top for ease of use. 

[RPG_123]

On 10/7/2021 at 6:45 PM, kiramaru7 said:

I have spent the past several days reading through this thread & I want to say I totally SUPPORT Name sharing/having several dragons on ones scroll with the same name, for the simple reason that I am NOT the only Kira on the planet nor is my pet Cookie the only one with that name. In fact, I'm sure I'm not the only Kira with a pet Cookie on the planet.

…

I agree to literally everything Kiramaru said! Folks can still have dragons with unique names, and barring others from having similarly unique names (or uninspired names, if they so choose) is gatekeeping at worse and selfish at best. And the fact that a ton of people may name their dragons Smaug, Spyro, or Bob will have absolutely zero impact on any other player. So what if there are two or more dragons named Draco? It’s not hurting anyone; and if it enhances the players experience and helps them feel better committed to their dragon then why shouldn’t it be allowed? Preventing players from naming characters what they want has been incredibly frustrating as a newbie. I’ve started adding vowels to my dragons’ codes in order to give them official names, but that only works about half the time. It’s absolutely ridiculous how long it can take to find a semi-decent name that hasn’t already been taken. The naming restrictions, paired with the tedious description-approval process really stifles players’ creativity. Please let us have this, staff!

[Wahya]

Personally I'm against it. I like name exclusivity because it breeds creativity.

[dragongrrl]

Just now, Wahya said:

Personally I'm against it. I like name exclusivity because it breeds creativity.

My feelings exactly. 7800 dragons and I can still find great new names.

[High Lord November]

I like name exclusivity. It forces me to be creative. Knowing I'm the only one with that name out of all the dragons is also a cool feeling. I also love seeing the names other people give to their dragons, especially in lineages - very cool. 

 

Wouldn't getting rid of name exclusivity also seriously mess with certain lineage lines, like Thuweds or Dorkface or other breeding projects? I love finding Mr/Ms Freaky lines in the AP.

Edited November 1, 2021 by High Lord November