Why Nintendo Doesn't Translate Literally: A Defense for Localization

Recently, Rhythm Heaven Megamix came out for the Nintendo 3DS, and with it came new addition to the series: story mode. The writing made me chuckle a few times, especially with the main character's signature catchphrase: "Let's we go, amigo!". That phrase is not included in the Japanese version, yet adds a special charm to the game for its English debut. It is moments like these that captures the reason why Nintendo does not literally just translate word for word.

First of all, let's get one thing straight: this is not an article about censorship. We're talking about changes in the writing of the game itself. For all the flack that the translation that Fire Emblem Fates gets, you can name countless quotes that are unforgettable to fans of the game that did not originate from the Japanese game ("You have the devil's own luck" is one of my personal favorites). That is the key to localization: it's not only about adapting Japanese cultures to an American audience, but about creating a memorable experience.  We can use the above image as another example. The American version has a reference to an Internet joke called "doge" while the European translation removes this reference. The dialogue on the left is arguably more memorable or likely to get a chuckle out of someone compared to the right. Even if the reader is oblivious to the reference, the grammatical syntax can just be seen as a quirk of the character. To those that say that the reference is in bad taste or will confuse the players, many many other Nintendo games praised for their writing (like Earthbound) and in fact many other media also make references that are relevant only to a cetrain. Is Citizen Kane a bad movie because of its use of references to other films from the early 1900s that many today have never heard of?

In addition, sometimes it's not just about improving the writing of the original. Jokes do not always crossover very well across languages. Here is an example of a Japanese joke translated literally: "Why do Hawaiians never need to go to the dentist? Because Hawaiians have good teeth." ...Did that make sense to you? To most people, not really. The reason why it's funny in Japanese is because "good teeth" in Japanese is audibly said as "ha wa ii". There are countless more examples, hence why localization is necessary in order for English players to still enjoy the game instead of being confused by literally translated jokes.

Some may wonder why localization happens in the video game industry but not in other industries. Here's some news for those people: localization isn't just limited to video games and isn't anything new. In fact, there are easily over one hundred English translations for the Iliad and the Odyssey, the ancient Greek classics that revolutionized literature. These translations vary by how faithful they are to the original and by how much the authors want to deviate from the literal to convey's Homer's poetic language. The same could be said for how Nintendo localizes: they try to deviate from the literal to convey what the original writers intended the players to feel. While the translations are praised for it, Nintendo is criticized for it.

Localization is not destroying the original writing; it's about adaptation. While some decisions made by Nintendo's localization team may be arguable, they produce memorable writing that sticks with fans for a long time. A completely literal translation is not possible without alienating the player, as can be seen with the many translations for Homer's epics and puns that rely on word play. Localization is not against the interest of the consumer; it is necessary in order for players to get what the original artists tried to convey, and may in fact enhance the experience in some cases. So before you start a petition telling Nintendo to just translate literally, think about how Hawaiians having good teeth isn't exactly the best joke to tell in Nintendo's next big game.

An Analytical Look at Nintendo's Approach Towards E3

A look at the word of mouth caused by E3

A few months before E3, an annual, publicized trade fair in June for video game companies to share upcoming products, Nintendo announced that there would be no formal press conference, nor one of their streamed programs called "Nintendo Digital Events", an irregularity for a company with such a large influence over gaming media. In addition, the company announced that their would be no news regarding the next console, codenamed NX, that is currently scheduled to release on March 2017. Many gaming fans were disappointed by this news, as traditionally, most of the biggest announcements that gaming companies had to offer were usually broadcast at E3. In addition, they also announced that the only game that would be playable at the event was the next then untitled installment of The Legend of Zelda series. As most companies offered a wide selection of titles at E3, this was another sizable letdown for gaming aficionados. This year looked to be another year of disappointment of Nintendo fans, as the companies' attendance last year's was negatively received due to the poor presentation and structure of their 2015 Nintendo Digital Event.

However, despite many predictions of Nintendo's event being a disappointment, it actually succeeded in the one way that it matters: word of mouth. While other companies had more games that could be discussed online, Nintendo's focus on one massive title, now named The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, that appealed to a sense of nostalgia for the series's NES classic as well as the demo's ability to showcase a large variety of variables and features allowed for the company to receive a massive amount of attention that surpassed all other titles. With having only one title, Nintendo's online presence overshadowed all of EA's titles combined.

The reason for the large attention that Nintendo received can be traced back to the way they revealed information about the game: through the Nintendo Treehouse Live @ E3 program. After an impressive trailer showcasing the game's massive scale, the demo for the game was streamed over five and half hours, with not much repetition of activities during the showcasing of the Zelda installment. This allowed the game to be continually be discussed through social media over a longer period of time compared to other titles that received a few minutes of trailer footage as new features were unveiled and developers were interviewed on the stream, allowing more people to be aware of Nintendo's title. Additionally, the honesty in regards to the company's E3 showing before the event, as opposed to the secrecy that most companies had (including Nintendo in previous years) allowed fans to know what they are getting into; they knew that they were not going to receive any news about the next console and were only going to get information about Zelda as well as other upcoming games for current systems. As such, fans were not as disappointed as they were last year when not too many new titles were announced.

The impact of a new installment of the Zelda series also caused a lot of attention, as console Zelda games are released very rarely, with a new title every five years, a much longer gap than the annual and expected releases of Assassin Creed and Call of Duty games. And as such, with the combined approach of detailing what will be showed at E3 and streaming over a long period of time, Nintendo caused a larger stir in gaming social media more than any other company.

Why do you think that Nintendo was more positively received this year compared to last year? Leave a comment below and let me know!

My Thoughts on the Censorship of Fire Emblem Fates

Ah, Fire Emblem. A game series about war, bloodshed, and recently, touching your army members. Err, maybe not in America.

The American version of Fire Emblem Fates has been receiving some bad word of mouth as of late, with its removal of content and changes to the script. One of the most notable examples is a completely optional mode in the game called "Skinship" in the Japanese version. Skinship is a Japanese word used to described the development of closeness of a mother and child through physical contact, but is nowadays used as term to describe platonic bonding through touching of the face, holding hands, hugging, etc. The mode is essentially a petting minigame, but for your allies in combat. It was removed in the American version, most likely due to cultural differences between the America and Japan.

An example of skinship, a normal custom especially prevalent in K-Pop culture

On social media and on message boards, fans of Fire Emblem and cynics of censorship have been talking excessively about the changes, some even saying that they were going to get an incomplete game or cancelling their orders.
While the changes are disappointing, this change might actually be good for some. The petting minigame is a little long, and for people who want to get faster supports through the minigame, it can be quite tedious. The replacement for the mode is just voiced dialog from the character selected for skinship, which makes things go much faster. People are really making it more of a deal of it than it actually deserves. One could argue that Nintendo actually made the change so that people would talk about Fates more, but I believe it has more to do with the fact that rubbing your friend's face is an oddity to Americans.

Whatever the reason for the change, the game will still be full of tactical gameplay that the Fire Emblem series is known for. And even if you mostly got into Fire Emblem for love rather than war, you can still do special events with your character's spouse, such as waking them up with your stylus, which is somewhat similar to petting save for its longevity being much shorter. The removal of skinship will most likely not detriment the experience of game itself, even if it is a disappointment.

What is The Seven Scrolls? A Brief Introduction.

Hello, and welcome to The Seven Scrolls. I've started this blog to improve and display my writing abilities through analysis of Nintendo business, translation, and marketing, as well as game impressions and articles about my own life. If you agree or disagree with my opinions, please feel free to comment and provide a new light on the current topic. I wholeheartedly welcome intellectual discussion. However, please do not harass others or behave inappropriately. I would like to keep this website PG-13.

Thank you for reading, and I hope this site will be a pleasure to read!