• A new LGBTQ+ forum is now being trialed and there have been changes made to the Support and Advice forum. To read more about these updates, click here.
  • Hey Trainers! Be sure to check out Corsola Beach, our newest section on the forums, in partnership with our friends at Corsola Cove! At the Beach, you can discuss the competitive side of the games, post your favorite Pokemon memes, and connect with other Pokemon creators!
  • Due to the recent changes with Twitter's API, it is no longer possible for Bulbagarden forum users to login via their Twitter account. If you signed up to Bulbagarden via Twitter and do not have another way to login, please contact us here with your Twitter username so that we can get you sorted.

PC Names

Status
Not open for further replies.

PokéSean

Aka: LPCDDude, Cardcaptor Sean, TheLegoCat, etc.
Joined
Oct 3, 2018
Messages
1,737
Reaction score
127
Just because the names appear in video game promos doesn't mean that they are really named that. Especially if they may not appear as NPCs.
 
Mhm. But they make for good-enough placeholders in lieu of anything more conclusive. And they're already entrenched enough in fandom consciousness to the point that most people are going to know who you're talking about if you use one of those names, Blue/Green debacle aside.
 
That is true. The main point behind PCs is that they represent us, the players. We're the one who decides their personalities, likes, dislikes, and especially, what kind of Pokemon we want to train. But I also agree that the PC names are important because they are much more than placeholders.
 
I mean, have Brendan, May, Lucas, Dawn, Ethan, Lyra, Hilbert, Hilda, Nate, Rosa, Calem, and Serena been used as names in promo material? People such as ForceFire on Bulbapedia have said that because the names Chase, Elaine, Victor, and Gloria are used in promos, they have to be used for now as their names.
 
Personally when it comes to PC names, I never liked how the manga gives the characters the names of the games. Like Sword and Shield just...aren't a name for a person. I like the names Victor and Gloria.

Not just that, but doesn't it simply make more sense from an organizational standpoint to not have two totally different things share a name if there's a more distinct alternative for one of them?

These name debates never make a whole lot of sense to me, considering that the player characters are meant to be blank slates. Like, why do people bring "canon" into it? Their "canon" names are literally whatever you choose to call them, because Pokémon isn't really meant to have one "canon" set of events. It's a self-insert RPG. It's your story. But at least for the sake of sheer documentation, using a redundant name (as in, one that is already the title of a game) is just more of a hassle, because then you need disambiguation pages and such.
 
I mean, have Brendan, May, Lucas, Dawn, Ethan, Lyra, Hilbert, Hilda, Nate, Rosa, Calem, and Serena been used as names in promo material? People such as ForceFire on Bulbapedia have said that because the names Chase, Elaine, Victor, and Gloria are used in promos, they have to be used for now as their names.

I hope you realize Calem and Serena already get named in the game when they are your rival.

And nowadays there's also Pokémon Masters using the 'canon' names.

By all means and purposes, other than the Blue/Green thing, those pretty much are their actual names at this point.
 
Revising my reply.
I hope you realize Calem and Serena already get named in the game when they are your rival.

Not important. I don't mean that. I mean if they appeared as names used in promos (even if they are NPCs in their respective games). I know that they are rivals along with May and Brendan. What grade do you think I am in RK9? First grade?
 
Last edited:
It's because if we didn't use those names people wouldn't know which character we are referring to when discussing things about the games online. Imagine how awkward it would be if I started to call every female protagonist Emelie. Funny thing I also called Red and Gold by my own name when I was little even if I knew they were supposed to be male.

It felt special to have your own name written on your Pokémon that you would trade with your friends. They shouldn't have removed the unused female protagonists in Red/Blue (girl in black dress) and Gold/Silver (there was evidence found in the leaked SpaceWorld demo that there was a female protagonist at one point).
 
