What name references have you slipped into your hack/fangame?

Cygnus · March 9, 2026, 11:41pm

There aren’t too many names that are references to characters from other game series in my project, but I do take some aspects of other things I like when coming up with names for my hack.

Falibria-The main setting of Liberty’s Beacon. Coined after a throwaway line from a Lute support where she references a “The Glossary of Falibrian Entomology”, which stuck into my head as a good name for a setting. So yes, Liberty’s Beacon “canonically” takes place on the same planet as FE8, and the actual plot technically kicks off two years after Sacred Stones.

Arglas-The father-figure of Asaph and Elliot. His name is taken from a central character in the mythos of Xenoblade Chronicles 1.

Asaph-Named after an Old Testament Psalmist who is allegedly part of the genealogy of Jesus Christ. The name means “gatherer”, collector, or “who gathers together” which…is an oddly fitting name, in retrospect. Originally, I just named him that because it stuck out to me and wasn’t something I had seen any current rom hacks use for a lord yet.

Sharla-Sharla was a friend’s OC that I used with permission in my project. Her name is a reference to Charlotte’s Web but I like to joke that she’s also a nod to the one from XBC1, even though they’re nothing alike.

Issachar-Named after the chud from SMTIV. They’re both kind of losers, haha. (I still love LB Issachar, no matter what people say about him)

Elliot-Its no secret that Elliot’s design is basically a gender-flipped Elise. His design inspiration actually came from a genderswap artwork I found online. Elliot just seemed like a fitting name for him.

Skadi-Named after the Norse jötunn Skaði. Seemed fitting for a snow-white wolf.

Galeazzo-Named after the Galeazzo Maria Sforza, fifth duke of Milan. Turns out, the real life duke and I share the same birthday.

Those are a brief few. A good deal of the character names in my project can be traced back to mythological or Biblical figures, but some of them ended up with normal names along the way. (Like Amanda, the Ch 1 Boss who

Ch 11 Spoilers

I might add a Vandham into my project at some point, too. I’m surprised I haven’t slipped any One Piece references into my project yet, since I love One Piece.

Kurayamiblack · March 10, 2026, 12:24am

In my only released mod (FE8 Alternative), each boss has an expanded description when you press R on the menu and highlight their names. Pablo has a movie reference saying “He smells of elderberries”.

Next, in Lute’s C support with the new Wyvern Rider character Elias, Lute drops the phrase “Magic is everything!” which is a reference to the popular Reinhardt quote from Fire Emblem Heroes.

Another FE Heroes reference is Anna in Ephraim’s route “Ch12: Landing at Taizel”. She recognizes that this isn’t the vanilla FE8 game and realizes she was sent to the wrong alternate universe when her sister in Askr sent her here.

Devin, the original faced enemy Brigand you can now recruit in “Ch5: The Empire’s Reach” is revealed to have the last name “McCartney” which is a nod so some old FE community stuff from way back when. Also, “Ross the Boss” is kind of a meme reference from back then too.

Riev’s description has a reference to the Christian trope “Have you heard of our lord and savior” except it’s about the Demon King

Zonta’s description mentions “He works hard for the money” which is a reference to an old hit song.

Finally, the last thing (at least off the top of my head), is an inside reference that only my friends would know. In Eirika’s story “Ch11: Greed and Treason” which is a brand new chapter for the game, Ewan calls the town they’re in “Jelbac” which was the name of a small nation where your 3 main lords begin in a fangame idea I came up with as a kid called “Warriors of Arenta”. An updated version of the game idea eventually renamed that nation to “Velban” but it was known as “Jelbac” to me and my friends for so long that I decided to use that name for the new town in FE8 Alternative as kind of a nod to my own roots that eventually brought me here decades later

EDIT: I just now realized this thread asked specifically for “name” references

Rushless · March 10, 2026, 12:29am

There’s a couple ones here and there throughout Drowned King. Often named after writers or historical figures but there’s a few weirder ones in there too.

Names

Playable Units:

Carolus: Carolus Rex
Alaric: Alaric the Great
Fabio: The model
Scipio: Scipio Africanus
Hesiod: Greek writer.
Crow: The bird, but also the guy from Professor Layton and the Spectre’s Call.
Bertrand: Bertrand Russell
Homer: The Greek writer.

