“Hey Photon, how’s it going?” This greeting was not given online. This was in person as a friend of mine, Photon, aka Michael, was letting us into his house for an evening of gaming. Most players online go by a handle or tag when online. For the group I usually hang out with, our tags are interchangeable with our real names and most of us respond to both. I go by DeNarran, Michael goes by Photon, Nick goes by Oyich. We actually have too many Nicks in the group which has lead a few of them to almost exclusively go by there online tags. Lambo and Shisno are two such examples.

Everyone’s tag is pretty well steeped in history and tends to be pretty personal. Most of them are game related references that have been altered over time, often shortened and abstracted till there is little recognition of their original reference. Michael’s for example, started out as Photon Freak, a reference to his tactic back in the first Starcraft of building and using more Photon Cannons than was wise or sane. Mine is an obscure reference to an old game series called Myst. Our names in many ways tell a bit about who we are. You often don’t ever choose your real name, but with our tags, you get to both choose something personal, as well as make it personal through your use of it and interactions with others.

This choice of name can end up being not just one of two names, as it is in our group, but your only name. Professional gamers use their names almost exclusively when at any kind of gaming event. During the sign up for an event, you put down your handle as well as your real name, and from there on out you are more often referenced by your tag than not. You are called to matches by it, your teams roster has your tag on it. It becomes your identity. This connection with a name continues as you advance; with victories comes notoriety and a certain measure of fame, all of which is tied to your tag.

All the professional video game players I can think of go by their tags. I believe that a handful of players out of all the professionals I can think of might go by their real names, but this is often because their tag is a derivative of their real name, making the link between them far easier. This association with your tag is not just between the fans and the players, pro players often reference their competitors and friends on the circuit by their tags. Michael, who has been involved in professional gaming since we were in Middle School, would walk through the venue with people walking up and talking to him, referring to him as “Photon.” For some, I doubt they even knew his real name, and if they did it would take a minute to recall.

This use of pseudonyms has permeated much of gaming culture, from those who run tournaments, work for game companies talking to the community all the way up to the developers of games. SunnyD, or Sundance Digiovanni, is the CEO of MLG, one of the largest tournament hosts in the US. Urk, or Eric Osbourne, is the community manager for game developer Bungie. The most interesting use of tags, in my opinion, is Andy Dudynsky, better known as Bravo. Bravo started out as a pro Halo player and was eventually tapped by the now developers of Halo to act as their community manager. In the process he never shed his identity as Bravo, instead folding it into a larger professional identity. Whenever he does any work for Halo, be it a post online or a video, he uses both his full name and his tag, merging the identities and using his former legacy as a gamer to further his professional career.

Online handles are a quirk of the gaming community. They do create a barrier to entry for those who try to use them professionally; other industries might look at someone submitting a resume with their name being Oliver “DeNarran” Manning strangely, but in gaming circles, this is a normal practice, and it is only becoming more accepted. People like Bravo are wielding their alternate names to great success, creating a personal brand around themselves. Frankly, its a quirk I enjoy. It’s a name that you choose, rather than one you are given, and often holds a fair bit of meaning, be it in choice or through use. I’m pretty attached to DeNarran and I don’t think I will be changing it any time soon.