This post is part of a series on reader requested (and personal curiosity) comparisons between Fire Emblem games’ Japanese and English scripts. Last time, I looked at Garcia and Dozla’s support conversation in Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones FE8.
Today, I return to Fire Emblem Fates thanks to a reader request who emailed me:
“So Soleil has this line about how milking cows is ‘good practice.’ Dare I ask what it was in Japanese?”
Ah Soleil, you really hold a special place in my heart. I remember this line in English (and Japanese) as well, so let’s take a look at it!
Not my screenshot. Provided by reader.
This line happens when Soleil is in charge of the cows within My Castle. When you talk to her, she says this in the localization:
I love milking cows! It’s good practice, heh heh!
Soleil’s quirk revolves around her love for cute girls, so while the above is suggestive, some say it can still be taken vaguely as to what exactly she is referring to for “practice.” This in turn leaves it up to the imagination, which of course can become quite suggestive.
So next is the Japanese dialogue, followed by a very literal translation:
女の子の牛だーって思うと可愛くて可愛くて、乳を搾る手が止まらなかったよ！
Ahh, when I thought of how this pretty cow is [basically] an adorable young woman, my hands just wouldn’t stop milking her breasts!
Her Japanese line says a lot more in the same space provided as the English one, such is the nature of Japanese. She is specifically motivated by thinking about how the cow is basically cute girls/young women, and so she can’t help herself in milking them. The example I provide is very literal just for you to see the meaning, even if awkwardly phrased.
The word she uses for udders is more toward breasts/mammary (on a human), but it is used for cows in some cases, but most often I see a slightly different word used for it. She’s basically saying “cow boobs.” That makes her intentions more clear, too. It’s why I left it as “breasts” rather than appropriately labeling an “udder” for the literal translation.
Here is an example that flows slightly better:
Ahh, when I realized this cow is basically a cute girl; my hands just wouldn’t stop milking her!
Considering the localization probably wanted to keep the line concise, they likely had to find a way to condense what they could. In the end her intention is made slightly more vague, though she is just as excited.
If I were to shorten it but lean toward the literal meaning, I would aim to write something along the lines of:
I just can’t stop milking this cow! She’s a cute girl, after all!
Or, alternatively:
I just can’t stop milking cows! They’re a bunch of cute girls, after all!
It depends if we want to go with singular or plural instances. Either way the above expresses the more literal meaning. The “after all” substitutes for the “when I realized” as it implies she reached the conclusion. The “can’t stop milking” shows her inability to stop (like an addiction), compared to the more voluntary tone in the localization. And, lastly, the “cute girl” part carries the meaning of original intent for why she loves milking these cows in the first place, rather than simply because it’s “good practice.”
It basically makes her out to be a bit more of an addicted pervert in Japanese rather than a very purposeful (potential) pervert in English.
A quick table summary to show them side by side:
| Japanese | Literal | Lit. Shortened | NoA Localization |
| 女の子の牛だーって思うと可愛くて可愛くて、乳を搾る手が止まらなかったよ！ | Ahh, when I realized this cow is basically a cute girl; my hands just wouldn’t stop milking her! | I just can’t stop milking this cow! She’s a cute girl, after all! | I love milking cows! It’s good practice, heh heh! |
In short:
The localization shortens it to her loving to milk cows as it makes for good practice. The original language shows she can’t stop milking cows because she realizes they too are actually “cute young girls.” One implies she is practicing for other uses (left more vague), and the literal implies she is milking them because she just can’t resist milking such cute girls!
…this conclusion sounds a little strange out of context (as does anything with Soleil), so if you ever quote it, please be sure to provide the context!
So what did you think? How would you go about localizing the above line? The same way? A different way? Let me know!
I will continue to look at fun differences between the versions of Fire Emblem and other games. Any dialogue you’re interested in? Let me know in comments or via email!
kantopia 
Someone told me that she wasn’t gay/bi at all in the original Japanese version and it was just the translators trying to be pc but this seems pretty gay
Someone told me she wasn’t gay/bi in the Japanese version and it was just the translators changing things but this is pretty gay.
I’m sure the localized quote was done this way to avoid the potential risk of raising FE Fates’ age rating because “boobs” (but then again, Camilla). If there was an age rating called T+ (PEGI 14?) then perhaps it could been closer to the original.
Indeed, that’s probably a fair assumption. : )
Knowing who Soleil was as a character there was never any doubt in my mind why she enjoyed milking cows. Realistically this North American translation is actually far more true to the source material than others that we’ve gotten.
Indeed! While it still remains slightly more to leaving it up to imagination, it achieves its purpose if people are thinking like the Japanese anyway. xD
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Lol! Interesting~ I expect they left out any semblance of the girl part to avoid making any mature references. XD
I think so too xD