Origins of Your Screenname?

alpha5099 · Post by **alpha5099** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 4:08 am

This was an ancient thread on the old forum, and everything old is new again, so let's have another go around. Especially considering that so many people have switched names. Where did your screenname come from? If you changed screennames, why? Was it a whim, or is there something superior about your new screenname? If you stuck by your old identity, what make it so unique?

alpha5099 finds its origins in an old hobby from elementary school. Back in the day, I collected Marvel Cards; I never read the comics, I just collected the expensive pieces of cardboard with nifty drawings on them. One thing I remember noticing was that some heroes had names ending in 2099. Spiderman 2099 is the only one that comes to mind, and he may be the only one, but I think there may have been other ones.

Because I didn't read the comics, I didn't know what the 2099 in the name signified -- apparently Spiderman 2099 fights crime in the year 2099. I just thought it was a nifty sounding set of letters. But I one upped them, and used 3099. I paired it with Alpha, for no particularly good reason, I liked the sound of it.

Initially, Alpha 3099 was the name of a member of spies I created. I can't remember what the numbers of the other ones were, but they started with Beta, Lobo, and Omega. I have no idea how Lobo slipped in with the other Greek letters, it's possible I was under the impression that Lobo was a letter of the Greek alphabet. Anyway, after a time, in fourth or fifth grade, I adopted Alpha 3099 as an online moniker. A few months later, on a whim, I "updated" my persona and it became Alpha 4099. It went through one more iteration before settling at 5099.

And then the name went away, until I set up an account on GameFAQs back in middle school. I racked my brain for a screenname, until I remember Alpha 5099, and for no real reason I made it all one word, lower case, alpha5099. From there, it spread, until it became the only name online I went by. So far I haven't encountered any other alpha5099s, so my name seems to be safely unique.

landshark · Post by **landshark** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 4:28 am

My nick came from the CB in my early & late teenage years. Ahhh, the good times. Originally was "shark" until someone said it needed something extra. So "Land" was prepended.

When I logged onto my first bbs ages ago, I had to come up with a login name, so "landshark" it was. It stuck ever since.

Even at work, I put my nickname in the directory as "Landshark" so alot of stuff is officially addressed to me as Landshark MyLastName. A multibillion dollar corporation, addressing me as Landshark

Rob · Post by **Rob** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 4:30 am

alpha5099 wrote:If you stuck by your old identity, what make it so unique?

It's short. I'm going to stick with my name unless it becomes the next Dave.

Strychnine · Post by **Strychnine** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 4:36 am

My screennames follow my musical tastes, for the most part. My first sn was actually Acid4Bld because I was big alien fan (this was like...shit 9 years ago). When I was into death/black/whatever metal it was Eurynomous (I think it was some god of death yaddy yaddy), when I got into techno it was ^OrBZ^ (also partially influenced because of the way people write their sn's in IRC), and then finally when I got into industrial, it became Strychnine...but I've since moved onto experimental electronic music...but I like the sn, so I didn't bother thinking up another one.

MadSteelDarkness · Post by **MadSteelDarkness** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 4:49 am

Mine's the name of the third-level boss in Batsugun.

Post by **BulletMagnet** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 5:03 am

Pretty simple: I'm not a very skilled shmupper, and as such fail a lot in them, in such a manner as it sometime seems as if my craft is a big old magnet for enemy bullets. I decided to stick with this title from the old forum since 1) It's about as appropriate a name to me as I might hope to come up with, and 2) I haven't been around here long enough to get tired of it, heh.

magnum opus · Post by **magnum opus** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 5:04 am

oh just being 10-11 years old sitting around in my basement playing video games with my brother making up band names and generally chewing the fat. just like the sound of it I suppose, and at this point i use it for at least two dozen different accounts online so now i use it for consistency.