Bosses:

Hytham: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Character
Paris: From the Iliad
Enoch: The Ben 10 villain
Tiberius: The Roman Emperor
Valentine: The saint
Ajax: Iliad character

Locations:

Dacia: Roman Province, also Latin for “Nomad”
Pontus: Kingdom in Ancient Anatolia, famously ruled by Mithridates.
Naxa: Naxos
Delio: Delos

Weapons:

Joyeuse: Sword wielded by Charlemagne
Elenchus: Method of cross-examination used by Socrates.
End of Days: Wrestler Baron Corbin’s finishing move

Retina · March 10, 2026, 2:11am

Buckle up, gamers. This’ll be a long one (and it isn’t even about TMGC! That one’s got surprisingly few references in terms of names).

You might’ve heard of this project I’m working on called Fourthhack (tentatively. i won’t make that its final name. probably.). Talking about its reference names gets a bit muddy, since its setup of user submitted units means that there’s a huge amount of things flying both over and under my head, so for now we’ll just talk about main story units and major NPCs (maybe one day i’ll do a part 2 where i can show off the unit that’s literally just hit vocaloid Teto).

The required story units also have surprisingly little in the realm of references, though the below image might help explain why:

Only 10 guaranteed units means there’s simply not a ton of space for referencing things. I guess Ioria is kinda similar to Iorys, the town in Etrian Odyssey 5? Look, there’s already a lot of far more obvious and intentional EO references in this game. I might’ve named Gore after the character from SMT: Strange Journey, but at this point I’ve heard enough “is that gore of my comfort gore” jokes that I’m a second away from naming him anything else just to escape the pain.

Getting to NPCs is where things get more interesting. First of all, quick disclaimer about placeholder mugs, as this project’s still in development.

Guildmaster: This is overtly just the Guildmaster design from EO1. He’s not canonically the literal same guy, but I wouldn’t blame anyone for thinking he is.

Gerson (doesn’t have a mug yet award): Not a Deltarune reference, amazingly. Instead, it’s a reference to the party’s protector from the LPArchive EO1 playthrough.

Benjamin and Johanna: Beginning the other overarching Fourthhack trend (things named/themed after musical theatre), these two are named after Benjamin Barker and Johanna from Sweeney Todd.

Bobby: Named after Robert/Bobby from Company. Fun fact: Goldblitzx (who has done a lot of mugs for this hack so thanks oomfie) used the same baseline mug for both Benjamin and Bobby, as a little nod to how the actor she referenced for their mugs was in both roles.

Claire: Named after Claire from Maybe Happy Ending. By the way, I strongly recommend watching all of these shows when you get a chance (if you can’t afford to see them in person it’s not hard at all to find bootleg recordings on youtube or the like).

Fourth: ok this one’s cheating a bit, less a reference and more a lore-justified injoke. The Imperial army that Fourth serves alongside grants its highest ranking officials the titles of First, Second, Third, and so on. This is entirely so Fourthhack can have a character named Fourth. Laugh.

Weber (sorry this loser doesn’t even get a screencap but trust me he’s an important character): Simultaneously a reference to iconic CotA unit Weber (I am Weber.) and famed musical composer Andrew Lloyd Webber (to build off the musical theatre stuff and because naming a character Sondheim or something of the sort would be a bit too on the nose).

Answerer (sorry another NPC that doesn’t get a screenshot but they’re important too): Directly named after The Answerer, one of the ultimate weapons in EO5, and the name was also intentionally chosen to have a similar feel to romhack manakete names such as Feeler and Seer.

Ratatoskr: Pretty obvious name reference (messenger squirrel from Norse mythos), but it’s relevant here because somehow squirrels are a running joke in both Etrian Odyssey (especially EO2 and EO5) and in some FE hacking circles.

F.O.E.: F.O.E.s are functionally extremely dangerous miniboss enemies scattered throughout EO’s dungeons. In EO proper, it’s an acronym for Formido Oppugnatura Exsequens, so I came up with my own equally gratuitous Latin expansion that also kinda forces FIRE EMBLEM in.

Weapons/Items: Many weapons are lifted from Etrian Odyssey, with the more original inventions still trying to keep the feel of something you’d find in a traditional RPG. A consequence of this is that your FE knowledge of weapon tiers will not transfer over at all, though as a slight mercy I at least made the most basic sword/lance/axe/bow all use the Short[WEAPON] naming scheme (Shortsword, Shortspear, Shortmace, Shortbow).

pictured below is only the most comprehensible of lists

Classes: Most classes have Fire Emblem names in their tier 1s and Etrian Odyssey names in their tier 2s (eg. Knight promotes into Hoplite, Swordfighter promotes into Landsknecht, Hunter promotes into Survivalist), with classes that don’t have a clear analogue in one series or another given a fitting name for their appropriate tier. FE8’s monster classes also got a lot of renames to fit EO vibes (including some that intentionally use shortened names and wordplay as if they’re a clever English localization trying to fit things in a character limit).

Bonus: the three unit slots used for Caller/Necromancer spirits are named after Asteria from Araxxor’s EO3 LP, Bellamy from Araxxor’s EO2 LP, and Cheese from the same EO1 LP as Gerson above.

Wow that ended up way longer than I anticipated. If you wanna play Fourthhack uhhhh join retinacord and you can watch in awe as i release random gameplay footage and eventually a public demo, idk there’ll probably be a thread here in a few months once i’m comfortable releasing act 1, for now if you wanna peer at the github and build the rom yourself go for it anyway bye superfriends

amema003 · March 10, 2026, 4:16am

As a theater kid, I salute you (let’s hope things end better for your Benjamin and Johanna than their namesakes)

ATHATH · March 10, 2026, 4:47am

The name/character references in my L’arrangement submission:

Trennam is a blue Druid who joins with horrendous stats, but has the ability to get extra turns from playing Blackjack. His statline is an exact copy of the statlines of the bugged normal mode Luna druids in River of Regrets (who have just the Druid class bases and are thus pathetic), so I made his name an anagram of “Remnant” (which is the faction name of the generic enemies in River of Regrets).
Since Trennam’s abilities were based on Blackjack, I decided to make the chapter boss be Jack Black. This in turn caused the chapter to be themed around the number 8, as a reference to Jack Black Octagon YTPs.
The above is also why Elmo is a subboss. I was originally going to make him stop time with [ELMO’S WORLD], but scrapped that because I was running low on dev time.
The other subboss is Jill, a wight. Jack-Jill, black-wight, you get it.
Weezer is there because the premise of the map is that an 8 cult is trying to keep you in chapter 8 forever and I felt that the lyrics to Numbers fit that (“Numbers are out to get you”).

ColeTheOne · March 10, 2026, 5:02am

Assumedly this Issachar won’t turn into a monster?

Also;

Even in your Fire Emblem ROMhacks, F.O.E.!

AlexYTXG · March 10, 2026, 2:09pm

I accidentaliy reference this didnt i

ArcherBias · March 11, 2026, 3:47pm

I think Faces of a Stranger has some fun ones!

Referencing Hacks

Obviously, all of the bombs are just one big Shackled Power shoutout.
The B rank alt weapons are each based on a weapon from some other hack. Maximum Blade is based on Claymore, Max’s Prf from Four Kings, Voltage Pike’s effect is copied from TLP Adamant Lance, and Bold Labrys’s description references the DoW Battle Axe (even if the effect is closer to Fates’s Bold Naginata.)
While on the topic of 4K, Repeat Bolt is basically just Wilson’s Gatling Bow.
Emerald Axe is named after the Gem weapons, which I didn’t know about until playing VQ. The effect is completely different, but it still is an axe that cares a ton about WTA, so I think the name fits!
Duos Lancea is a spin on Levis Lancea.
Whale Hunter is, well, AUC Whale Hunter. The description is a reference to Domovoi’s overview from Drums of War.
Henday was originally a Hayden recolor, and his name’s an anagram of Hayden in reference to Narbe, the boss of the Prologue in Home by Winter.

Referencing Not Hacks

Hunter Mark, the promotion item for bow/knife users in Faces, is a reference to the Hunter’s Mark from Hollow Knight. Knight Proof obviously references Thracia.
Both of the Tonics are named after the Pokémon berries that boost the corresponding stat when at low HP (Ganlon for Def, and Liechi for Atk). Similarly, Roseli is named after the Roseli Berry.
Egg Missile and Dread Talon are directly named after the items from Paper Mario and Specter of Torment, respectively. Dread Talon in particular earns its name because its my favorite raw damage item in Shovel Knight, and I do think they feel similar.
Ruby Pike is a reference to the Blood/Ruby weapons in the NecroDancer series, which drain HP after a certain number of kills.
Cure-All, the status cure item, is a reference to the key item of the same name in Cave Story.
Ballister’s original name was going to be Coralyn, in an obvious reference to hit horror graphic novel* Coraline. His final name is instead a reference to Ballister Blackheart/Boldheart, from Nimona, which I think is actually a good bit more fitting. (*I know Coraline isn’t originally a graphic novel, it’s just how I first experienced it.)
Obligatory “Draven is not a league reference”
Tarka and Volta are named after the song Eriatarka and the band that made it, The Mars Volta. This original shared name origin was the basis for their boss conversation, which planted the seed for what became Volta’s past history with Orland’s mercenary group.
Paul is named after Paul McCartney. Yes, this is real and not a bit.
Damira’s name is not a reference, but her design takes obvious inspiration from Susie Deltarune, and some only slightly less obvious inspiration from Ranma Saotome.
The Imperfect One class fulfill this hack’s mandatory Super Thracia reference.

