classic games improved when localized?

[Blitzwing256]

We've all gone over how some games are horribly butchered when brought over seas, we've all seen how unplayably bad that exile 2, bayou billy and double dragon 2 were when they decided to tweak the games for us release...
we've all seen how stuff is just inexplicably removed from games like lifeforce contra and karnov.

but how about when a game is made BETTER when it comes over seas?

a few that come to mind:

Zelda 2:
fixed the experience system, added more tile sets for dungeons, added a new boss for level 5, tweaked gained exp to make more sense and enhanced graphics.

metroid + kid icarus
added a second quest option to both games, metroid got an extra ending (armourless samus)

final fantasy 7
two new super bosses, new materia + weapon for yuffie

dragon warrior 1
much better graphics . better interface. save feature

dragon warrior 2
new opening story +save feature

[ishashobar]

The only game i can think of is Illusion of Gaia. The boss of the Sky Garden was changed by the creators since they were unhappy with the Japanese boss.

Most Square RPGs that had an "International" re-release had mixture of US only and new content.

[Boltorano]

I thought I heard somewhere that Illusion of Gaia had a different (and less interesting) boss in the Flying Gardens area in the JP version, but I could be thinking of something else.

Edit: Seems somebody else was thinking the same thing and posted at the same time. :)

[kupomogli]

but how about when a game is made BETTER when it comes over seas?

final fantasy 7
two new super bosses, new materia + weapon for yuffie


The first boss on FF7 is also unique for the western versions. Japan just had random enemies as the boss.

[Boltorano]

The first boss on FF7 is also unique for the western versions. Japan just had random enemies as the boss.

Didn't it also tell you to that you should attack the enemy after it enters "charging my laser" mode? Which is the exact opposite of what you should do.

I'm actually surprised to hear that wasn't actually in the JP version, considering it would be far from the first Final Fantasy title to feature a "gathering energy" gimmick for the first boss.

[APE992]

Final Fantasy 7 is WORSE with a localization. If you knew how bad the translation was you'd never have included it in the list.

There are a handful of games out there that the Japanese decide are better in terms of script that they re-translate them back into Japanese and release them as a special edition of sorts.

[TonyTheTiger]

Doki Doki Panic/SMB2 is improved essentially every which way. The only thing of particular interest that got lost in the conversion was the way the ending worked with beating it with all four characters.

A number of Castlevania games qualify, I think. Only one where the opposite holds true would be Dracula's Curse due to the mapper limitations.

Star Fox 64, for obvious reasons.

[Kitsune Sniper]

double dragon 2Uh. What? The game is fine for me, what the hell did they mess up, in your opinion?

[Baloo]

Doki Doki Panic/SMB2 is improved essentially every which way. The only thing of particular interest that got lost in the conversion was the way the ending worked with beating it with all four characters.

This. I prefer it very much to SMB: Lost Levels as a sequel to the original Super Mario Bros. for NES. A very fun and underrated game that we wouldn't have otherwise seen released here in the States.

Also, Burning Rangers. Had that game never gotten a localization, it would be unplayable for anyone outside of Japan, and it is a fantastic game!

[kupomogli]

I'm one who doesn't care about an "exact translation." Oooo wow. There is somewhat different text, it's supposed to be called Makoro, this, that, etc. As long as the storyline in the game is entertaining and it's not plagued with bad grammar, etc, then it's fine with me. Legend of Heroes Sword of Vermillion had it's localization done through Google translate it seems and I made my way through it.

I guess that's one good thing about Japan getting games first most of the time. A lot of the problems that plague some games get fixed on their way over to the west. It's usually Squaresoft games though, and then later on the Japanese get the new and improved western release with even more content that we never get.


Most Square RPGs that had an "International" re-release had mixture of US only and new content.

Japan always gets the better version :(. Even if it has to be a rerelease.

Dirge of Cerberus Final Fantasy 7. There are a ton of gameplay adjustments that were done to this game, clearly making the western release a better game. On top of that, Easy mode was removed and an Extra Hard mode was added.

