Fallen Earth: What's in a Name - Bosses and NPCs

The development team from Icarus Studios' Fallen Earth has written this developer journal discussing the origins of some of the names chosen for bosses and NPCs in their upcoming MMO.

By Guest Writer on June 29, 2009

Have you ever marveled at the imaginations of game designers? Have you ever wondered how they could possibly create so many interesting missions and storylines from nothing? Sometimes they have a little help.

Sitting down with the creators of post-apocalyptic MMO Fallen Earth, we discovered that many of the names and places have connections--some more loose and fictional than others--to people and places in the real world. Lead game designer Lee Hammock and his team divulge some the origins of the names featured in Fallen Earth. This week we'll explore NPC, boss and creature names.

Boss/Creature Names

Arbiter Reinhold Coleman: The leader of the villainous Judges in the Central Plains. He's a Judge and his first name is Reinhold. Inspired by actor Judge Reinhold.
"Dr. Corman," the evil Tech boss that players have to fight in Watchtower, owes his name to horror director Roger Corman.
"Dr. Eddings" is a mad scientist who leads the Shiva's Favored inside New Flagstaff University. His name is an homage to the late fantasy author, David Eddings.
"Shifty Devlin" is a Traveler thug whose last name is an homage to "Independence Day"/"Stargate" writer Dean Devlin.
"Dennis Conroy" is a Union leader in New Flagstaff whose last name was inspired by Pat Conroy, author of "The Lords of Discipline" and "The Great Santini."

NPC Names

The informational NPC "Rudy Arcton" in the Enforcer town of Black Hill is patterned after a particularly wordy individual known to one of the developers, an individual whose vocabulary and verbosity is too great for his own good.
The NPC "Roja Camisa" offers missions in a camp in the vicinity of Pass Chris. The name translates roughly to "Red Shirt." We love our Star Trek.
The NPC "Captain Reynolds," found in Watchtower, was inspired by Malcolm Reynolds from the series "Firefly."
Many of the librarians at the Repository share similar names and roles to real people who worked at a library with one of the game designers.
The name of a major character in the GlobalTech storyline, "Pat Haskins," is a combination of the real name of a person who hosted text-based games for one of the developers and the last name of one of the characters he played on OtherSpace.
"Thelma Jo Wheeler," a kindly denizen of Trailer Park (although with a different last name), is named after a woman who hired a hit man to kill an armadillo under her mobile home. One of the devs learned of this story through his previous work at the St. Petersburg Times.
The famous scorpion hunter in Depot 66, "Brock Dundy," is inspired by Rick "Crocodile" Dundee.
Depot 66 cook "Jeb Darwin" owes his last name to evolutionary theorist Charles Darwin.
The Zanesville citizen Silas Quimby's last name is inspired by Mayor Quimby of the popular TV show, "The Simpsons."
"Wilton Migstock," an Oilville inhabitant, owes his name and dialogue to inspiration from the character of Milton Waddams from the movie, "Office Space."
"Earnest Dalehardt," a roaming mechanic in the town of Trailer Park, serves as our homage to NASCAR racer Dale Earnhardt.
"Gwyneth Mirren," a character in the Traveler town of Banker's Hole, serves as a simultaneous tribute to actresses Gwyneth Paltrow and Helen Mirren.

The town of Zanesville,
where players can find citizen "Silas Quimby."

The town of Black Hill,
where NPC “Rudy Arcton” resides.
The town of Flagstaff,
where players can find
“Addams” and “Cruikshank.”

Return to Features

More Fallen Earth Features:

Fallen Earth - Colin Dwan, Project Manager Interview added on Monday November 30

Fallen Earth - Hidden Content Part Two: Concealed Creatures Dev Journal added on Tuesday November 24

Fallen Earth - Does It Need Fast Travel? General Article added on Monday November 16

Fallen Earth - Hidden Content, Part One: Settlements Dev Journal added on Tuesday November 10

Fallen Earth - Greg Roth on Melee vs. Ranged Balance Dev Journal added on Tuesday November 10

More Dev Journals:

Jade Dynasty - Introducing The Arden Dev Journal added on Tuesday December 01

Fallen Earth - Hidden Content Part Two: Concealed Creatures Dev Journal added on Tuesday November 24

Wizard 101 - From Shadowbane to Wizard 101, Part Two Dev Journal added on Tuesday November 17

City of Heroes - Matt Miller on Balancing Ranged vs Melee Dev Journal added on Friday November 13

Champions Online - Bill Roper on Balancing Ranged vs Melee Classes Dev Journal added on Thursday November 12

More Features:

General - 2009's Most Interesting Stories, Part One Editorial added on Friday December 04

Earthrise - Exclusive Screens From The Borderlands Media added on Friday December 04

Guild Wars 2 - Races of Tyria Internal Q&A and Video Media added on Friday December 04

Player Perspectives - Love Gone Sour: MMO Relationships Column added on Friday December 04

World of Warcraft - Glory of a Hero, Part Two Guide added on Friday December 04

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