Irrelevant game titles

[shadyh8er]

Can someone please explain to me why America changed a video game franchise's name from "Biohazard" to "Resident Evil"? The first one basically sums up the bare bones plot of the game while the second is....just, what?

 

[Kopikatsu]

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is a really stupid name. Its not actually a word, its two words that mean the same thing squashed together. I would of loved to be a fly on the wall in that planning meeting, I think it went a little like this:

9.30AM in a game developers office.

"Ok boss, I've thought of a name for this game, get this, what if we put revenge and vengeance together...Revengeance. GOD I'M SO AWESOME!!! Right, my work here is done, I'm going down the pub."

Spoiler: mgs3 spoilerish quote

You have surpassed even the Boss. I shall name you BIG BOSS.

I mean c'mon. Did you expect something better from those people?

(but) I do think revengeance was a real word used in the old days.

Revengeance is a real word, although it is archaic as you suggested.

Apparently it was named Revengeance because Kojima was taking revenge with a vengeance by making the game. (He wanted a game about Gray Fox, but got outvoted)

Can someone please explain to me why America changed a video game franchise's name from "Biohazard" to "Resident Evil"? The first one basically sums up the bare bones plot of the game while the second is....just, what?

Resident Evil refers to the setting of Resident Evil 1. Anywho, it was changed because of trademark law. There was already a DOS game called Biohazard, as well as a rather well known band that went by Biohazard during that time. Capcom felt they could never get the trademark, so they just changed the name.

 

[Danceofmasks]

Can someone please explain to me why America changed a video game franchise's name from "Biohazard" to "Resident Evil"? The first one basically sums up the bare bones plot of the game while the second is....just, what?

Same reason they changed that harry potter movie into "sorcerer's stone."
Apparently, biohazard and/or philosophers? Too nerdy.

 

[MeChaNiZ3D]

It doesn't have to encapsulate the game to be relevant to it. A lot of the titles I'm seeing - Metal Gear Solid, Dark Souls, the Witcher, Okami, Mass Effect, Halo, Mario, Sonic - are not indicative, but still relevant to the game's content. And I think if you were to name games with the intent of describing them in the title - Jumping Plumber with Mushrooms Turtles and Dragonsaur, Defeat Bosses Get Souls Link Fire, Make Choices In A Rich Alternate Universe Then Be Disappointed, Magical Wolf Village Defence, Blue Hedgehog Running - it would make for some boring and stupid titles. As far as I'm concerned a word like Sonic - which refers to the speed of the main character - or Mass Effect - the technology underpinning the entire universe in question and which allows your powers and equipment to work, along with space travel - is relevant. Titles shouldn't have to explain a game to non-players to be 'relevant'.

Actual irrelevant titles are such as Brink, Mirror's Edge, Final Fantasy, Resident Evil, Crysis have nothing to do with the game whatsoever, or perhaps have a vague thematic link. At the moment the thread is practically devolving into every game name in existence.

And in regards to the Mass Effect and Souls series, Mass Effect technology is practically everything in the ME universe (from biotics to space travel) and the Souls games are primarily concerned with souls, Demon's Souls in the first one, and the Dark Soul in the second.

 

[Blood Brain Barrier]

Bioshock. System Shock made sense: systems, computers, electricity, shock. "Shock to the system" is a well known saying. Then they decided to add "bio" to continue the series. I like the title but it's rather senseless unless it means the same thing in the sense of "shock to the system", in which case it's again senseless to change it from System Shock.

 

[SonOfMethuselah]

Same reason they changed that harry potter movie into "sorcerer's stone."
Apparently, biohazard and/or philosophers? Too nerdy.

Hmm... I thought it was because the assumption was that a vast amount of the audience in North America wouldn't actually know what a 'sorcerer' was? I seem to recall reading that somewhere. I could be totally wrong, though. But then the whole stone doesn't make any sense: it's not like philosophers worry too much about the kind of stuff the stone does...

OT: Infinite Undiscovery, anyone? If you're looking for a nonsensical title, that one pretty much sums it up. Actually, I remember hearing/reading somewhere, in relation to that title, that sometimes, when a Japanese game is being published in America, the American publishers will give the Japanese devs a list of adjectives they think sound good together, and make that the game's title, as direct translations rarely turn out well. I don't know how much truth there is to that, but it would certainly explain some really weird names.

Other than Infinite Undiscovery, I never understood the name Vindictus. I didn't play very much of that, so it's completely possible that it gets explained, but I don't know what the explanation would be. Also, I'm not entirely sure about the name Nier. I know it's the guy's name, but when you name your game after the protagonist, and the player has the option to change that name, it seems silly.

 

[shadyh8er]

Can someone please explain to me why America changed a video game franchise's name from "Biohazard" to "Resident Evil"? The first one basically sums up the bare bones plot of the game while the second is....just, what?

Same reason they changed that harry potter movie into "sorcerer's stone."
Apparently, biohazard and/or philosophers? Too nerdy.

Which makes no sense because in an anime called "Fullmetal Alchemist" they say "philosopher's stone." When I first watched it I was like "A red stone used by alchemists? Isn't that the sorcerer's stone?"