Subtitle or No Subtitle?

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9 comments, last by Tony Li 6 years, 1 month ago

So, I recently started developing a game for iOS, that I'm trying to decide on a title for. I feel like the main title is fine, but I'm having trouble with whether or not I should add a subtitle.

For some background, I'm making a rogue-lite game, involving a sword being passed down from generation to generation. I have a somewhat action-oriented combat system in mind, hence making it a rogue-lite, not a rogue-like. The game is going to have a few different parts - standard dungeons, scaled with the current character's level in mind and featuring various enemies found commonly in RPG's, the tavern that acts as a hub for the player where they accept missions, buy/repair equipment, and level up their character. Finally, there will be a large story dungeon that gets impressively difficult, and will handle an actual story progression. It won't be a huge story, but it will be there.

The catch is that, even if the player's current character dies, the sword will be picked up again, and retain abilities and upgrades. This is so the player can  still progress, but losing a character is still a punishment. And, that's the main point of the game - it's centered around this one sword.

That's why I settled on the title "Heirloom" - especially because, after hours of searching, I didn't find a game with this title, and I find it to be a good fit for the concept.

But, I was still debating... I feel like it somewhat encapsulates my game's point, but I'm not sure if it's flashy or exciting enough for people to remember it very well.

I thought of making a subtitle like "Blood-Stained Lineage" or "Quest of the Cursed Blade" or something along those lines. They're working subtitles and could still use some work, but at the moment I'm less wrestling with what the subtitle should be, and more with whether there should be a subtitle in the first place.

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If it's not absolutely begging for a subtitle, then that's probably a good sign to skip it. Would Doom have been better as "Doom: Curse of the Zombie Soldiers from Hell"? Or would Minecraft have been better as "Minecraft: The Game of Building Things by Punching Trees into Cubes and Then Stacking Them"? I think succint is usually better unless you're consciously aiming for an old timey feel.

Unity Asset Store: Dialogue System for Unity, Quest Machine, Love/Hate, and more.

13 minutes ago, Tony Li said:

If it's not absolutely begging for a subtitle, then that's probably a good sign to skip it. Would Doom have been better as "Doom: Curse of the Zombie Soldiers from Hell"? Or would Minecraft have been better as "Minecraft: The Game of Building Things by Punching Trees into Cubes and Then Stacking Them"? I think succint is usually better unless you're consciously aiming for an old timey feel.

Well, that being said, I am going for a 16-bit aesthetic.... but what do you mean by an "old timey feel"? I'm not sure I recall a lot of older titles littered with subtitles on their main titles or something....

Like The Hobbit: Or, There and Back Again, or Peter Pan: Or, The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up. Or, for games, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, which is a callback to classic treasure hunter serials from the early 20th century.

I guess the most important question is: Does the subtitle add value, or is it just more words?

 

Unity Asset Store: Dialogue System for Unity, Quest Machine, Love/Hate, and more.

Subtitles are only necessary with a multi-title franchise. "Heirloom" is perfectly fine by itself. If you make a sequel, the sequel may need a subtitle (or just a number 2 or II or 2.0)

-- Tom Sloper -- sloperama.com

Just now, Tom Sloper said:

Subtitles are only necessary with a multi-title franchise. "Heirloom" is perfectly fine by itself. If you make a sequel, the sequel may need a subtitle (or just a number 2 or II or 2.0)

Yeah, I figured that would be another issue - adding a subtitle could add some confusion, especially if I make another one. Not likely, because what I have in mind is pretty darn self-contained, but... hey, if I can think of a better way to do it, I could keep those stored away... just incase.

4 hours ago, rcrawford115 said:

developing a game for iOS

Keep in mind that people can't really *see* subtitles on iOS, because you don't get to display very many characters on the home screen.

Tristam MacDonald. Ex-BigTech Software Engineer. Future farmer. [https://trist.am]

From the context, I think rcrawford115 is talking about a subtitle to the title, not subtitle text for voiced dialogue. Although you could certainly use a subtitle for a specific effect, I agree with Tom Sloper that Heirloom is perfectly fine by itself.

Unity Asset Store: Dialogue System for Unity, Quest Machine, Love/Hate, and more.

@Tony, Swiftcoder was talking about the game's title in the app store. Not a lot of room for title+subtitle characters in the apps list.

-- Tom Sloper -- sloperama.com

Gotcha. I wasn't sure.

Unity Asset Store: Dialogue System for Unity, Quest Machine, Love/Hate, and more.

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