Name database - Will this get cleaned up?

[nzer]

43 minutes ago, Excraft said:

Unlikely as it might be, someone may have created characters named "test001" through "test1000" or any combination of gibberish letter/number combinations just to try various costume concepts.  I've done that and I know of others who do the same.  We don't have hundreds of characters like that, but it does happen.

 

Even if it's not specifically for name camping, those characters are taking up database space when you could instead have just used the "Save Costume" button. And I don't think anyone has a problem with a handful of characters. Three or four hundred is a problem.

[Hyperstrike]

26 minutes ago, PeregrineFalcon said:

Your statement here implies that GM Crumpet is a complete idiot. Worse, it makes it apparent that you think we're all idiots, because that's the only way that anyone could agree with this disingenuous post.

 

Now I've had some serious disagreements with the moderators in the past, and I have the warning points to prove it, but I don't believe for a minute that any of the Homecoming GM/Devs/Staff are stupid.

 

I find it far more likely that if GM Crumpet had seen a bunch of accounts with names like Test0001 -> Test 0857 it's highly likely that he they (sorry, didn't mean to assume your gender) wouldn't have said anything because they understand that no one is upset that they can't name their new main Test 0157. People want "cool" names like "Captain Skyway" and "Knight of the Hollows", so it's far more likely that the hundreds of camped names, that they're referring to, are names that fall under the subset of "cool", not utilitarian stuff  like Test 0485.

 

And you know this Excraft. Your entire post is utter disingenuous nonsense. No one is gonna get banned for having 800 variations of Test 0123, no one is getting banned for having a ton of characters named "Bzzrzrzrzrrrk" and "Urmomomoommmmmz" and you know it. In your zeal to win the argument you've gone completely overboard and you're trying to make a point that no one with a 3 digit IQ is going to believe for a second.

^^^ THIS ^^^

[Hyperstrike]

13 minutes ago, nzer said:

 

Even if it's not specifically for name camping, those characters are taking up database space when you could instead have just used the "Save Costume" button. And I don't think anyone has a problem with a handful of characters. Three or four hundred is a problem.

And how much space in the DB is that?

And how big is the DB?

And what is the ratio of individual character space vs total db size?


Yes, I understand the anger over deliberate name camping.  It's annoying.
But you need to be able to prove that's what's going on IN YOUR SITUATION.  Not simply claim "It's happening"

[GM Crumpet]

46 minutes ago, PeregrineFalcon said:

Your statement here implies that GM Crumpet is a complete idiot. Worse, it makes it apparent that you think we're all idiots, because that's the only way that anyone could agree with this disingenuous post.

 

Now I've had some serious disagreements with the moderators in the past, and I have the warning points to prove it, but I don't believe for a minute that any of the Homecoming GM/Devs/Staff are stupid.

 

I find it far more likely that if GM Crumpet had seen a bunch of accounts with names like Test0001 -> Test 0857 it's highly likely that he they (sorry, didn't mean to assume your gender) wouldn't have said anything because they understand that no one is upset that they can't name their new main Test 0157. People want "cool" names like "Captain Skyway" and "Knight of the Hollows", so it's far more likely that the hundreds of camped names, that they're referring to, are names that fall under the subset of "cool", not utilitarian stuff  like Test 0485.

 

And you know this Excraft. Your entire post is utter disingenuous nonsense. No one is gonna get banned for having 800 variations of Test 0123, no one is getting banned for having a ton of characters named "Bzzrzrzrzrrrk" and "Urmomomoommmmmz" and you know it. In your zeal to win the argument you've gone completely overboard and you're trying to make a point that no one with a 3 digit IQ is going to believe for a second.

Thanks for the vote of confidence. And I'm a he 🙂

 

I can't go into details of names on accounts, or say how many are name camping due to confidentiality, but you are correct in the lack of null names that nobody would want or care about. There are names I'm panting to get my grubby mitts on 😛 

[GM Crumpet]

14 minutes ago, Hyperstrike said:

And how much space in the DB is that?

And how big is the DB?

And what is the ratio of individual character space vs total db size?


Yes, I understand the anger over deliberate name camping.  It's annoying.
But you need to be able to prove that's what's going on IN YOUR SITUATION.  Not simply claim "It's happening"

I don't know the amount of data all those unused alts take up, I can't imaging it's that high. If I need to search the database for a character it's pretty easy and depending on how loose my search criteria is depends on how many results it throws out.

It's not the number of names and alts that are a problem.

[lemming]

13 minutes ago, GM Crumpet said:

And I'm a he 🙂

And here I thought you were a type of bread product

[Infinitum]

4 hours ago, Mopery said:

I was fortunate enough to grab a good number of desirable names when HC first launched, and on at least one occasion have been mistaken for a "famous" player from Live because I had "their" name. The argument could be made that this other player is "more deserving" of that name than I am, although I would dismiss that argument on general principle. Had they loved this game as much as I do, they would have been searching for info during the blip like I was, and would have found out about HC in time to log in and grab that name. They didn't. It's a hard knock life, for them.

 

Commonplace names get taken up quickly in any game, use that grey matter and come up with something original instead. Add a title, or an adjective, maybe even an adverb to a name, and viola! New original Hero/Vigilante/Rogue/Villain/Loyalist/Resistance. Returning players who feel entitled to certain extremely popular and unimaginative names deserve the mental anguish of not getting what they want for once. There is no reason for there to be 15 Ubermans on the same server, all insisting that they're the "original".

Not everyone from live knew about HC day one    or two. Or even months in. I was a few months behind - and just happened to get lucky by a random web search - I was just looking for pictures of coh and found out about this on reddit.   Doesn't mean you loved the game more than me or anyone else. 

 

I managed to secure Infinitum on all but everlasting and indomitable and Nova Infinitum on all.   That's the only ones I really care about.  On indom and Everlasting - Forever Infinitum will do - but there is an imposter about on two servers. 

 

I can live with that. 

 

However... If I had found out someone had taken my name on every server when I logged in....  Ever seen the movie taken? 

[Luminara]

17 hours ago, PeregrineFalcon said:

I wonder how many players would voluntarily give up a name if contacted by a GM.

 

I would.  I'm not going to post a list of my characters and offer the names to anyone/everyone who wants them, because I am using them, but if I found a name that someone else had and that person was desperately wanting it back, why not?  It's not like I can't come up with more names, or that not having some names makes the game unplayable.  And if a name is the only thing notable about my character... well, it's clear that I fucked something up along the way and need to start over.  Don't need that name to do that.

 

As long as it wasn't going to you...

 

Kidding.  I love seeing that vein pop out on your forehead.  😁

[PeregrineFalcon]

17 minutes ago, Luminara said:

I would.

You know, I probably would too. I have about 60 characters across the servers, and there's exactly 3 whose names I wouldn't voluntarily give up if a GM politely asked me to. Those are my namesake, my main, and another character who's named after my oldest son.

 

20 minutes ago, Luminara said:

As long as it wasn't going to you...

 

Kidding.  I love seeing that vein pop out on your forehead.  😁

 

[Hyperstrike]

1 hour ago, GM Crumpet said:

I don't know the amount of data all those unused alts take up, I can't imaging it's that high. If I need to search the database for a character it's pretty easy and depending on how loose my search criteria is depends on how many results it throws out.

It's not the number of names and alts that are a problem.

This was the point I was trying to make.  😚

[Oubliette_Red]

51 minutes ago, Infinitum said:

However... If I had found out someone had taken my name on every server when I logged in....  Ever seen the movie taken?

 

 

Edited February 8 by Oubliette_Red

[ZemX]

17 hours ago, PeregrineFalcon said:

I wonder how many players would voluntarily give up a name if contacted by a GM.

 

How many of you in this thread would?

 

I would hope they don't ever do this.  Coming from a GM it might seem like it's not a request no matter how they tried to word it.    In several of these threads GMs or devs have repeated that they intend GMs to be "hands off" with respect to the policy and that it would run on auto.   That makes sense.  If you think these name release threads are heated, try adding case-by-case exceptions to the mix.  That head-exploding gif is about how it would look for some players.

[Hyperstrike]

42 minutes ago, Oubliette_Red said:

 

 

Have the same thing with Hyperstrike on multiple servers

 

[lemming]

26 minutes ago, ZemX said:

I would hope they don't ever do this.  Coming from a GM it might seem like it's not a request no matter how they tried to word it.

Yep. I took the question as "from anyone"   The most I'd want to see a GM do is be a go between and mediate.

[PeregrineFalcon]

42 minutes ago, ZemX said:

I would hope they don't ever do this.  Coming from a GM it might seem like it's not a request no matter how they tried to word it.

