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[fvng]

FFT is probably my favorite game of all time, or in the very least in my top 4.. I decided to jump into FFT again since I forgot I bought it on iOS 2 years ago...

and good lord this re-translation cycles between beautiful, to laughable to cringe incuding

Whereas the original FFT localization was not perfect, it was easily digestible which keeps the player invested in the story.. this new translation can get clunky at times, and forces you to re-read lines of dialogue because there is nothing natural or organic about the way things are being said.. It's not even true to old english in the way it was originally spoken, as far as i know, so it doesn't even succeed at being authentic.

I've lost count the number of times I've rolled my eyes because it felt like they were over reaching to make something simple sound poetic.

It's not even that they're impossible to understand or decipher, it just reeks of a localization team that overshot their goal of making the game's dialogue elegant. It doesn't always misstep, but when it does, oh boy.

Mayhap I'm not the only one that feels this way?


Examples below (mild spoilers)

What once was hers, now kin to naught but woe.

"Think you mere -will- enough to see you victorious?"
- Credit to Lothar

You speak false!

Make your purpose plain!

... charging into field unawares!

I am come

I mislike this.

Your worry will find no purchase with me

What news have you?

Still your tongue.

at least this is awesome

 

[Burt]

100% with you on this. Plus, it's just not the same game without the gibberish spell shouting.

 

[Moaradin]

I don't have a problem with any of those lines tbh

 

[Death Penalty]

None of these seem very difficult to parse to me, or even needlessly elegant. I could be more tolerant of this nonsense though. I read a lot of budget fantasy.

 

[vareon]

It sounds to me like people in Ivalice are speaking that way so I'm OK.

I'm not a native English speaker, BTW. Maybe that matters.

 

[fvng]

100% with you on this. Plus, it's just not the same game without the gibberish spell shouting.

Had no idea there was a term for this, thanks. Also, I feel this is a similar problem with FFXIV, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was the same translators... I could endure 1000 FFXIV fetch quests if the dialogue wasn't as obtuse as FFT's.

 

[Hedgey]

I hate it, part of the reason I'll never play the PSP version. I think generally people prefer this for whatever reason though.

 

[Htown]

I haven't played the game, but of all those examples, "mislike" is the only one that bothers me.

It seems like they're going roughly for something like the time of shakespeare or the king james bible.

 

[KojiKnight]

The original translation suffered from some heavy Engrish and straight up incorrect translations at times... There is no clear winner, just preference.

 

[aadiboy]

I'm not an expert on flowery prose, but I think all of those are valid phrases? Not really sure what the problem is. If anything, the new translation makes the game more of an Ivalice game than the original did.

 

[deadscreensky]

None of your examples seem particularly difficult to read or extreme. I was expecting long paragraphs filled with archaic terms, not stock old-fashioned phrases like "find no purchase" and pretty alliteration (like what's in your thread title).

 

[Izuna]

I am come.

?

 

[kiaaa]

I never found the language in the game hard to understand and it actually added a lot of flavor to the setting.

It's not even true to old english in the way it was originally spoken, as far as i know, so it doesn't even succeed at being authentic.

It's emulating theatrical prose rather than normal dialogue.

 

[Septimus Prime]

I had a good feeling from these quotes.

 

[MartyStu]

Final Fantasy XII and War of The Lions are both translated by Alexander O. Smith and/or Joe Reeder.

The purple prose is stylistic more than anything else. Overbearing at times? Certainly. Overall though they are very good translations that add an extra layer of flavor to the games.

Also, none of the example used in the OP are egregious examples of overly flowery language. Nor are they incorrect or hard to understand.

 

[Benzychenz]

I thought mislike sounded weird but googling it tells me it's a real word.

'I am come' is weird too, but it that character meant to be some dumb brute? Haven't played the game.

The rest seem fine to me.

 

[Plywood]

I'm split on these.

 

[Ralemont]

OP overrates how tedious the new translation is to parse and underrates just how bad the old translation was (not perfect? really?). It does feel a little "I can do Alex O Smith fancy translations too!" but that doesn't mean it isn't a great translation.

 

[fvng]

I haven't played the game, but of all those examples, "mislike" is the only one that bothers me.

It seems like they're going roughly for something like the time of shakespeare or the king james bible.

I should have screenshotted some of the more egregious offenses, the stuff I posted is mild compared to the other shit that crops up during cutscenes.

OP overrates how tedious the new translation is to parse and underrates just how bad the old translation was (not perfect? really?). It does feel a little "I can do Alex O Smith fancy translations too!" but that doesn't mean it isn't a great translation.

they're both flawed no doubt, but I prefer the original translation over the WOTL.. I've cringed more times in an hour from WOTL dialogue than I did over my multiple playthroughs of the PS1 original.

 

[Aeana]

I thought mislike sounded weird but googling it tells me it's a real word.

'I am come' is weird too, but it that character meant to be some dumb brute? Haven't played the game.

The rest seem fine to me.

"I am come" is biblical writing.

 

[mieumieu]

I am come.

?

lucavis are ancient beasts. you dont hear that kind of speech from humans.

also this game was translated by tom slattery IIRC not Alex Smith.

 

[Scrooge McDuck]

Those read to me just as well as colloquial English. But mayhap I am not the best judge on this, for it is not my native tongue.

 

[Glitter and Gold]

This is how I feel about the accents in the DS Dragon Quest remakes

These read much better than those at least

 

[MartyStu]

I thought mislike sounded weird but googling it tells me it's a real word.

'I am come' is weird too, but it that character meant to be some dumb brute? Haven't played the game.

The rest seem fine to me.

That is definitely legit old English. Very archaic, but that was the intent.

 

[BasilZero]

That I am come screencap slayed me more than the times I lost against this boss l0l

 

[Crayon]

I think you make a good case. I do like 'still your tongue', tho. I'm going to use that soon.

 

[Aeana]

lucavis are ancient beasts. you dont hear that kind of speech from humans.

also this game was translated by tom slattery IIRC not Alex Smith.

It was a dual effort between Tom Slattery and Joseph Reeder.

 

[lanella]

None of your examples seem weird to me, but I read books occasionally.

I first encountered the phrase "I am come" in Wuthering Heights. It does sound very odd.

 

[kiaaa]

I thought mislike sounded weird but googling it tells me it's a real word.

'I am come' is weird too, but it that character meant to be some dumb brute? Haven't played the game.

The rest seem fine to me.

I don't know where exactly it comes from, but it's not something a brute would say.

We knew the world would not be the same. Few people laughed, few people cried, most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita. Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and to impress him takes on his multi-armed form and says, "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds." I suppose we all thought that, one way or another.

 

[MartyStu]

lucavis are ancient beasts. you dont hear that kind of speech from humans.

also this game was translated by tom slattery IIRC not Alex Smith.

He worked on it with Reeder. Smith and Reeder did XII I think.

 

[OVDRobo]

I've noticed that most Matsuno games tend to have a slightly more medieval English type translation. I'm not sure if it's something about the setting or the way those games get written, or maybe just translation convention at this point.

I have no real issues with it either way. It's different and if every game was written/translated this way I probably wouldn't play games, but it lends a degree of (slightly false) authenticity to the setting. Final Fantasy XII and most Ivalice games have an element of this, too, though War of the Lions was certainly someone turning the dial up to 11.

 

[fvng]

That I am come screencap slayed me more than the times I lost against this boss l0l

Auto Potions <3

 

[Corpekata]

Why not include examples of the original version so we can get a good idea of the changes?

They seem fine to me, without the context of the original, given it's been so long since I've played it.

 

[Trace]

I don't understand the problem. Sure it's not what you would say in day to day conversation but it's all legitimate English.

Spoiler

STILL YOUR TONGUE

 

[Rats Off To Ya]

I adored the new localization when I played this version of the game. It's going for a very Shakspearean flavor and that really grabbed me at a time when I was pretty into Shakespeare. If you prefer a more straightforward translation or have a lot of nostalgia for the original game I can see how it would be off-putting but I drank in every line of dialogue.

It's not even true to old english in the way it was originally spoken, as far as i know, so it doesn't even succeed at being authentic.

For what it's worth, this is also true of Shakespeare's work and he's considered to be the greatest writer in the history of the English language.

 

[Mifec]

This is how I feel about the accents in the DS Dragon Quest remakes

These read much better than those at least

Which ones exactly?

 

[humansarehorses]

Compare this:

Tough... Don't blame us. Blame yourself or God.

to this:

Tis your birth and faith that wrong you, not I.

The original translation just comes off as amateur writing with slang that does not fit that era or the serious atmosphere of the game.

