In interactive fiction, the protagonist name choice (if it exists) is often a no-brainer. You’ll be shown your gender-appropriate variations of “David” and “Joseph” and “William”, and you’ll probably opt to “enter your own name”. How can we make this choice more meaningful? How can pre-generated names not only have some appeal, but give off information as well?

Here are the name choices for my upcoming game:

Male Names
Akio (昭雄). A name which has gotten me ahead in life. Ahead of all the other orphans in our daily soup lines, that is.
Jubei (十兵衛). Name of a master swordsman who went on a 12 year “Warrior’s Pilgrimage”. I wonder if his wife bought that excuse.
Kenji (健二). Many of the other boys had this name. But when it was yelled out, it seemed to only belong to me. Kenji’s are selfish punks who don’t stand up for other Kenji’s.
Shin (紳). The orphanages always come up with proper sounding names, as if that made you more of a catch. To my amusement it means “gentleman”.
Tetsuo (哲雄). Name for a man with a hand more suited to quill than a blade. If my greatest fear was a paper cut I’d have fewer scars and a healthier liver.
[Create your own name]

Female Names
Akane (茜). A name which has gotten me ahead in life. Ahead of all the other orphans in our daily soup lines, that is.
Emiko (笑子). All the girls get allotted cute sounding names, as if that made you more of a catch. This one means “smiling child”. I only smiled when I was up to no good.
Rin (凛). This name has no cutesy version. You can’t even say Rin-chan without looking like you’re chewing on squirrel leg. A delicacy only orphans are fast enough to catch.
Sakura (桜). Pretty common name meaning “cherry blossom”. It’s how parents remind their children that they too will bloom, wilt, and die one day.
Yuko (裕子). The name means “child of leisure”. You know what they call a woman of leisure? A prostitute.
[Create your own name]

Observations
All the names are Japanese. Shows but doesn’t tell the player that an oriental name would suit the protagonist best. The starting letter of each name is also important. Notice that none of them begin with ‘M’s or ‘H’s. Now guess which letters the supporting characters start with!

The descriptions give backstory information. While the story refers to you being an orphan already, these choices help drive the point home. Lining up for food, being assigned a name, getting up to no good—this information is all given in a very pleasant way. Even the no attention-span reader who skims your story will read choice text to the letter.

The tone is flavorful. These names are described in a way drenched with the pragmatic wit our protagonist has. “Fewer scars and a healthier liver” and “they too will bloom, wilt, and die one day” are both examples of a jaded man/woman. An orphan who was never adopted, who must have suffered through many hardships to become the way he/she is. Tone can convey so much left unwritten while making for a much better read!

There are Japanese characters beside each name. Any half-decent stylistic gimmick can help immerse the reader into a setting. In this case, writing and reading play an important role into one of the major themes. One of my goals is to replicate the kind of discomfort in being able to see but not to be able to understand something. It’ll make sense later, trust me!

Conclusion
Pre-generated names can hold an immense purpose, even if the player doesn’t opt for them. A CYOA can be judged by how interesting and difficult the choices are to make, and this includes the name choice as well. I’m not going to stop a John from making “John the Samurai”, but I will provide choices that will cause him to think twice. And that’s the recipe for any good choice game.

Bonus
Easter eggs! The “create a name” choice is perfect for them. In Baldur’s Gate, the famous drow Drizzt has some unique dialogue to say if you’re an elf with his name. It may seem like a silly thing, but it’s worth going that extra mile. Even if only a small percentage of your players will ever see it, those that do will appreciate the effort tenfold. A clever author preys on reader conventions and expectations!