It's because if we didn't use those names people wouldn't know which character we are referring to when discussing things about the games online. Imagine how awkward it would be if I started to call every female protagonist Emelie. Funny thing I also called Red and Gold by my own name when I was little even if I knew they were supposed to be male.
Not only that, it is also kinda clunky saying "SM Protagonist", "LGPE Protagonist", etc. This in fact reminds me of this little exchange in The Legends of Localization blog:

Cream Tangerine said:
“If you were playing Seiken Densetsu when it was first released, how would you determine what the heroes’ official names were? You’d probably turn to the game’s manual and/or the game’s strategy guides.”
I never understood why someone would care. Their names are whatever you called them. Otherwise why let you choose?
Fir413 said:
How would you yo
talk about the characters otherwise? In this game it doesn’t matter much cause it’s not as plot heavy? but can you imagine Final Fantasy VII threads whwre people discuss wheather Spiky Blonde Big Sword Guy can revive Dwad Flower Girl?
 
That's why there are Game title names for ones not NPCs. It is just this:

Personally when it comes to PC names, I never liked how the manga gives the characters the names of the games. Like Sword and Shield just...aren't a name for a person. I like the names Victor and Gloria.

Funny thing I also called Red and Gold by my own name when I was little even if I knew they were supposed to be male.

You know Gold is now called Ethan.
 
He wasn't called Ethan/Hibiki when I couldn't choose the female protagonist so I said Gold to make a distinction. Although a lot of female players choose him over Lyra/Kotone because they think her hair is ugly. Thank goddess for character customization! :p

Kind of weird that the old Gold isn't considered a separate character but Crystal and Lyra/Kotone are to the point that they are separate characters in Pokémon Masters. The Pokémon Special manga assumed that they were the same person.
 
Kind of weird that the old Gold isn't considered a separate character but Crystal and Lyra/Kotone are to the point that they are separate characters in Pokémon Masters. The Pokémon Special manga assumed that they were the same person.
Ethan's Generation IV design is understood to be a redesign, whereas it's been confirmed that Lyra was designed from scratch and drew no inspiration from Kris, despite the uncannily similar hairstyles. Pokémon Adventures probably gave Lyra's outfit to Crystal because the mangaka didn't want to introduce a new character without good reason.

As to the discussion topic, I'm a bit puzzled as to what exactly it even is. If we don't refer to the protagonists by name, are we just supposed to call them all "you"?
 
I don't care what anyone says, I still prefer calling 'Ethan' Gold. On that note, is Silver really the G/S/C rival's default name?
If no name is entered for the rival when prompted, he will be called "Silver" in Gold and Crystal, "Gold" in Silver, "Soul" in HeartGold, and "Heart" in SoulSilver. "Silver" is favored since it is used in two cases whereas the others are each used only once, and also presumably because it is the name given to his counterparts in two different manga (Adventures and Pocket Monsters), with other counterparts each getting a different name not even among the default selection ("Black" in The Golden Boys and "Tsubaki" in Jō's Big Adventure).
 
I realised recently that Blue makes more sense as a name for the original rival than Green. In Let's Go, Blue has a Venusaur, which suits his Japanese name, but it also means that he has the starter weak to Red's. Oops.
 
But Red has Venusaur, Blue has Charizard, and Green has Blastoise. Each character has the disadvantages of their respective colors in LPGE to be exact.

Why not call Victor, "Tom" and Gloria, "Jane"?
 
In almost every entry in the Legend of Zelda series, you are free to name the young sword-wielding hero whatever you choose. Are we not supposed to accept the Canon name "Link" for this reason?

I don't see why Pokemon should be any different. These characters are clearly given a name, whether we know it or not. And as stated above, those greatly help in conversation about said character. It only gets muddled when any such default name is not given, and the fandom finds ways around that. Is the rival in GSC actually named "Silver?" We don't know. But it's a widely-used name for him so many do. Nobody is saying you HAVE to refer to the SwSh protagonists as Victor and Gloria, but those names are the most common defaults seen in promotional materials, and not only that but they fit very well with the theme of the games, so you also shouldn't oppose someone that DOES use those names.
 
But Red has Venusaur, Blue has Charizard, and Green has Blastoise. Each character has the disadvantages of their respective colors in LPGE to be exact.

Why not call Victor, "Tom" and Gloria, "Jane"?

Nobody's stopping you from doing that.

If you really use them as self-insert for a fic or something, you are free to call them after yourself or just different. Despite having official names, there's still that liberty of giving them your own name because they're the player character.

But in a discussion, when you refer to one of the protags as "Tom" or "Jane", people will just have a huge question mark above their head wondering if they are in the discussion of the right franchise.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom