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Nintendo:Information/Starting a new page

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Starting a new page is a simple process, and for each type of article there is a specific way to format it. The various types include: Character, Game, Species, Location, Item, and a few others. However each article must begin with a Head Template, unless it is a sub-page (like a gallery).

Note: For the codes given by this page, they must be entered into the page editor in source mode, otherwise they won't work.

Head Templates
[]

A Head Template is included at the top of each normal wiki article to give general information about the article. It gives the type, class, and protection of the article, a quote related to the article, and other information.

Simple Head Templates[]

Generally only a few fields of the Head Template are used by most articles. A Head Template just using those fields is referred to as a Simple Head Template. The following is the source code for a Simple Head Template. 

{{Head
| type = 
| quote = 
| speaker = 
| stub = 
| class = 
}}

To fill out a Simple Head Template, these fields must be filled out:

  • type - What kind of article is it. A full list of working types can be found here.
  • quote - A quote relating to the subject of the article. The quote must be entered without quotation marks around it, as those are automatically added in.
  • speaker - The speaker of the quote.
  • stub - An "x" must be placed in this field if the article is a stub, and if the article is not a stub then the field must be removed.
  • class - A rating of A-E must be placed to indicate the state of the page. The classifications for each rating can be found here.

Complex Head Templates[]

For unusual pages more parts of the Head Template must be used. a head Template with any of these extra fields is called a Complex Head Template. 

{{Head
| type = 
| quote = 
| speaker = 
| stub = 
| featured = 
| protected = 
| class = 
| unreleased = 
| for = 
| for1 = 
| for2 = 
| for3 = 
}}

To fill out a Complex Head Template, the applicable fields below must be filled out:

  • type - What kind of article is it. A full list of working types can be found here.
  • quote - A quote relating to the subject of the article. The quote must be entered without quotation marks around it, as those are automatically added in.
  • speaker - The speaker of the quote.
  • stub - An "x" must be placed in this field if the article is a stub, and if the article is not a stub then the field must be removed.
  • featured - An "x" must be placed in this field if the article is a featured article.
  • protected - An "x" must be placed in this field if the article is protected.
  • class - A rating of A-E must be placed to indicate the state of the page. The classifications for each rating can be found here.
  • unreleased - An "x" must be placed in this field if the article is about a game that hasn't been released yet in any region.
  • for - An "x" must be placed in this field if the Head template requires a for section. (ex. "For the game Donkey Kong please see Donkey Kong (Game)")
  • for1 - A description of the other page can be placed here to explain why the page requires a "for" link to it.
  • for2 - The name of the other article.
  • for3 - The name of another other article.

Head Template Generator[]

If you are having trouble making head template codes you can use the Head Template Generator, which is a python code that, when run, allows you to input information and it will output the code of the head template.

The program can be found at:


Video Game
[]

For an article about a video game first a Head Template must be added. After the Head Template, an Infobox CVG must be added.

Infobox CVG[]

An Infobox CVG gives information about the game in a box that is placed at the top right side of the article. 

{{Infobox CVG
| name = 
| image = 
| caption = 
| developer = 
| publisher = 
| system1 = 
| system1NA = 
| system1JP = 
| system1EU = 
| system1AU = 
| system1KO = 
| system1CH = 
| genre = 
| song = 
| rating = Yes
| ESRB = 
| PEGI = 
| BBFC = 
| CERO = 
| USK = 
| ACB = 
| Fix = a
}}

To fill out an Infobox CVG, the applicable fields below must be filled out, though note that numbered fields like "system1" may be used multiple times like "system1", "system2", "system3", etc. if the game is on multiple systems:

  • name - The name of the game.
  • image - An image of the box art of the game, or an image related to the game (Like a logo or screenshot) if a box art does not exist.
  • caption - A small description of the image.
  • developer - A link to the article of the developer of the game.
  • publisher - A link to the article of the publisher of the game.
  • system1 - The first system the game was on. A list of valid systems can be found here.
  • system1NA - The release date of the game on the first system in North America. The year must be a link.
  • system1JP - The release date of the game on the first system in Japan. The year must be a link.
  • system1EU - The release date of the game on the first system in Europe. The year must be a link.
  • system1AU - The release date of the game on the first system in Australia. The year must be a link.
  • system1KO - The release date of the game on the first system in Korea. The year must be a link.
  • system1CH - The release date of the game on the first system in China. The year must be a link.
  • genre - The genre(s) of the game.
  • song - The theme song of the game, as a sound file.
  • rating - A "Yes" must be placed here if the game's ratings are included.
  • ESRB - The game's ESRB rating.
  • PEGI - The game's PEGI rating.
  • BBFC - The game's BBFC rating.
  • CERO - The game's CERO rating.
  • USK - The game's USK rating.
  • ACB - The game's ACB rating.
  • fix - An "a" must be placed here to show that the Infobox CVG is using the new release date system.

Categorization[]

There are a few ways in which a video game article must be categorized.

  • Series - If the game is in a series, then it must be categorized into its series.
    • ex. "The Legend of Zelda games"
  • Systems - The game must be categorized by the systems it is on.
    • ex. "Nintendo DS games"
  • Developer - The game must be categorized by the company that developed it.
    • ex. "Sonic Team games"
  • Publisher - The game must be categorized by the company that published it.
    • ex. "Sega games"
  • Release - The game must be categorized by year(s) that it was released in.
    • ex. "2013 video games"
  • Genre - The game must be categorized by genre(s) that it is.
    • ex. "Adventure games"
  • Upcoming - If the game hasn't been released in any region then it must have the category "Upcoming games".

Unreleased Games[]

Articles for unreleased games are handled slightly different than those of released games. First, the Head Template needs to include the "unreleased" field. Second, it must be in the category "Upcoming games".

Unreleased games also should use references. If edits without references are added to the articles of unreleased games, then they may removed if they cannot be easily confirmed. Adding a reference proves that the content is real and not just speculation, as it can become difficult to tell the difference with unreleased games.

Content[]

The content of a video game article generally is dependent on the game, however each video game article has generally the same beginning. Unlike most articles, video game articles must have the beginning text that is bold on most articles be both bold and in italics, since the name of a video game should always be in italics.

Note: In the example format the text surrounded by "#"s must be replaced with what it is. For example, "#GAMENAME#" is replaced with the name of the game.
'''''#GAMENAME#''''' is a #GENRE# game for the [[#SYSTEM#]].

An example of what it would look like is:

"Fire Emblem Awakening is a strategy RPG game for the Nintendo 3DS."

If the video game is in a series, this next sentence must be added: 

It is a game in the [[#SERIES#]].

An example of what it would look like is:

"Fire Emblem Awakening is a strategy RPG game for the Nintendo 3DS. It is a game in the Fire Emblem series."

Other than those two sentences, the article's beginning can include any other basic information about the game, however it is recommended not to include the date it was released, because it varies between regions.

After the first few lines, sections must be included to split the article into different parts to make information easier to find. Sections should be denoted with a "Heading 2", and for sub-sections "Heading 3", and for sub-sub-sections "Heading 4", etc. While the sections that are needed for an article depends sometimes on the game, there are a few sections that most video game articles should have:

  • Gameplay
  • Plot
  • Characters
  • Locations
  • Trivia

Characters[]

For a Character section, a Character Table should be used. The main exception to that rule being if there is a specific set-up for the character section (like Fire Emblem Awakening#Characters), which isn't common. 

{{Character Table
| cell-height = 
| char1 = 
| char1l = 
| char1i = 
| char2 = 
| char2l = 
| char2i = 
| char3 = 
| char3l = 
| char3i = 
| char4 = 
| char4l = 
| char4i = 
}}

To fill out a Character Table the applicable fields below must be filled out, though note that numbered fields like "char1" will be used multiple times like "char1", "char2", "char3", etc. once for each character:

  • cell-height - The height of each image cell. (Recommended: 230px)
  • char1 - The name of the first character
  • char1l - The article for the first character if it's name is different than the name of its article, otherwise this section should be removed.
  • char1i - An image of the character.

Trivia[]

A trivia section consists of a bullet list of trivia facts. Each fact of trivia must have its own bullet. If a piece of trivia has multiple parts it can use sub-bullet to help explain the point, however a sub-bullet should only be used if it helps to make the trivia easier to read and understand.


Character
[]

For an article about a video game first a Head Template must be added. After the Head Template, a Character Infobox must be added.

Character Infobox[]

A Character Infobox gives information about the character in a box that is placed at the top right side of the article. 

