Bulk change game Titles to Alternate Names (by Region)

[JoeViking245]

Bulk change game Titles to Alternate Names (by Region)

View File

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Game Title - Alternate Name

 

Inspired from a comment by @AstroBob (December 2024)

Quote

"Unfortunately, there isn’t a way to bulk set additional names across multiple games"
"...given the lack of a way to bulk change alternate names, there isn’t an efficient method to update these in bulk."

Challenge accepted. 😎

Some (many?) games have Alternate Names and are saved as such when metadata is scraped from the LaunchBox Games Database.  These are generally used for different Regions.

Using this plugin, you can bulk change the game Titles in a Platform to an Alternate Name found for a selected Region.

Prerequisites
Requires LaunchBox v13.19 (or newer)

Installing
Download and extract the contents of the download into your /LaunchBox/Plugins/ folder.
    i.e.  D:/LaunchBox/Plugins/GameTitle-AlternateName/GameTitle-AlternateName.dll

Using

• Start LaunchBox
• From the Tools menu, select Game Title - Alternate Name
• Select a Platform
• Select a Region
•     Only possible Alternate Name Regions for games in that platform will be shown.
•     If the Alternate Name doesn't have a Region. it will be listed as [Blank]
• Click Change Titles

If a game doesn't have an Alternate Name for the selected Region, nothing will change for that game.

If any of the games have more than one Alternate Name for the selected Region, you have the option to:

1.     (default) manually select the Title for each game having more than one Title for that Region
2.     (optional) replace the game Title with the 1st one it finds for the selected Region (check Select First Title)

    

If you didn't check Select First Title (default):

• When clicking Change Titles, after the games that had a single Title for the Region are updated, you will be shown a list of games that have multiple Titles for the selected region.
• Select a game, then double-click the Title you wish to use.

 

Updates (internet connection required)
If an (U)pdate for this plugin has been released on the forums,

• The plugin title in the Tools menu will show as: (U) Game Title - Alternate Name (The addition of (U) at the beginning)
• At the top of the plugin window, it will show "Update available"

Click the Info/Support icon, then click the Update Available button. This will open the plugins download page in your default browser.

 

As always, all thoughts, views, opinions, suggestions, requests and comments and welcome.

"Be good Humans."  (Brian Phelps)

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• Submitter
  JoeViking245
• Submitted
  02/12/2025
• Category
  Third-party Apps and Plugins

 

[Rinusch]

Hi! Thanks for your efforts!!

However, I have an issue with it, which is that it doesn't auto rename corresponding media files too. When I manually set an alternate name for a game, Launchbox automatically renames my media files along with it. The result is that after the rename action, LB can't find the associated media files anymore!

Not sure if this can be addressed? Otherwise, it would have been a very useful plugin!

[JoeViking245]

1 hour ago, Rinusch said:

Hi! Thanks for your efforts!!

However, I have an issue with it, which is that it doesn't auto rename corresponding media files too. When I manually set an alternate name for a game, Launchbox automatically renames my media files along with it. The result is that after the rename action, LB can't find the associated media files anymore!

The intent of the plugin is to bulk change game titles to that of a different Region.  The issue with renaming the media is, say you went from NA to JP, your JP titles will be displaying the [e.g.] NA Box-Front. Assuming one's available, [I would think] you'd want to have the actual JP Box-Front displayed.

This was, to a degree, thought about. And for the above reasoning, it was quickly forgotten about.  Well, ignored.

 

If there's a common scenario (vs. something niche) I'm missing where this would be viable without causing other issues (e.g. image location based on Region [and rename AND having to move them, then having an NA image in a JP folder...]), please let me know.  State your case.  Give an example or 2 of use-case.   

 

Behind the scenes, there's also some logistics of image file locations and folder placement.  Relocating the images from one region folder and then move them to the new regions folder? Keep them in that folder and hope LB still looks there [now, with the new filename].  Not sure. TBH, sound like a pain.