 

[Chuck Norris]

Was this Alexander O Smith. I love his translations especially Vagrant Story

 

[mieumieu]

It was a dual effort between Tom Slattery and Joseph Reeder.

I stand corrected.

I do take some issues with some too flowery prose in this game but not nearly as much as op. it is harder to read than FFXII (non native though so cant speak for others). Commoners in FFXII sounds perfectly fine. Maybe having it fully voiced would help?

 

[kiaaa]

Compare this:



to this:



The original translation just comes off as amateur writing with slang that does not fit that era or the serious atmosphere of the game.

While the first one is definitely amateur, it's also pretty hilarious.

\
they're both flawed no doubt, but I prefer the original translation over the WOTL.. I've cringed more times in an hour from WOTL dialogue than I did over my multiple playthroughs of the PS1 original.

I really don't understand what about the text is making you cringe. I replayed WOTL a few months ago and nothing ever stuck out to me as forced or strange.

 

[Glitter and Gold]

Which ones exactly?

The DS games. I think it's probably the worst in 4. I just give up sometimes with Ragnar is talking, or when I'm speaking to NPC's in the region Alena and co. are from.

Also

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iVF_9u__oQ&feature=youtu.be&t=6m28s

 

[fvng]

Final Fantasy XII and War of The Lions are both translated by Alexander O. Smith and/or Joe Reeder.

Also, none of the example used in the OP are egregious examples of overly flowery language. Nor are they incorrect or hard to understand.

Yeah I didn't screencap some of the nauseating examples, but I'll probably update this thread later with some better examples.. in any case, I'm surprised that it's the same translator as FFXII, I feel that game had the best balance of elegant and digestible english.

 

[akira28]

psuedo-elizabethian prose, looks about right to me.

 

[MartyStu]

Yeah I didn't screencap some of the nauseating examples, but I'll probably update this thread later with some better examples.. in any case, I'm surprised that it's the same translator as FFXII, I feel that game had the best balance of elegant and digestible english.

One of the translators from XII.

XII generally does a better job because it takes class, nationality and species into account when it comes to the way characters speak.

Definitely the best balance.

 

[Skilletor]

Final Fantasy XII and War of The Lions are both translated by Alexander O. Smith and/or Joe Reeder.

The purple prose is stylistic more than anything else. Overbearing at times? Certainly. Overall though they are very good translations that add an extra layer of flavor to the games.

Also, none of the example used in the OP are egregious examples of overly flowery language. Nor are they incorrect or hard to understand.

FFT isn't O. Smith, it was Tom Slattery:

http://www.rpgamer.com/features/insidegaming/tslatteryint.html

 

[OVDRobo]

This is how I feel about the accents in the DS Dragon Quest remakes

These read much better than those at least

God. I'd almost forgotten about those. I'd actually blame all the accents for killing any interest I might've had in the series. It was just an unreadable deluge of varying national accents that served to make the game really obnoxious and borderline unreadable in some sections.

 

[SkyOdin]

I agree with the OP. I'm not a fan of that translation style, particular how it appears in FFXIV. In FFXIV, it is clear that the translators intentionally go for more obscure word choices rather than clear ones, sometimes to the point of incoherence.

For example, instead of using the word machine, they use the word clockwork. Fine, right? Except, the word clock is never used in the game for a time-keeping device. They are refered to as an horologium or chronometer instead. Which is weird, since they use the word "bell" instead of hour for timekeeping. There is no internal logic, just a stubborn refusal to use plain language.

This eventually reached a boiling point in FFXIV in the Keeper of the Lake event, when the player first meets a really old dragon. It is a major scene that was supposed to add backstory and set up major future events. The conversation was utterly incomprehensible in the English version. The intended meaning was completely lost. I've heard that the devs had to take the translator to task over that debacle. Ever since, the flowery language has been dialed back a bit. Whenever that same old dragon talks later on, he speaks in completely plain language.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

The only thing that bothered me about The War of the Lions was the removal of "Blame yourself or God"

 

[Scrooge McDuck]

Compare this:



to this:



The original translation just comes off as amateur writing with slang that does not fit that era or the serious atmosphere of the game.

Yar, I never understand the reverence that original line gets, especially when compared to the new translation.

Argath's "animals have no God!" from the original is so wonderfully callous, though.

 

[evanmisha]

None of your examples seem weird to me, but I read books occasionally.

Damn!