There are other Square games, like Kingdom Hearts, most games from Square, that are always better for the US release and then get a much better Japanese release later on.

Tactics Ogre PSP has all the DLC in Japan included on the UMD.

There are others, but yeah. I can't think of anything that isn't Squaresoft. Maybe I'm trying to think too hard. If it was the other way around though I could make a long list. Better Japanese releases that have a worse US release.


A number of Castlevania games qualify, I think. Only one where the opposite holds true would be Dracula's Curse due to the mapper limitations.

What CV games were better in the US? CV3 had better sound and Grant threw daggers while had axe as the subweapon. On the US version Grant could have the dagger and axe as the sub weapon but had a weak melee dagger attack. Along with all the removal of certain graphics/sounds, etc. Like crosses, blood, the whip sound on SCV4, etc.

*edit*

Blaster Master. I forgot about that one. Good luck beating the game on the ridiculously hard Japanese version.

[fahlim003]

Star Fox 64, for obvious reasons.
What exactly is improved in the North American release over the Japanese original?

[Blitzwing256]

Uh. What? The game is fine for me, what the hell did they mess up, in your opinion?


dd2 was one of the less-awfull ones compared to ninja gaiden 3 and bayou billy, but in the japanese version you could beat the game on all 3 dificulty levels and you could continue (the continue feature could be unlocked with complicated tap in codes on the us version)

[Guy Bramsworth]

Final Fantasy 7 is WORSE with a localization. If you knew how bad the translation was you'd never have included it in the list.


Really? I've seen some of the Japanese script compared to English and it seems they did as good a job as you can hope for really. What about it was so bad?

[skaar]

Really? I've seen some of the Japanese script compared to English and it seems they did as good a job as you can hope for really. What about it was so bad?

No be careful! Don't wake the Square fanboi rage!

[TonyTheTiger]

What exactly is improved in the North American release over the Japanese original?

Only the fact that the English dialogue turns it from a merely very good game into a very good game that is also the most quotable video game of all time.

[Haoie]

I'm going with Persona 4. Especially in regards to Teddie.

Most Atlus titles get better too.

[kedawa]

Decap-Attack

[Boltorano]

Only the fact that the English dialogue turns it from a merely very good game into a very good game that is also the most quotable video game of all time.

"Do a barrel roll!"
"Can't let you do that, Star Fox!"

etc.

[j_factor]

Every game ever published by Working Designs. :D

*ducks*

[Flashback2012]

Every game ever published by Working Designs. :D

*ducks*

/throws rotting fruit

The brand of toilet humor they added to Albert Odyssey made the game damn near unplayable for me. I've played games with really bad text (Castle of Shikigami 2) and really bad dubbing (Chaos Wars) but none that irritated me to the point that Albert Odyssey did. :|

As for the topic, I can't think of anything from personal experience. I've heard of some of the games mentioned already that have had tweaks or fixes added when the games got a NA release but I'm failing to think of any that haven't already been mentioned so far.

[Kitsune Sniper]

dd2 was one of the less-awfull ones compared to ninja gaiden 3 and bayou billy, but in the japanese version you could beat the game on all 3 dificulty levels and you could continue (the continue feature could be unlocked with complicated tap in codes on the us version)

... I don't understand.

You're complaining because they removed continues on Double Dragon 2? The easiest game in the NES trilogy?

[Blitzwing256]

... I don't understand.

You're complaining because they removed continues on Double Dragon 2? The easiest game in the NES trilogy?


like I said its minor, but I felt removing the option to play the entire game on easy or normal was a poor choice (in the us one you HAVE to be on the hardest dificulty to even see the last level) in the japanese one you could beat it on all 3.

I just prefer to have the choice

[Kitsune Sniper]

like I said its minor, but I felt removing the option to play the entire game on easy or normal was a poor choice (in the us one you HAVE to be on the hardest dificulty to even see the last level) in the japanese one you could beat it on all 3.

I just prefer to have the choice

Oh, your post wasn't very clear. I thought it was like that in the Japanese version. :P

[NerdXCrewWill]

Every game ever published by Working Designs. :D

*ducks*

This is at least true for Popful Mail. Man, that is the funniest game I've ever played. I can't read Japanese, so I don't know if a more serious Japanese script is more worthwhile, but somehow I doubt it.

