Zelda – Windwaker: The “Complimentary ID” in Japanese? [JPN vs ENG]

Today, I look at what I would say is an example of good localization found in the Legend of Zelda: Windwaker.

The player receives something called the “Complimentary ID” which results in a silly dialogue exchange where it is literally an item that has the shop keeper (Beedle) compliment the player –rather than offering any actual tangible goods to your purchases free of charge. A different kind of complimentary than what one may expect!

And that is where the question comes in: What was the ID’s name, and the scene like, in Japanese?

In short: It does revolve around “compliments” (or praise), but the localization team seized the opportunity to make this even more fun in the English language with a pun that was different, yet worked with the original Japanese intent.

Let’s take a closer look!

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Zelda – Windwaker: Is the “Hero’s New Clothes” a reference to “The Emperor’s New Clothes?” [JPN vs ENG]

My friends over at Source Gaming are doing a special Zelda week (February 22^nd through March 1^st) to celebrate the upcoming release of Breath of the Wild on the Switch.

They have made plenty of Zelda-themed content for the week, such as various facts about the first game of the series, and a piece on defending Skyward Sword  from backlash.

So, today, on my end, I look at a great example of localization found within Windwaker. The localization team behind the game managed to place a fitting cultural reference to an old story in an appropriately humorous moment in the game.

Zelda Windwaker: What are the island names in Japanese? [JPN vs ENG]

My friends over at Source Gaming are doing a special Zelda week (February 22^nd through March 1^st) to celebrate the upcoming release of Breath of the Wild on the Switch.

They have written various articles already, from interviews with known Zelda speedrunners to discussing what new Zelda content should be in a hypothetical Smash Bros Switch game.

As such, I decided to spend today on a Zelda related comparison: the islands of Windwaker! We’ll take a look at how the localization team (for the North American version) tackled island names, and what they were originally in Japanese. I suggest some alternate names for them based on the literal translation, or on other factors of the island along with the translation, but by no means claim them to be superior to the official localization in anyway. It is purely for educational purposes, and is not intended to demean the hard work in anyway.

Zelda: Windwaker – Comparing Ganon’s “Wind” Speech [JPN/ENG]

In the Legend of Zelda: Windwaker, Ganon makes a rather somber speech at the start of the final confrontation. I remembered it from years ago, but came across a lovely fan comic that illustrated the speech itself on tumblr It made me curious as to whether what he said in Japanese was as poetic or in-depth.

So, here it is: