Nintendo’s Mario & Luigi Revealed as Best Baby Names for Video Game-Loving Parents!
Once a rarity, the popularity of video games has skyrocketed in recent years, with the advancement of new technologies. According to statistics hub TechJury, 37.5% of the world’s adult population will actively play some sort of video game. Alongside the obvious DLC and merchandise sold, fans now look for even bolder ways to show love for their most adored game series : naming their child after their favourite in-game character.
With this in mind, the team at The Slot Buzz wanted to investigate just how many people around the world have a video-game inspired name. Leading names website Forebears.io was scraped, using a seed list of names curated by various leading sources. To limit results for accuracy, common names such as those featuring on the ONS list of top 100 boys and girls names of 2021 were eliminated.
The Top 10 most popular video game-inspired names
| Ranking | Video game character name | Gender most commonly associated with | Video game | No. of people with name worldwide |
| #1 | Mario | M | Mario Bros | 4,660,878 |
| #2 | Luigi | M | Mario Bros | 873,772 |
| #3 | Lena | F | Overwatch | 401,906 |
| #4 | Lara | F | Tomb Raider | 351,418 |
| #5 | Clementine | F | The Walking Dead | 278,843 |
| #6 | Lester | M | Grand Theft Auto 5 | 195,200 |
| #7 | Daphne | F | The Dragon’s Lair | 138,999 |
| #8 | Ezio | M | Assassin’s Creed | 58,109 |
| #9 | Selene | F | Returnal | 53,355 |
| #10 | Miles | M | Spiderman | 51,347 |
The Top 5 Most Common Gaming-Inspired Baby Names
1st – Mario – 4,660,878 people
Unsurprising to most, Mario, the venerable Italian plumber, takes the top spot for names inspired by video game characters. Over 4.6 million people around the world share the name of Nintendo’s most famous video game, with the eponym ranking as the 73rd most popular name globally! Forebears also reveals that this name is most popular in Italy.
2nd – Luigi – 873,772 people
In a distant second place is Mario’s plumbing counterpart Luigi, with 873,772 people around the world having the name. Also primarily an Italian name, it’s not as popular as Mario, with ‘Luigi’ being the 1,064th most popular global name.
3rd – Lena – 401,906 people
Otherwise known as Tracer in the hit free-to-play game Overwatch, the name Lena is shared by 401,906 people globally, appearing third on our rankings! A powerful character trained in the RAF, the UK super-agent wields twin pistols to counter enemy threat, alongside possessing the ability to alter her own timeline. Whilst the character is from the UK, the majority of people named Lena actually live in Sweden. Lena ranks as the 2,568th most popular name globally.
4th – Lara – 351,418 people
The second female name to appear on the list, Tomb Raider’s Lara (Croft) features in fourth position on the list. With 401,906 people around the world sharing the name of the iconic animated explorer, it’s clear how popular being a Lara is. The name Lara is ranked 2,962 globally and fascinatingly, the nation most likely to call their child Lara is Brazil!
5th – Clementine – 278,843 people
From one of the largest zombie franchises in the world, Clementine is the protagonist character from The Walking Dead video game series. 278,843 people share her name, hoping to draw from Clementine’s decision making skills, leadership and high intelligence seen over the game series. The name is prevalent around the world, being the 3,768 most popular worldwide, but our genealogy source revealed that the name is most seen in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The least popular video-game inspired name
30th – Kratos – 116 people
The hugely popular video game God of War has failed to ignite the spark of new parents around the world. Kratos, the axe-wielding demigod protagonist of the series, has only 116 people globally sharing the name. Kratos is most seen in Russia, and ranks at 868,627 globally, one of the least popular names recorded on the genealogy website Forebears.
Which nation has the most video game-named-citizens?
In our seed list of 30 applicable names, the USA hosts 10 of those. Names ranging from Daphne (The Dragon’s Lair) to the eponymous Kirby, the USA has them all. In a three way tie for second place is Brazil, Egypt, and Italy, all having 3 names featured on the list.
Different nations’ names are represented on the list too! For example, the name Chico (from Metal Gear Solid) is most seen in Mozambique, with 30,968 sharing the name globally. Shepard, the commander from the Mass Effect sci-fi series, is a name most popular in Zimbabwe, with 4,916 having the name worldwide.