UnscathedFlyingObject · Sun Jan 30, 2005 5:18 am

UnscathedFlyingObject is obviously a funny take on Unidentified Flying Object. Its bragging power is out of proportions, but I won't suck forever!

dok_industrial · Post by **dok_industrial** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 5:24 am

hey, why not? i'll bite...

in my college days i spent a lot of time reading usenet. i was also really big into industrial music. i ALSO felt the need to simultaneously sound my personal trumpet of intellectual superiority AND make some kind of postmodern tongue in cheek statement. so, i formed my online persona--doktor industrial. unrepentantly elitist, infuriatingly condescending, and completely over the top.

the name stuck.

crithit5000 · Post by **crithit5000** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 6:25 am

I used to spin vinyl at some bar...the owner needed a name for flyers and such, and he almost went and put me in as 'Crazy Chris'...one day when I was playing Final Fantasy for NES, I got a Critical Hit and thought that sounded cool. So I went with critical hit as my DJ name (most people always thought it was pot or acid hits I was named after...what little they know. It's a nerd thing!)...when I started frequenting forums/BBS I shortened it to crithit and threw 5000 on there to balance it out. Stupid, huh?

gmw · Post by **gmw** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 6:37 am

Never could think of anything interesting that didn't sound ridiculous or cheesy, so it's pretty simple - my initials.

llaoyllakcuf · Post by **llaoyllakcuf** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 6:51 am

Name that appears in the ending credits of Samurai Shodown IV /
Samurai Spirits Amakusa Kourin.

A screenshot can be seen here. (third one at top)

sidenote: I <3 SNKgrish

Stormwatch · Post by **Stormwatch** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 7:23 am

Stormwatch is an album by a band I love, Jethro Tull. Funny, now that I think about it, maybe it'd be cool to change to Aqualung, as I like that album better... but oh, the hassle of changing my username in several boards to keep the consistence!

No_not_like_Quake · Post by **No_not_like_Quake** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 7:40 am

You're talking to this person....are you following me? ....and he/she asks you what type of games you like...right so you say shooters. and then the person asks yet another question. this question is Oh, like Quake? No, not like Quake .... a slight rolling of the eyes is sometimes followed.

Vexorg · Post by **Vexorg** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 7:46 am

Originally I use Warrior as my online screenname back in the BBS days, carrying up through the time I spent in the emu scene back in the mid 90s (I believe it was MAME .12 that got me started on those, to give you some idea.) I still use that name in some groups (for example, the two tables I've released for Visual Pinball are released under that name.)

The name Vexorg came when I was trying to come up with a name for a character when I was starting Asheron's Call. Apparently I'd been reading Far Side cartoons or something, because I came up with Vexorg from the name a dog gives itself in one of the cartoons ("Greetings. I am known as Vexorg, Destroyer of Cats and Devourer of chickens.") I played Asheron's Call for well over two years, and the name stuck. Warrior was eventually largely abandoned as being a bit too common. I've used Vexorg as an online screen name and a name for MMOG characters since then, although in World of Warcraft my dwarf hunter is known as Thunderhead (with my pet named Gilius, 50 billion Mars Matrix points for whoever gets the reference.)

Ord · Post by **Ord** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 7:46 am

Surname!

TWITCHDOCTOR · Post by **TWITCHDOCTOR** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 7:57 am

My screen name basically comes from the term "witchdoctor". The practictioners of the black arts and voodoo.
Lots of "voodoo" uses serpents and magic.
Well, my "magic" comes from skill, and the serpents are my pets! Yea, I have snakes as pets!
Also, the types of games I like are often refered to as "twitch" games...so when combining the two, it just fit like a glove. Plus it sounds really cool. I only have one internet name, and nick name, and this is it.

Disclaimer:
No, I'm not into voodoo...I just love animals, and I respect them. The only thing I "practice" are getting high scores.

neorichieb1971 · Post by **neorichieb1971** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 8:00 am

Neo - Richieb - 1971

I am currently into the MVS scene, buying and collecting shmups on that system. I am into the puzzlers and fighters a little bit too. I'm into Jamma stuff too

RichieB comes as a bit of a nickname given to me by my old sidekick Jazzy Jones.

1971 is the year I was born.. Yeah, I'm 33..

IlMrm · Post by **IlMrm** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 8:12 am

Miriam Yeung(avatar) is my favorite singer. Therefore I like Miriam = IlMrm. And MRM is what I use for score entry.

I must be the only Asian who doesn't karaoke. If I ever do, I could try her songs, since I know most of them by heart.

UnscathedFlyingObject · Sun Jan 30, 2005 8:17 am

IlMrm wrote:I must be the only Asian who doesn't karaoke.

The two of us, bro.

alpha5099 · Post by **alpha5099** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 8:28 am

TWITCHDOCTOR wrote:My screen name basically comes from the term "witchdoctor". The practictioners of the black arts and voodoo.
Lots of "voodoo" uses serpents and magic.
Well, my "magic" comes from skill, and the serpents are my pets! Yea, I have snakes as pets!
Also, the types of games I like are often refered to as "twitch" games...so when combining the two, it just fit like a glove. Plus it sounds really cool. I only have one internet name, and nick name, and this is it.

Disclaimer:
No, I'm not into voodoo...I just love animals, and I respect them. The only thing I "practice" are getting high scores.

As obvious as your name seems in hindsight, I distinctly remember a moment, after probably a year at the old board, when I mumbled your name out loud. After some deep thought, I exclaimed, "Ooooooooooh, I get it." It was one of those times you sincerely question your own intelligence.

TWITCHDOCTOR · Post by **TWITCHDOCTOR** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 8:48 am

^ Hey...! Glad you got it my man!

UnscathedFlyingObject · Sun Jan 30, 2005 8:48 am

TWITCHDOCTOR wrote:Plus it sounds really cool. I only have one internet name, and nick name, and this is it..

Agreed. TWITCHDOCTOR is one of the coolest nicks I've ever seen.

TWITCHDOCTOR · Post by **TWITCHDOCTOR** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 9:06 am

UnscathedFlyingObject wrote:
TWITCHDOCTOR wrote:Plus it sounds really cool. I only have one internet name, and nick name, and this is it..
Agreed. TWITCHDOCTOR is one of the coolest nicks I've ever seen.

Yes, thank you...but sometimes I feel I really don't "live up" to my name. (playing Radiant SilverGun; I feel more like the BITCHDOCTOR!!!
I've 1CC quite a few games in my times, but yet there are some that amaze even me!!! Especilally those talented "two handed" players! (two hands/two ships/one player) WOW!!!
Still, I ain't changing my name though!!!!

Venom · Post by **Venom** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 9:10 am

When I was a kid I drew a pic of Venom out of Amazing Spiderman #374, it was the first 'good' drawing I'd ever done. Was my favorite character, until Ash came out... that pic is still on my wall at home. Not sure why, but I started using it on the internet, and VNM fits in the HS board for shmups.

If anybody cares, 2 sketches I did a few years back. http://www.renderosity.com/gallery.ez?B ... st=Venom48

Reiki · Post by **Reiki** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 9:58 am

I'm named after the very long-bladed katana in the manga Tenjo Tenge. TenTen is fucking great, lots of violence and nudity and the art is exceptional, which makes all the fighting look even cooler than it is. It was licensed by DC so everyone will be able to read it soon though I fear censorship.

Post by **Ghegs** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 10:33 am

Around 10 years ago when I first wandered onto the Internet, I stumbled upon a Star Wars chat/roleplaying room where most people had a cool character name and wanted one of those as well. Using the age-old technique of "looking away from the keyboard and pushing keys randomly" (and changing one or two letters from the resulting gibberish) I dubbed myself "Ghegs Brak". Later I dropped the surname (which I discovered is actually the name of a cartoon character) and have been known as Ghegs ever since.

So it's definately an original name.

Though oddly enough, there is a dialect group in Albania known as "the Ghegs". Some odds, eh?

Herr Schatten · Post by **Herr Schatten** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 12:16 pm

It comes from an NPC in the first Baldur's Gate game. I believe in the English version he's called "Mr. Shade" and that's exactly what "Herr Schatten" translates to.

The chat with that NPC was one of the funniest moments of my gaming life, so I used that nick when I first ventured into internet forums. The first forums I joined were German so I naturally used the German name because I thought it sounded cool. (Actually, I didn't think about it much.)

When I joined the shmupsforum, I didn't want to have to remember what I'm called on in different forums, so I just sticked with the nick.

Funnily, there was a time when some people (not being aware of the fact that "Herr" means "Mr.") here seemed to think that "Herr" was my first name and "Schatten" my last name and adressed me "Herr" when talking directly to me.

dbd · Post by **dbd** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 1:23 pm

dbd is just a lazy acronym of another posting name I made up, duff beer dragon,

that one was just a reference to Duff Beer out of The Simpsons' and that my Chinese horoscope is a Dragon,

also if I am rubbish at anything I can just say, well I did warn you with my name.........

Super Laydock · Post by **Super Laydock** » Sun Jan 30, 2005 1:50 pm

Simply the name of one my favourite games from my youth on the MSX.

I have thought about losing the "Super" part when newly registering here last week, but chose for continuity and recongnisability.
That and I knew TWITCHDOCTOR would freak out learning about another changed nickname.

shmups.system11.org

Origins of Your Screenname?

Origins of Your Screenname?

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