{{VG Character
| name       = 
| gender     = 
| image      = 
| caption    = 
| series     = 
| species    = 
| firstgame  = 
| creator    = 
| created    = 
| artist     = 
| voiceactor = 
| japanactor = 
}}

To fill out a Character Infobox, the applicable fields below must be filled out:

  • name - The name of the character.
  • gender - The character's gender. ("Male" or "Female")
  • image - An image of the character.
  • caption - A caption describing the image.
  • series - The game series that the character is in.
  • firstgame - The first game that the character appeared in.
  • creator - The real life person who came up with the idea for the character.
  • created - The year the character was created in real life.
  • artist - The character's artist.
  • voiceactor - The character's voice actor(s).
  • japanactor - The character's Japanese voice actor(s).

Categorization[]

There are a few ways in which a video game article must be categorized.

  • Series - If a game the character is in is in a series, then it must be categorized into that series.
    • ex. "The Legend of Zelda characters"
  • Species - The character should also be categorized under their species, if at least one other character has the same species. However this is not done for human characters, due to the large amount of human characters in video games.
    • ex. "Fairies"
  • Notability - If the character has a notable trait that exists between at least a handful of characters from different games (like being royalty), then the character should be categorized under that category. However this varies between traits, such as for nobility "Royal characters" is used.
    • ex. "Royal characters"

Special Categories[]

There are two types of categories that are done specially, and shouldn't be added manually. First is gender, this is automatically done by the Character Infobox.

Second is the games that the character is in. This is done using a Character Categorization Template. The categories added by this template are normally hidden because they can clutter up a character's category list, however if you check "Show hidden categories" under "Under the Hood" at Special:Preferences you can see those categories. 

{{Character Cat|Game #1|Game #2|Game #3|etc.}}

To fill out a Character Categorization Template, a field must be added for each game the character appeared in, and the name of the games should be included in said fields. In the case of two games having the same name, then the name of the game's article should be used instead,

Content[]

This section requires an expansion.
More information is needed. Sources are recommended.

The content of a character article generally is dependent on the character, however each character article has generally the same beginning.

Note: In the example format the text surrounded by "#"s must be replaced with what it is. For example, "#CHARACTERNAME#" is replaced with the name of the game.
'''#CHARACTERNAME#''' is a character in ''[[#GAMENAME#]]''.

For each game the character appears in, a new list item must be made in the section where "#GAMENAME#" is, like this: 

'''#CHARACTERNAME#''' is a character in ''[[#GAMENAME1#]]'', ''[[#GAMENAME2#]]'', and ''[[#GAMENAME3#]]''.

An example of what it would look like is:

"Midna is a character in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess."

However if the character is a character in a video game series, and appears in many games in that series, then the beginning can be this instead: 

'''#CHARACTERNAME#''' is a character in the [[#SERIESNAME# series]].

An example of what it would look like is:

"Link is a character in the The Legend of Zelda series."

Other than that sentence, the article's beginning can include any other basic or general information about the character, however it is recommended not to include the date it was released, because it varies between regions.

After the first few lines, sections must be included to split the article into different parts to make information easier to find. Sections should be denoted with a "Heading 2", and for sub-sections "Heading 3", and for sub-sub-sections "Heading 4", etc. While the sections that are needed for an article depends sometimes on the game, there are a few sections that most character articles should have:

  • Appearance - The character's visual appearance
  • Appearances - Information about the character in games, split into sub-sections for each game
  • Gallery - The character's image gallery
  • Trivia - Various trivia about the character

Gallery[]

An image gallery should be used to display images of the character in the gallery section. If the gallery is large, then it should be moved to a sub-page ( formatted like this: "PAGENAME/gallery").

In a sub-page gallery, the gallery should be split using sections into the different types of images of the character. Examples: Screenshots, Artwork, Sprites.

If a sub-page gallery section's gallery is very large then it should be put into a Template:Box. That will put it into a box of a set size which allows the reader to scroll through the box to see the images.

Trivia[]

A trivia section consists of a bullet list of trivia facts. Each fact of trivia must have its own bullet. If a piece of trivia has multiple parts it can use sub-bullet to help explain the point, however a sub-bullet should only be used if it helps to make the trivia easier to read and understand.

Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
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