XC2: Pyra, Poppi, and having a”sense of modesty!” [JPN vs ENG]

Today we have a reader request regarding a small scene in Xenoblade Chronicles 2:

…the line [on the screenshot] is from the Poppi QTpi quest when Pyra is lecturing Poppi about modest outfits… I mean really Pyra? lol was she saying this in Japanese or was this localisation maybe having some fun with irony with how Pyra herself is dressed?

I attached the screenshot of the line in question above! I thought it might be fun to look into. So what’s this like in Japanese?

Short answer: It’s mostly the same. It seems like both languages were going for a sense of irony as it revolves around Poppi wondering why Pyra is fine dressed as she is but tells Poppi to be more modest. However, English uses slightly different word choice to skirt around issues of skin exposure.

For those interested in more details, please keep reading. If not, then see you next article!

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XC2: What was the “really likes being high” joke like in Japanese? [JPN vs ENG]

Today’s post is on the shorter side!

I wanted to take a look at a small line of dialogue from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (pictured above) which I came across while playing through the game recently:

Topopo, I hear, really likes being high.
…Hey, stop smirking! High up off the
ground, is what I meant!

The joke revolves around the pun between high (location, opposite of low) and high (slang for being intoxicated by drugs, etc). So naturally this will awaken the most trivial of all trivial curiosities!

So what was this like in Japanese?

Short answer: As you may expect, the joke is actually purely an invention of the localization. There was no equivalent in Japanese.

For those interested in more details, please keep reading. If not, then see you next article!

FE9 Path of Radiance Localization: “I guess I’m a fish out of water myself…” [JPN vs ENG]

Today we look into what a reader brought up as part of a larger discussion of localization of the FE games:

Idioms tend to lack perfect equivalents in other languages, so what of Ranulf’s use of “fish out of water” in his Ike support in PoR?

They are referring to Ike and Ranulf’s C Support in Path of Radiance, where Ranulf says the following:

Then again, worrying about a beorc like this is definitely not normal laguz behavior. I guess I’m a fish out of water myself… Wait, did I just call myself a fish?

Short answer: Surprisingly, this idiom was rather well placed. He was still talking about being an oddball when it comes to laguz, and using imagery of floating on water like a fish in Japanese.

Let’s take a closer look!

FE7: Blazing Blade Localization: Serra’s “Oh, that’s so sweet! You wanted to see me again!” line [JPN vs ENG]

This post is part of a series on reader requested (and personal curiosity) comparisons between Fire Emblem games’ Japanese and English scripts.

Today we look at a conversation from FE7 (Blazing Blade) chapter 14:

A friend brought up the following:

“Remember that recruitment convo with Erk? Where Erk says Serra is the last person he wanted to see and she’s happy he wanted to see her at all? How did that work in Japanese?”

Short answer: The content is actually similar, but localization tweaked the original joke slightly but managed to convey close intent thanks to clever word choice.

Let’s take a closer look!

FE10 Radiant Dawn Localization: “I swear you’d hit on a tree if I dressed it in a skirt.” [JPN vs ENG]

Happy Valentine’s Day! Today’s short post is by both popular request and personal curiosity (and sort of fits the theme of the day).

In Radiant Dawn Part 3 Chapter 1, there is a comedic scene between Shinon and Gatrie, which ends with Shinon saying the following:

You’re chasing after a laguz now? Gatrie, I swear you’d hit on a tree if I dressed it in a skirt. Tell me I’m wrong!

Let’s take a closer look at this line!

FE11: Shadow Dragon Localization: “I’d just always assumed Manaketes looked somethin’ like parakeets.” [JPN vs ENG]

This post is part of a series on reader requested (and personal curiosity) comparisons between Fire Emblem games’ Japanese and English scripts.

Today, I look into an old reader request involving some dialogue from Chapter 5 in Shadow Dragon! (Sorry it took so long!):

I’d just always assumed Manaketes looked somethin’ like parakeets. Sheesh…

I bolded the relevant part. This can’t work in Japanese, can it? Isn’t the Japanese for Manakete “Mamkute” even? Any wordplay at all in it?

Short answer: No wordplay is involved, it is a case of localization just punching up a line. It only exists in the localization.

Let’s take a closer look!

FE8: Sacred Stones Localization: Does Aias’s Death Quote Specify the Tactician’s Gender? [JPN vs ENG]

This post is part of a series on reader requested (and personal curiosity) comparisons between Fire Emblem games’ Japanese and English scripts.

Today, I look into a reader request from twitter:

“I have a quick request. If you defeat Aias in Eirika’s Ch13 (FE8), he compliments Renais’ tactician. Do you know what he says in Japanese, specifically if he says the tactician is female? Thank you in advance!”

Short answer: Aias does not specify any gender of the tactician in Japanese either.

Let’s take a closer look!

FE9 Path of Radiance Localization: Mia’s Fortune and Archrival [JPN vs ENG]

It’s been awhile! Happy New Year! Hopefully I’ll have time for more posts in 2020.

Today’s post is a personal curiosity involving Mia’s fortune in her support conversation with Rhys, as well as her “archrival” in general. The structure is a little wayward, as a forewarning.

The localization of her conversation is mostly very accurate, though the fortune itself actually differs slightly. Despite a lot of small detours from the Japanese here and there, the conversation ultimately reaches the same conclusion.

I also touch upon a few other instances of her mention of fortunes and archrivals.

Let’s take a look!

FE7 Localization: Was Hector and Eliwood’s A Support Mistranslated? Who cut their hand? [JPN vs ENG]

Today’s post comes from a thread on reddit which concerns Hector and Eliwood’s A support conversation. u/Dragoryu3000 posed a question:

Hold up, is Eliwood and Hector’s A-Support majorly mistranslated?

They pinged me in a thread and I looked into it. The issue revolves primarily around Erik Laus and vague wording in the translation being potentially misleading as to what occurred. You can read their thoughts and the rest of the thread in-depth on the thread before reading this post if you want to get a better idea of the issue, but I’ll try my best to explain it as we go along, too.

So let’s take a look!

FE9 Path of Radiance Localization: Marcia’s Colorful Language [JPN vs ENG]

This post is part of a series on reader requested (and personal curiosity) comparisons between various games’ Japanese and English scripts.

Today’s post concerns Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance. Specifically, Marcia’s dialogue! It’s partially a reader request, and partially personal curiosity.

A reader said the following:

Did Marcia call Makalov a “eunuch” in Japanese too?

Though the reader requested just this line, I looked into a few of her other colorful moments too –all with Makalov, of course.

So let’s take a look!