This first name is already in use. /rant

[Alex Heartnet]

 

Every other game keeps two people from having the exact same name.  Two people could have the same first name, or the same last name, but not both.

Here, someone's first name and last name counts separately for this.  Here, two people can't have the same first name despite this being common in real life.  Here, two people can't have the same last name.  DM's call if they aren't related, but married couples are common, and siblings are common!  But here?  nope.avi.
Me having to resort to the in-game random name generator is an insult, but even that sometimes provides invalid names due to the above.   

 

Dwarves are single-minded creatures that have been known to sit around for hours watching the forge heat up, and true to my Stonehammer heritage I am going to stubbornly wait for this to be fixed before doing anything else.

[cdmoreland]

Don't hold your breath. He must be a Hammerwielder 'cause us Stonebreakers are smarter than that.

[LigH]

Wrong generalization. RIFT allows only a single name (a lastname can be purchased). So, PlaneShift is not the only game with such a decision.

And the problem is not new, I remember similar rants posted several years ago. But it is a design decision. Due to the roleplaying focus, we seem to prefer randomized names so that as little bias as possible arises from the choice of a name. Especially choosing a name of a famous person or character is not allowed anyway, due to our naming policy.

Yes, even the random name generator may select already existing character names. Maybe it is time to clean the database again from long-time inactive characters to make some of their names available again.

[Rigwyn]

Not to mention the possibility of ending up with two identical looking avatars with the same exact first and last name through use of the marry function. This would enable some serious ooc impersonation.

[Bonifarzia]

Keep in mind that some commands use first names only, for example /tell (and probably also some admin commands, for instance when GMs move around or reward player characters). So there is a clear technical reason for unique first names.
Second names, however, can be non-unique. Marriage is not the only option to change ones last name - if you have good reason to request another family name, I think you can kindly ask for that (maybe via a petition).

[Aramara Meibi]

characters created under the same account can have the same last name. you just can't multiclient those

[LigH]

I remember that there have been people roleplaying a family, e.g. siblings or children, so GMs made matching last names for these chars.

[Aramara Meibi]

I remember that there have been people roleplaying a family, e.g. siblings or children, so GMs made matching last names for these chars.

all it takes is a friendly approach and justifiable explanation.

[gonger]

Maybe it is time to clean the database again from long-time inactive characters to make some of their names available again.

I second that. Removing, for example, all characters that did not connect for more than 1 year, with less than 2 hours of play time would probably not harm anybody, but free quite a few names.

[bilbous]

  Global character wipe with no name reservation FTW!

[LigH]

Global character wipe with no name reservation FTW!

Some men just want to watch the world burn...