I won't get into a long debate, because I doubt it can be constructive (I had a longer post, but it wasn't going anywhere), so I'll just leave it at this: I disagree.
Completely regardless of "social responsibility" or "over-sensitivity" or anything like that: what effect does that name have on sales/downloads? I wouldn't think it'd be good.
And, yes, that's "unfair" since it's a play on Whack-A-Mole (which I've never heard complained about)... are moles more OK to whack than kitties? Still, that's the way the world works, and I wouldn't have used that name for my own game for that reason alone.
Well, for what it's worth, this thread was the first "complaint" about the name. I expected that to happen on YouTube first, but it was actually HN - go figure.
It's really tough to separate the name from all other factors influencing downloads, but I haven't seen any evidence it's hurting.
I think the name is pretty effective, for a few reasons: the most common reaction when I tell people the name, by far, is genuine laughter. I'll take that over polite interest any day. The name is descriptive, anyone who knows what Whack-a-Mole is can make an educated guess about this game (although it's probably cuter than they would expect). And yes, it is a tiny bit naughty - no one ACTUALLY wants to whack a kitten! - which is what makes it memorable, without crossing into offensive or controversial for controversy's sake (at least for the vast majority of people).
Do you have suggestions for other names? I can't think of anything good - "Tap-a-Kitten" or "Tap-a-Kitty" sound a lot more bland and unremarkable. Lots of R-rated names I can think of, but that's the last thing I want to get into in this thread :p
Here's my only suggestion: rename it "Whac-A-Kitten". Drop the "k", throw in a couple of hyphens.
Might not be enough for the most vigorous of offense-takers (nothing ever will be in this arena), but it at least partially mitigates that visual symbol "whack". And is a more direct reference to its progenitor, anyway. It 'feels' more like a carnival game to me than "WhackAKitty" does.
Edit: maybe also change "Kitten" to "Kitty"? I'm not sure why that sounds a bit more palatable to me - maybe because "kitten" only ever means a juvenile cat whereas "kitty" can mean several other things? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitty
Watch the video. It's based on a Youtube clip of someone gently prodding adorable little kittens back into a box with a very soft mallet. No abuse here, and a valid enough inspiration for a quick game.
Animal abuse is usually illegal, and especially to target an animal that is regarded as a pet makes it more the inhumane. However, there are plenty of games that promote violence in our culture, but do we need yet another one? I don't think so.
They are free to make it, but they also take the responsibility of releasing it. Perhaps from a corporate stance, it may be about social responsibility. However, I mean personal: do you honestly think that putting that forth in the world will result in anything good? Most likely, it will come back to them in one bad form or another.
Or, to make a point, how about further games to sell:
Rape the bitch
KKK Kross Alley
Stone the Adulterer
Spics Kikes and Pikeys
Skinhead adventures
Hitler's Easy Bake oven
I mean, if we dont take responsibility for our own actions, who will?
You are simply extending the argument to ridiculousness to make a point. What about the game angry birds? It features suicidal birds with bombs strapped to them that you fling into buildings to kill pigs.
That was arrogant, but to make you happy, why don't we just call this game a "highly overrated game for sheeple" too and let it slide?
Are you one of those people who believe GTA makes kids steal cars, or that sonic the hedgehog makes kids run into walls and try to loop around their ceiling?
As I've said elsewhere in this thread, I don't think it's a great name for a variety of reasons, but it's a bit of a stretch to say a guy that's got an app with a tone-deaf name is being irresponsible and to suggest to him that he could also make Rape-the-Bitch.
Take some social responsibility. And be prepared to deal with concerns like mine as long as your game has that name.