Super Mario RPG - Peach's XXX (UPDATED)

The screenshot from Super Mario RPG tells the whole story here! If you check the right corner of the fireplace in the room of Princess Peach (who at the time was still known as Princess Toadstool) you will find an item. In the Japanese version of the game it is called "XXX" but in the translated English copy it is termed "???" The MarioWiki has more details on this scene:

Toadstool's ??? is in between a blue chair and the fireplace in the back of Toadstool's room in the Mushroom Castle. If Mario finds it at the beginning of the game, Grandma rushes over to Mario and offers him a Mushroom if he'll mind his own business; however, this can only occur once, and before Toadstool joins the party. If they look at it after returning Toadstool to the kingdom, either Toadstool or Grandma (it is unspecified) tells Mario to return it. If Mario looks at the object after Toadstool joins Mario's party, the princess will scold the plumber, saying that he does not respect her personal, private belongings. Players cannot see the object on either occasion as Mario faces away from the player rather than towards them when he finds it.

From a localization standpoint, this scene caught my attention because linguistically-speaking XXX is valid English. However, I wondered if this XXX was an example of waseieigo, a word that has English origins but differs in meaning when used in Japanese. As I am sure many people are aware, in English, XXX is typically used to refer to pornographic or explicit material. For example, the domain .xxx is used as a marker for pornographic Internet sites. But does the word hold the same meaning in Japanese? I scoured the Japanese internet for answers.

Language & Locale - Localisation Thoughts

When thinking about a game’s localisation, it's easy to think only of the script. However, there are many other important matters to consider! Today, I want to examine one of these, the linguistic elements present in the game’s environment that go unspoken by the game's characters but are seen by the player's eyes. Shop signs, posters, notice boards, letters, and books all fall under this category. How developers build the environment for foreign locales when they themselves may not speak its language? This post examines the way a number of developers (originating from both the USA and Japan) have tackled this issue, and discusses its effect on player immersion. Read to the end to see an example from a Japanese game that demonstrates the incredibly jarring effect a disparity between the language used in the game's dialogue and its environment can have.

Final Fantasy VIII - Localisation Review (12)

This is an entry in a series of posts looking at the localisation of the beginning segment of the game, Final Fantasy VIII. You can find the first post here. Thanks for reading!

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		English
Garden Faculty 1	学園長……そろそろ学園長室へ。	Headmaster Cid, you have some business in your office...

1. The Japanese features the word sorosoro, an interesting term that lacks an exact English equivalent. In a post dededicated to the term,  the chap over at SelfTaughtJapanese.com explained the term in the following way:

そろそろ is commonly used to express that its [sic] about time to do something, often because its getting late or you have other plans.

When you're at a social gathering in Japan, you just need to utter sorosoro to indirectly convey that you are thinking of heading off; it saves you from directly mentioning the fact. I think there are times in the Western world too when people are reluctant to directly say that they want to leave a party, but since there is no sorosorso, these people often end up trying to convey their desire to leave by stretching, yawning slightly, looking at their watch, or mentioning their plans for tomorrow. In the the dialogue above, it is not Cid himself, but the Garden Faculty communicating this sentiment. Literally the Japanese reads, "Headmaster, it's about time you went to your office." As outlined though, sorosoro is a far more delicate way of communicating that it's about time to leave. I therefore applaud the game's translation, "you have some business." It's both very natural sounding, and preserves the indirectness of the sorosoro.

Final Fantasy VIII - Localisation Review (11)

This is an entry in a series of posts looking at the localisation of the beginning segment of the game, Final Fantasy VIII. You can find the first post here. Thanks for reading!

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	Japanese	English
Xu	サイファー、いい気になるんじゃないよ。Ｂ班が持ち場を離れた責任はあんたがとるんだからね。	Seifer, don't be so stuck on yourself. You'll take all responsibility for leaving the designated area.
Seifer 1	戦況を見極め、最善の作戦をとるのが指揮官ってもんだろ？	Isn't the captain's duty to take the best possible action?
Xu 2	万年SeeD候補生のサイファー君。指揮官だなんて笑っちゃうわ。	Seifer, you'll never be a SeeD. Calling yourself a captain is a joke.

1. This part is bears mentioning because the English omits a nugget of information. In Japanese Seifer literally says, "Isn't being a captain all about gauging the state of battle and then choosing the best possible strategy?" Although I agree with the change of "action" to "strategy", I am at loss for why the English doesn't mention that part about gauging/weighing up the battle condition/state before taking action. Perhaps this was just a simple oversight?

2. Xu is slightly sassier in Japanese. Her first sentence reads, "Seifer, the eternal SeeD candidate." She also affixes the suffix kun (君) to Seifer's name, which emphasis his junior status in comparison to her senior status (as a SeeD). She then literally says, "I laugh at you calling yourself a captain." I would make this palatable by straying away from such a construction (while keeping the same core meaning) with something like, "You? A captain? Don't make me laugh." This is the second count of the English localisation toning down Xu's characterisation; a previous post highlighted the removal of a mercenary edge to her character. It's a shame, as without these added elements, the Xu in the English translation is slighter duller figure.

Final Fantasy VIII - Localisation Review (10)

This is an entry in a series of posts looking at the localisation of the beginning segment of the game, Final Fantasy VIII. You can find the first post here. Thanks for reading!

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	Japanese	English
Zell 1	あ、おい……またやられた～！お得意の個人行動～	H-Hey!!! Not again, man! There goes Mr. Ego...

1. I was intrigued by the Japanese source for "Mr. Ego." It is otokui no kojinkoudou (お得意の個人行動) which can be broken down as individualistic behavior that is his (i.e. Seifer's) forte/specialty. A quick Google search for this term reveals results only related to Final Fantasy VIII, so this is presumably an uncommon turn of phrase in Japanese. As for its translation, I think "Mr. Ego" is fantastic; it's not at all unnatural but perfectly conveys the intended meaning of the Japanese that Seifer is someone always behaves in a self-centred manner. I doubt I would've been able to produce such a smooth and concise translation. I probably would've offered something like, "H-H-HEY!!! REALLY!? AGAIN!? How is always so self-absorbed!?"

Final Fantasy VIII - Localisation Review (9)

This is an entry in a series of posts looking at the localisation of the beginning segment of the game, Final Fantasy VIII. You can find the first post here. Thanks for reading!

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	Japanese	English
Seifer 1	１９００時……あと３０分しかない！３０分で【海岸】まで！走れ！	1900 hours...We only have 30 minutes! You got 30 minutes to get down to the [shore]! Better run!
Selphie 2	あ！自分だけズル～い！	Heeey! Wait for us!
Zell 3	あいつ、オレたちをなんだと思ってるんだ！	Who the hell does he think he is!

1. Seifer's final remark in English uses the word "better" (as an auxiliary verb) to advise Squall's party to run. It comes off as a fairly light remark, as if Seifer feels that getting to the shore within this time will be a kind of game. In contrast, his Japanese dialogue is closer to a direct order (by using the imperative verb form). Literally, it would be, "Run!" I prefer the game's English because it compliments Seifer's previously established attitude of not taking the mission seriously.

2. The situation here is that upon realising the need to quickly get to the shore, Seifer takes the elevator alone without waiting for Squall's party. In the Japanese, Selphie reacts to this by exclaiming that it's unfair/sneaky of Seifer to ride the elevator alone. She uses the word zurui (ずるい), a term often used when someone does something selfish that seeks to only benefit themselves. It's tough to convey this in English as making her spelling spelled this out would be unnaturally verbose. For example, "Heeey! Riding the elevator by yourself isn't fair!" However, given that Seifer's behaviour occurs right in front of Selphie, I think it'd be fine to shorten her dialogue to, "Heeey! That's not fair!" I think such a translation comes closer to preserving Selhpie's criticism of Seifer that is present in the Japanese.

3. The English translation reverses the Japanese. It reads, "What does he think we are?" I can't come up with a strong reason for why the translation reserves the sentence's focus. Moreover, I think there is reason behind the way the Japanese focuses on Zell's complaint of Seifer's perspective of him. In the gameplay leading up to this point, Seifer frequently made light of Zell (calling him a chicken-wuss etc.), so this dialogue can be seen as Zell again airing this grievance he has towards Seifer. If I was the translator here, I would add to the translation I provided to make it read, "What does he think we are? Chopped liver!?" For anyone unaware of this expression,  Wikipedia notes that the expression "signifies frustration or anger at being ignored on a social level." Is this not a perfect fit for the situation!?

Final Fantasy VIII - Localisation Review (8)

This is an entry in a series of posts looking at the localisation of the beginning segment of the game, Final Fantasy VIII. You can find the first post here. Thanks for reading!

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	Japanese	English
Squall 1	何をしている！	What do you think you're doing!?
Biggs 2	なんだぁ～？きさまこそこんなところまで来て何している！お、おい！下にいる兵はどうなっとるんだ？！ウェッジ！ こんなガキども、さっさとかたづけろ！！ ウ……ウェッジ？わ……私は、もうこの電波塔には用がないから……か……か……帰るぞ。どけっどけっ！	Huhhhh? Likewise, MISTER! What do you think you're doing!? H-HEY! What happened to all the soldiers down below!? WEDGE! Take care of these twerps!!! W…Wedge? I...ah...Well...ah...I seem to be done here, so I'll just be on my... I-I'm leaving...Move! Move! Move!
Seifer 3	残念だったな。	Sorry to crash the party.

1. The Japanese literally reads, "What are you doing!" I like the way the English makes this sentiment slightly stronger because it shows that the translator took the exclamation point in the Japanese to slightly ratchet up the strength of the English. It also added in a question mark, which is strangely missing from the Japanese.

2. What drew my attention here was the way Biggs referred to Squall's party, and the Japanese origin of these words. First up was "mister", translated from the word kisama (きさま), a derogatory way to address someone. The English language has a huge amount of words that fall into the bracket of "a derogatory way to address someone" so this word often produces a wide range of translations. The JMDict dictionary offers "you bastard" and "you son of a bitch", but in this context of Biggs noticing Squall's party for the first, him using these swear words would be jarringly excessive. No matter how much I wrack my brain for an alternative, I can't come up with anything that trumps "mister." Google's dictionary defines the word as a "variant form of Mr, often used humorously or with offensive emphasis." I think this perfectly captures the scene's tone; it carries an air of denigration but is also humourous. This is also true of Biggs' use of the word "twerps", translated from the word gaki (ガキ). This is another derogatory form of address, but one typically directed at children. In other words, this remark can be interpreted as Biggs dismissing Squall's party because of their age (which is understandable given that they are just seventeen whereas Biggs appears to be an adult). For this term, the JMDict dictionary offers translations of "brat" and "kids." Such Japanese to English dictionary definitions are often too limited to be of value (as highlighted with kisama) but in this case I think "brats" is a plausible alternative. It is similar to the Japanese because it is also a derisive term typically directed at children, and this part is lacking from "twerps." Nonetheless, I'm loathe to criticise the usage of this term as it adds to Biggs' characterisation as a slightly likable and humourous individual given the rarity of the term "twerps." In contrast, if Biggs had said "brats" he have seemed more severe.

3. Zannen (残念) is an adjective Japanese people frequently to comment on lamentable situations. A Japanese to English dictionary defines it, "sorry; regrettable, regretful; disappointing; mortifying." In Japanese it's perfectly natural to say an adjective and leave it at that. However, this is not usually the case for English. For example, it would be far more natural to say, "That was unfortunate," than just saying the word, "Unfortunate." In this case, Seifer is sarcastically remarking that it is regrettable/unfortunate for Biggs that he won't be able to escape (because Seifer has turned up). I suppose the English conveys this meaning because Seifer is crashing Biggs's party i.e. his attempt to escape. I think a translation of, "Not so fast," would better convey Seifer's Japanese sentiment, but is is an inferior translation overall because the game's original English contains both the sarcasm of the Japanese, and gives Seifer some unique spunkiness.