[ishashobar]

I forgot about the US Mother proto/Earthbound Zero. It streamlined the menu like Dragon Warrior and also added a run button. I'm pretty sure it had a longer ending as well. Most of the changes got added to the GBA version if I'm not mistaken.

[Aussie2B]

Only the fact that the English dialogue turns it from a merely very good game into a very good game that is also the most quotable video game of all time.

Ugh, anybody still quoting Star Fox 64 these days deserves a kick in the nuts. Those are the sorts at game conventions that I roll my eyes at. Almost as bad as hearing people shout "Falcon PUNCH!"

Impersonations of the original Star Fox "voices" still make me laugh, though. :)

[NBaco]

Jill sandwich!

[TonyTheTiger]

Ugh, anybody still quoting Star Fox 64 these days deserves a kick in the nuts. Those are the sorts at game conventions that I roll my eyes at. Almost as bad as hearing people shout "Falcon PUNCH!"

Impersonations of the original Star Fox "voices" still make me laugh, though. :)

How about Symphony of the Night? The second most quotable game ever, and another game improved by the localization for it?

[LiquidPolicenaut]

I gotta go with Snatcher for the Sega/Mega CD. Now, I DO love the PC_E version and I know some things were changed/edited from the PC-E version but I find them to be minor (a breast is covered up, can't "watch" a porno video, etc.). The Sega CD carried over the great voice acting, the "chip" tunes sound better on the Sega CD, they added extra scenes to the intro and ending, certain small things they redrew look great, and Justifier support. I still love the game to this day and am still impressed on how they pumped out such a colorful game on the Sega CD....

[old man]

Contra Hard Corps was made more difficult. You could get three hits before dying in the Japanese version. Real men play the US version.

[Aussie2B]

How about Symphony of the Night? The second most quotable game ever, and another game improved by the localization for it?

In all seriousness, though, considering they cut out two familiars (even if they were kind of redundant) and a song, I'd hardly call the localization an improvement, corny dialogue or not.

[TonyTheTiger]

They weren't kinda redundant. They literally were redundant. And one was an in-joke that was more or less out of place anyway. For all the criticism Working Designs gets for their localizations that fly in the face of the game's tone, the nose demon was just as bad, if not worse, in Symphony.

Nevertheless, I think the memorable script more than makes up for whatever they removed. Plus they fixed the glaring Engrish in the game over screen.

[Kyle15]

Every game ever published by Working Designs. :D

*ducks*

I'm okay with the scripts. Some of the gameplay changes are hit and miss, especially in Silhouette Mirage's case.

[j_factor]

The brand of toilet humor they added to Albert Odyssey made the game damn near unplayable for me. I've played games with really bad text (Castle of Shikigami 2) and really bad dubbing (Chaos Wars) but none that irritated me to the point that Albert Odyssey did. :|

Actually I think Albert Odyssey was one of their better jobs. I didn't like a lot of the jokes, but they made some gameplay tweaks that definitely improved the game.

Easily their worst release is Silhouette Mirage.

[TonyTheTiger]

Soul Calibur II was improved in that the bonus characters you fought in the mission mode (Lizardman, Assassin, Berserker) were made fully playable in the localized release.

[Leo_A]

Only the fact that the English dialogue turns it from a merely very good game into a very good game that is also the most quotable video game of all time.

The English translation and voice work ruined Star Fox 64, if you ask me (The moment that first boss said "my emperor.. I've failed you" pretty much destroyed any chance that game had of living up to my hopes).

I wish someday someone would do a fan patch for it that eliminated the bosses talking, subbed in the animal sounds from the original game over the horrible voice work they did for it, and did a translation of it more in line with the less annoying dialog of the original. And music more in line with the original game wouldn't be a bad idea, either.

The only time the voice work pleased me was when it said "Good Luck" before the start of a level with the same voice they used in the SuperNes game.

I guess if you like corny dialog, the translation improved the game. But I don't.

[Brianvgplayer]

like I said its minor, but I felt removing the option to play the entire game on easy or normal was a poor choice (in the us one you HAVE to be on the hardest dificulty to even see the last level) in the japanese one you could beat it on all 3.

I just prefer to have the choice

The difficulties are different on the JP version, though. The JP version's hard is much harder than the highest difficulty in the US version.

[TonyTheTiger]

I guess if you like corny dialog, the translation improved the game. But I don't.

Corny dialogue works incredibly well for Star Fox because it has such a corny premise to begin with. So we're talking a perfect storm of awesome. It's like reading a silver age comic book or watching the old Batman.

Also, Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Unlocking characters in MvC2 is a ludicrous proposition. You pretty much have to play the single player mode for 5 billion years before you can buy everything. But if I'm remembering correctly, the Japanese version was worse. It had three kinds of points, one earned through local play, one through the Dreamcast's rudimentary online, and one through actually plugging your VMU into an MvC2 arcade cabinet.

And, depending on whether or not you want to count it as a localization instead of a completely different game, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All Stars.

[j_factor]

The English translation and voice work ruined Star Fox 64, if you ask me (The moment that first boss said "my emperor.. I've failed you" pretty much destroyed any chance that game had of living up to my hopes).

I wish someday someone would do a fan patch for it that eliminated the bosses talking, subbed in the animal sounds from the original game over the horrible voice work they did for it, and did a translation of it more in line with the less annoying dialog of the original. And music more in line with the original game wouldn't be a bad idea, either.

The only time the voice work pleased me was when it said "Good Luck" before the start of a level with the same voice they used in the SuperNes game.

I guess if you like corny dialog, the translation improved the game. But I don't.

The European version of Star Fox 64 (Lylat Wars) gives you the option of using the gibberish language from the original. So it still is a game that was improved by localization. Just not American localization. :)

[Leo_A]

The European version of Star Fox 64 (Lylat Wars) gives you the option of using the gibberish language from the original. So it still is a game that was improved by localization. Just not American localization. :)

I didn't know that, thanks. :)

There are several PAL N64 releases I'd love to get my hands on and this just gives me one more excuse to do it.

Edit - Found a video

I wish they sounded a bit more like the voices in the original game (Not that there was anything special about the animal sounds they'd make, but they're not very intrusive were very easy to tune out), but it's still a vast improvement over the voice acting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nHR4RsMc0g

[Vlcice]

In all seriousness, though, considering they cut out two familiars (even if they were kind of redundant) and a song, I'd hardly call the localization an improvement, corny dialogue or not.

I'm pretty sure the song was unused in the original Japanese release. It didn't show up until the Saturn version (and was added to the Japanese PS1 rerelease), so I can't blame them too much for not including it in the English version. ;)

[Blitzwing256]

The difficulties are different on the JP version, though. The JP version's hard is much harder than the highest difficulty in the US version.


hmm, i'm going to have to try the hardest dificulty on the japanese version again , it didn't seem much harder but it had been a long time since I played the us version.

[TonyTheTiger]

Are we considering the addition of extra features an aspect of "localization"? Because there are plenty of games that are either on par or worse in terms of translation/dubbing/etc. but add a bunch of content, balance changes, or bug fixes.

[DaddyMulk]

Also, Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Unlocking characters in MvC2 is a ludicrous proposition. You pretty much have to play the single player mode for 5 billion years before you can buy everything. But if I'm remembering correctly, the Japanese version was worse. It had three kinds of points, one earned through local play, one through the Dreamcast's rudimentary online, and one through actually plugging your VMU into an MvC2 arcade cabinet.

That statement is 100% correct, but the reality was even worse than you describe. You *could* earn points from an arcade cab...if you were lucky enough to find one with a VMU slot! Most of the cabs in my area were conversions, so they lacked VMU support. And the online (Cross-Matching Service?) was a disaster. I attempted to log in every day for the first two weeks that the game was out and never got connected once. (I had no trouble connecting through the DC web browser, and other games with online play (Sega Rally, etc.) worked fine. It was Capcom's server that was messed up) I think I finally just downloaded a VMU save from the net somehow with 100% unlocked.

Super R-Type had at least one graphical change when it came over here: The background in Stage 1 is far more colorful. The Japanese version just had a generic star field.

For all their questionable translation work, WD did improve the load times in Albert Odyssey dramatically.

Super Mario World had a cheat code that allowed you to replay the castle levels that was added for the U.S. release.

Lightening Force had a 99 ships cheat code that was not in the Japanese version.

The orchestrated music in DQVIII U.S. is a vast improvement over the MIDI stuff in the Japanese version IMO.

[DaddyMulk]

Sorry, double post!

[treismac]

River City Ransom. The Japanese version looks sorta silly with the characters wearing their school uniforms that look like pajamas. The North American greaser look localization is visually superior in my opinion.

https://encrypted-tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTy80--6h-q0-Fap2sFyzK2THoLnpGXAnBHnCp_OnLtKTnJqT3oBQ

https://encrypted-tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRD2vJgJxMwPASaUqkENTUfgL3de7YTM GS1xL4uJe6W9ynlU1RK

[Edmond Dantes]

Final Fantasy VI. Would you rather play as a character named Terra or a character named Tina? Exactly.

Along similar lines, Chrono Trigger. You can either have important NPCs named Nash, Bash and Gash, or named Melchior, Balthasar and... I forget the third one.

Sonic CD - this is a controversial one, but I honestly like the American soundtrack more.

And I may be mistaken, but didn't the U.S. releases of Metal Gear Solid and Resident Evil have new game modes and features that weren't in the original Japanese?

[Aussie2B]

Final Fantasy VI. Would you rather play as a character named Terra or a character named Tina? Exactly.

... :(

[Daria]

Count me in as another Working Designs supporter.

I could also name like a ton of fan translated work, because generally the scripts are of higher quality than the officially released games. I don't know how they read in Japanese but Radical Dreamers and Famicom Detective Club Part 2 are two of the best written 16-bit games I've ever played.

[TonyTheTiger]

I'll support almost anything that came from Ted Woolsey or Victor Ireland.

Victor's penchant for tinkering with how certain games functioned could either be perfectly harmless or completely game changing. But he ended up giving us that really badass Lemina glitch in Eternal Blue as a result so I'll forgive it.

His affinity for rewriting scripts hasn't really bothered me. Mostly because he always acted with care to restrict the changes to either mindless NPCs or supporting characters who were just generally boring in the original. The fart jokes with Myght in Lunar may have been juvenile but it's not like he was such a compelling character to begin with.

Even games like Vay and Albert Odyssey, two games I find pretty soulless overall, was at least somewhat salvaged by the spirit of the script. At the very least they made some forgettable games at least a little memorable.

And Ted Woolsey can do no wrong in my eyes. He basically gave us Kefka. Everything people love about Kefka more or less comes from Woolsey's interpretations.

There are some individual lines in a bunch of games I can see why people have problems with, some just silly nonsense and others outright mistakes (a few infamous Chrono Trigger lines spring to mind). But we're talking overwhelmingly good work, especially when you consider the constraints he had to work with.

[Aussie2B]

Which lines from Chrono Trigger are infamous?

I think Woolsey did good work. The localizations of games like Chrono Trigger and Super Mario RPG are great if you ask me. I'm not sure what people would take issue with. He didn't make any really outlandish changes as best as I know. Definitely nothing as extreme as the pop culture references and innuendo and such in Working Designs' releases. When he did make changes, it seems like he still worked with the context and captured the spirit of the original script. I mean, like, with Ozzie, Flea, and Slash, the references probably went right over the heads of most players, but they still captured the silly spirit of the original names (Vinegar, Soy Sauce, and Mayonnaise). Renaming the three gurus after the three wise men was also fitting to capture their mysterious nature.

[Daria]

Shadow Madness for PSOne was awesome just for the Woolsey script. No really, the game its self is an ugly FF7 clone, but the dialouge is priceless. It's not a translation though, original English work so I didn't mention it earlier.

[TonyTheTiger]

Which lines from Chrono Trigger are infamous?

I'm mostly referring to Gaspar's "One of you is close to someone who needs help. Find this person, FAST." What he's really saying is something along the lines of "Talk to your friends for information" in reference to the side quests. Woolsey's line makes it sound like Gaspar is talking about a specific person in trouble leading to a few wild theories.

Another infamous line was near the end of the Tyranno Lair when Nizbel II says "The great Nizbel was defeated here!" Pretty confusing since Nizbel wasn't defeated there. It should have been more like "You'll have to defeat me, Nizbel, to pass."

Woolsey did great work but he did let a line or two slip in that pretty much made no sense at all.

What's funny is that all his intentional changes worked great. Aside from outright errors like above, he pretty much always nailed it. And he was constantly giving all kinds of compelling personalities and quirks to characters who would otherwise be pretty standard fare. Frog's quirky dialect may have been somewhat out of place given that nobody else talks like that, not even Glenn himself as a human, but it helped define the character. He pretty much wrote the manual to how to localize an RPG under tight conditions.

I really have nothing short of praise for Ted Woolsey. He even has his own trope (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Woolseyism).

[Aussie2B]

Hmm, man, it's been WAY too long since I last played Chrono Trigger. If I'm remembering right, I think I interpreted that Gaspar line as being about Schala. (Not that that really makes sense.) And with Nizbel II, I assumed he was referring to the first fight with Nizbel. (I don't know if that would make sense either.)

Heh, Woolseyisms? I think that's giving the guy a bit TOO much credit. There's nothing unusual about his approach, so it's not like everybody is copying him. That's just good, standard localization. The end goal of editing and/or localization is always to make the final product read in a way that natural and clear. You change whatever you need to. It's pretty much impossible to use a raw translation without there being a whole slew of problems. I do some professional localization and editing, and I do the same thing as Woolsey. I'm very against changing things that need not be changed, so some people accuse me of being one of those sorts that demands a direct translation but the reality is that I change a ton of stuff in my work. Like I had some line that was like "Don't sleep with your stomach uncovered!" which can be logically explained but still sounds horribly awkward and stupid in English. I changed it to "Don't let the bed bugs bite!" which works better. Sometimes being direct actually gets you farther away from the real meaning. Sometimes you need to translate context rather than literal words. I had another big challenge with these two characters that had distinct ways of speaking Japanese. One was a guy that spoke using feminine Japanese and another used very formal speech. This kind of stuff is a pain and half trying to convey in English, especially with the former since we don't have male and female versions of words. That's where you really have to get creative and work the script to give a character a distinct voice. Even though you're changing/adding the actual words, the end product actually gets you CLOSER to how the Japanese script was. If any of this makes any sense, haha.

[TonyTheTiger]

Hmm, man, it's been WAY too long since I last played Chrono Trigger. If I'm remembering right, I think I interpreted that Gaspar line as being about Schala. (Not that that really makes sense.)

The two popular theories were that it referred to either Schala or Lucca's mom.


And with Nizbel II, I assumed he was referring to the first fight with Nizbel. (I don't know if that would make sense either.)

The reason why it doesn't make sense is because Nizbel was defeated in the Reptite Lair in the forest maze, not the Tyrano Lair you fight Nizbel II. It turns Nizbel into a cloudcuckoolander.

I agree that, in the end, being faithful to ideas and concepts is more important than being faithful to words. You want the audience to have the same cognitive experience that they'd get if they understood the original language.

[nothingisttrue]

jackal for nes.
in the fds version Final Command: Akai Yousai, the screen dosnt scroll horizontally , screwing up the look of all the levels.

[Edmond Dantes]

... :(

My apologies to anyone actually named Tina. But that's my problem--its too down-to-earth a name for someone who is supposed to be a magical creature.


I really have nothing short of praise for Ted Woolsey. He even has his own trope (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Woolseyism).

Not that I disagree with you, but that the userbase of TV Tropes decided to name one of their tropes after a translator they all happened to have heard of is not really any sort of sign of quality. It's really just a sign that most of the userbase are RPG fans.

[Aussie2B]

Ah, yes, Lucca's mom. I think I considered that possibility back then too. Doesn't Gaspar still say that line even after you clear every side-quest? I think that's what mainly bugged me about it. If it's really supposed to be like "Talk to your friends for info", that would make a lot more sense. Otherwise I guess it could work, if it wasn't so vague. It's funny that the Woolsey trope says that his detractors think that he thought American gamers were morons. Really, that's how you have to edit, haha. Not that you believe that the readers are morons, but you have to pretend like you, in the role of a reader, are a complete moron, haha. I ask the dumbest, most no-brainer questions just to be crystal clear on every little piece. Unless a line is intentionally vague (and even then you need to make sure you're steering it in the direction of what the original author was implying), you have to be anal to the point of considering every possible interpretation, no matter how unlikely, and then narrow the line down to only one possibility. The Gaspar line failed in both ways.

[Aussie2B]

My apologies to anyone actually named Tina. But that's my problem--its too down-to-earth a name for someone who is supposed to be a magical creature.

While I'm entirely biased, haha, I think it's simple enough that it works. It's not like it's distinctively a specific ethnicity or something like "Mary-Sue" or whatever. And it's not like Final Fantasy never has Western names: Sara, Leon, Maria, Edgar, Rufus, Vincent, Zack, Fran, etc. etc. I never see anybody complaining about those.

But considering what gone through to the US unchanged, I think "Tina" should be the least of their worries. I mean, I know it's so ingrained into our brains that nobody even thinks about it anymore, but does anyone consider how utterly stupid and ridiculous the name "Cloud" is? "Squall" I can almost let slide because it's kind of badass sounding, but "Cloud"? Sheesh. And his hilariously bad last name "Strife" doesn't help matters. I remember a lot of people were commenting on how stupid the name Fate Linegod was in Star Ocean 3 and that they were glad that it got altered (except the change only made it worse because it's the same name except with a stupider spelling: "Fayt Leingod"), yet these people probably happily accept the name "Cloud Strife" even though it's every bit as corny and terrible.

I think most people who would be bothered by "Tina" probably just played the US version first and got so used to "Terra" that any other name would sound wrong to them.

[j_factor]

My apologies to anyone actually named Tina. But that's my problem--its too down-to-earth a name for someone who is supposed to be a magical creature.

Terra is the name that's down-to-earth. On terra firma, one might say.

[Edmond Dantes]

And it's not like Final Fantasy never has Western names: Sara, Leon, Maria, Edgar, Rufus, Vincent, Zack, Fran, etc. etc. I never see anybody complaining about those.

What I was getting at is, she was called "Tina" originally because in Japan, "Tina" is an exotic name, perfectly befitting a magical otherworldly creature. In America it would be normal, so Woolsey gave her the more exotic name "Terra." Just saying, I think that was a good move in context.

I don't really know who most of those characters are, but Leon, Edgar and Rufus were human beings, born on the same planet as every other human being in the game. It makes sense for them to have more standard names. But if you have an alien creature descend from the sky and announce his name is Jeff, that would probably throw people.


but does anyone consider how utterly stupid and ridiculous the name "Cloud" is?

My IRL buddies and I used to make jokes about that all the time. "Who the hell names their kid 'Cloud'?"

[Aussie2B]

Pretty much anytime a Japanese developer goes with a Western name (or, worse yet, a Western word like "Cloud") they're trying to be exotic, whether the character is particularly exotic or not. Final Fantasy names, and names in Japanese RPGs in general, have never been consistent. You'll have completely crazy fantasy names mixed in with Joe Shmoe names, even if those characters are all from the same world and culture. Like the aforementioned Star Ocean 3 has Fate, Mirage, Souffle, Adray, and Albel mixed with... Cliff and Roger.

But I can't complain in the end because I hate the Western style of naming fantasy characters. It looks like somebody blindly mashed on a keyboard until they hit the requisite number of y's and apostrophes to create the "perfect" (read: worst) Lord of the Rings rip-off name.

[TRM]

Pretty much anytime a Japanese developer goes with a Western name (or, worse yet, a Western word like "Cloud") they're trying to be exotic, whether the character is particularly exotic or not. Final Fantasy names, and names in Japanese RPGs in general, have never been consistent. You'll have completely crazy fantasy names mixed in with Joe Shmoe names, even if those characters are all from the same world and culture. Like the aforementioned Star Ocean 3 has Fate, Mirage, Souffle, Adray, and Albel mixed with... Cliff and Roger.

But I can't complain in the end because I hate the Western style of naming fantasy characters. It looks like somebody blindly mashed on a keyboard until they hit the requisite number of y's and apostrophes to create the "perfect" (read: worst) Lord of the Rings rip-off name.

I honestly believe that they go for names (words) of which they like the sound. I have met some Taiwanese people with the following English names: Angus, Tank, Alber, King Allen...If people end up choosing names for themselves that are this silly, it is no wonder why it happens in these J-RPGs as well. I mean really, try going into a business meeting and introducing yourself as Angus or King Allen.

[TonyTheTiger]

But I can't complain in the end because I hate the Western style of naming fantasy characters. It looks like somebody blindly mashed on a keyboard until they hit the requisite number of y's and apostrophes to create the "perfect" (read: worst) Lord of the Rings rip-off name.

Don't be knocking on Y'Shyl'vy'th, fool.


I mean really, try going into a business meeting and introducing yourself as Angus.

You be offered two options. A charming but mediocre 1995 film or a starring role on a popular CBS sitcom.

[TonyTheTiger]

Double Post

[Edmond Dantes]

But I can't complain in the end because I hate the Western style of naming fantasy characters. It looks like somebody blindly mashed on a keyboard until they hit the requisite number of y's and apostrophes to create the "perfect" (read: worst) Lord of the Rings rip-off name.

I couldn't agree more. One of the reasons I tell people Tolkien is the only fantasy novelist worth reading.

When I name characters in RPGs and such, I tend to give them either practical names, descriptive names, or just name them after literary references. I mean, when you're going into the Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord and the leader's name is E. Dantes, that tells people you mean business. Name him Jeff, or Sca'Thv'Mgliniglin, and the CPU picks up on what a loser you are and eats you.

[BlastProcessing402]

The orchestrated music in DQVIII U.S. is a vast improvement over the MIDI stuff in the Japanese version IMO.

The graphical menus were also part of the localization, though some people might not consider that an improvement over the traditional text based menus because they're slower.

[Aussie2B]

Name him Jeff, or Sca'Thv'Mgliniglin, and the CPU picks up on what a loser you are and eats you.

Heh, I actually like naming the hero Jeff in Secret of Evermore. I don't know why, but it just fits in my mind. But that's a different kind of game, anyway, with the hero being a modern day American kid.

And in Secret of Mana, I like to name the characters Andy (my fiance's nickname), Tina (me), and Joey (because the sprite reminds me of a baby kangaroo for some odd reason). That one is more fantasy-based than Evermore, but it still works, in my opinion. I think I improved the localization with those, haha, since the official names in Japan -- Randy, Purim, and Popoi -- suck.

I think it really comes down to the nature of the game. Like if I'm playing a MegaTen game, I have to come up with some kind of Japanese name for the hero because anything else just doesn't fit right within the setting.

[stargate]

The U.S. release of Magical Chase comes to mind. I have always wanted this game, but the cost has prevented me from picking it up.

[old man]

:D
On a Final Fantasy 3 game I have saved my characters have the following names:
BADASS
MrFury
DP
WOLF

[Edmond Dantes]

And in Secret of Mana, I like to name the characters Andy (my fiance's nickname), Tina (me), and Joey (because the sprite reminds me of a baby kangaroo for some odd reason). That one is more fantasy-based than Evermore, but it still works, in my opinion. I think I improved the localization with those, haha, since the official names in Japan -- Randy, Purim, and Popoi -- suck.

Where the heck did those "official names" come from anyway? Are they in the Japanese manual or something? As far as I'm concerned, if they're not in the game, box or included documentation, they don't count.