Hypothetical example in-game email:

 

"Hi! This is GM Pumpkin. We recently received a request from a player regarding your character "Sir Kills a Lot". They had a character with this same name for many years on the retail servers and they'd like a chance to recreate and play that character that they have many fond memories of. This player is too anxious to contact you directly and ask you to change that character's name so that they can have their old character name back, so I am contacting you on their behalf.

 

Please understand that I am contacting you only as an intermediary to ask if you would be willing to voluntarily change your character name so that this other play can have it. You are under no obligation to do so. If you are willing to do so then please respond to this email and let me know. If you'd like I can even walk you through the steps necessary to change your character's name.

 

Thank you,

 

GM Pumpkin"

[Water]

35 minutes ago, PeregrineFalcon said:

Hypothetical example in-game email:

 

"Hi! This is GM Pumpkin. We recently received a request from a player regarding your character "Sir Kills a Lot". They had a character with this same name for many years on the retail servers and they'd like a chance to recreate and play that character that they have many fond memories of. This player is too anxious to contact you directly and ask you to change that character's name so that they can have their old character name back, so I am contacting you on their behalf.

 

Please understand that I am contacting you only as an intermediary to ask if you would be willing to voluntarily change your character name so that this other play can have it. You are under no obligation to do so. If you are willing to do so then please respond to this email and let me know. If you'd like I can even walk you through the steps necessary to change your character's name.

 

Thank you,

 

GM Pumpkin"

 

Make a badge for it....

 

[ZemX]

33 minutes ago, PeregrineFalcon said:

Hypothetical example in-game email:

 

Thanks for trying but I didn't need an example.  I was already imagining they'd go to pains to say it was voluntary, but any way you slice it it's coming from a GM.  If you can imagine someone too anxious to directly contact a player, I can imagine someone intimidated to receive such a "request" from a GM.  

 

The name business should be between players and involve GMs only if someone thinks it's gone wrong.  That's just my take on it.  I suppose then my answer to your original question is "no".  I would not give the name up if asked by a GM, because they shouldn't be asking.  I agree with the GMs being "hands off" as the devs have said they would be, if this policy goes into effect.

[GM Crumpet]

3 hours ago, PeregrineFalcon said:

Hypothetical example in-game email:

 

"Hi! This is GM Pumpkin. We recently received a request from a player regarding your character "Sir Kills a Lot". They had a character with this same name for many years on the retail servers and they'd like a chance to recreate and play that character that they have many fond memories of. This player is too anxious to contact you directly and ask you to change that character's name so that they can have their old character name back, so I am contacting you on their behalf.

 

Please understand that I am contacting you only as an intermediary to ask if you would be willing to voluntarily change your character name so that this other play can have it. You are under no obligation to do so. If you are willing to do so then please respond to this email and let me know. If you'd like I can even walk you through the steps necessary to change your character's name.

 

Thank you,

 

GM Pumpkin"

We kind of need a GM Pumpkin now 😛

 

 

[PeregrineFalcon]

Just now, GM Crumpet said:

We kind of need a GM Pumpkin now 😛

Unfortunately, I'm far too busy, but you're welcome to use the name. 😁 

[GM Crumpet]

4 hours ago, ZemX said:

 

I would hope they don't ever do this.  Coming from a GM it might seem like it's not a request no matter how they tried to word it.    In several of these threads GMs or devs have repeated that they intend GMs to be "hands off" with respect to the policy and that it would run on auto.   That makes sense.  If you think these name release threads are heated, try adding case-by-case exceptions to the mix.  That head-exploding gif is about how it would look for some players.

Speaking as a GM of long standing I can't imagine our policy ever changing. We often get accused by people of GM overreach and we have a very hands off approach to most things unless it's a breach of the code of conduct. We can argue with people, and we can both disagree, but that's passion and love for the game. I'm sure @PeregrineFalcon will agree that we've had very different ideas about things in the past and will again in the future, but have we banned them because we don't always agree? Of course not. I value players like them for standing up for what they believe, even if sometimes their passion gets the best of them. I actually agree with them a lot of the time and value their input. I've also changed my stance once or twice because their argument has been persuasive.

I've had a lot of players over the years argue with me about names they had on live and my answer is always the same. I can't help. If they want to contact the player directly and ask them if they will surrender the name to them then that's fine, but if they don't then that's their prerogative. The only time I would step in is if the player asking was rude about it and tried to involve me in some way. "GM Crumpet said..." better be a direct quote with a source or you'll find the limits of my reasonableness 🙂