References that aren't just names of people or items or classes

Musically, the hack is built upon the Unsure Journey motif, which originates in Doubled or Nothing as the map theme for Chapter 7. In fact, Chapter 8 of Faces may as well bill itself as Don Ch7’s direct follow-up.
Faces Chapter 6 is a direct edit of Doubled or Nothing Ch2. Who knows, next version might have more DoN map references!
Something cool might happen if you import a Doubled or Nothing bonus map save file…
The generic boss theme is literally just Four Kings’ generic boss theme.
Chapter 9 isn’t a direct reference to anything, but the map objective takes heavy inspiration from the Pokémon Conquest banner maps, combining a bunch of simple “common sense” requirements to make a unique dynamic.
Chapter 11x’s retreat mechanic is inspired by Bandit Emblem’s penultimate chapter, in which you can choose to leave immediately, reaping none of the rewards but also taking on none of the risk.
When you get a Game Over in Faces, you get a single textbox on a black screen before getting taken to the normal Game Over screen. This is a blatant reference to In Stars and Time’s self-deprecating Game Over screens.

This thread is a fun place to word dump

Punished_sophia · March 11, 2026, 4:31pm

Homestuck brainrot in my hack(coming out in 3030) because why not

RasburyLaneCreator · April 4, 2026, 2:51am

I am admittedly very uncreative when it comes to names, lol. Heir of Darkness info in 2026, wild.

Given Heir of Darkness is explicitly positioned as a Fire Emblem celebration game (the FE17 we should have gotten), I’m omitting the obviously deliberate Fire Emblem references with the legendary weapons and the inspirations behind the many “boss” characters you recruit. Those are a given with the themes of my game.

In particular, I have a fair few Mass Effect names and obscure Star Wars names.
If a character is designed as a nod to another character from another franchise in some way, I might name them after their voice actor. There’s a character named Bristow, for example, who is named after the late VA of a certain Sonic character. Get a load of that.
One of the main characters is named after Videl from Dragon Ball, despite having little in common with her. I just liked the name.
Genuinely floated the idea of a brooding, dead wife-obsessed loony named Vader, and a 50-something-looking dude named Nolan. Have a wild guess which recently popular superhero comic that came from. Those guys were too on the nose to survive my eternal drafting process, but I did have to look in the mirror once and tell myself, “No more references, no more references.”

One sword I’ve floated is a large blade called Gutbuster. Probably the single most obvious double reference in my game that sounds too cool not to include. Hey, even Engage blatantly ripped one of these off. That “Biting Blade” is not fooling anyone, you talentless hacks.

Admittedly very funny, though. Painfully rare Engage W.

I also had a red and white “Everything Effective” hammer called the Omni-Hammer. Again, recently adapted superhero comic. C’mon, that guy is peak fiction and I will have no debates about that. Bro clears a good number of FE casts in a single episode, let alone his whole series.

Given there’s an entire thread dedicated to this topic, I’m glad we’re all being open and candid about this stuff. The obsessive perfectionism and the good old ‘tism get me all anxious that people are gonna call me uncreative. Seeing this thread gives me some much-needed self esteem. Thanks.

BobbyAsaka · April 4, 2026, 5:23pm

Well, this is a funny question to ask me.

Instead I shall give you the opposite. Not many people are aware of this fact, but Leon Sex Kennedy from Resident Evil was actually named after Léon from the cult classic SRPG fangame Fire Emblem: Infinite Kings. You can tell because the S in his middle name stands for SLéon.

You’re welcome, Shinji Mikami.

Hatsuru · April 4, 2026, 6:35pm

For HoloEmblem, there’s a few references:

In a cutscene there is a brief mention of the character called “Cantaloupe”, a reference to Honeydew from Vision Quest.
Kronii does Kelik’s whole speal from TLP in a cutscene
There is a tie-in with Grug 2 with a certain Amelia variant.
there’s a few references to Super Thracia with maps and certain events.
The “Adventitious” tome is a reference to the Advent generation of Hololive. In their first single, “Rebellion”, one of the riffs goes like “Fire fire, light the fire”; The reason why its the S rank fire tome.
Dyamare is a reference to Sakura Miko’s way of speaking. Furthermore, Dyamare in Japanese means “Shut up”, which is why its an S rank bolting that silences.
The Violance is a reference to Holo-Justice’s Cecilia Immergreen and her Lance/Violin hybrid. An inspiration for essentially something akin to Ellerie’s skill from Cerulean Crescent
Maidsweeper is a reference to the first sports festival Hololive had. Minato Aqua dont get shot down challenge.