Kotaku Article/Video on Translations

[X-SOLDIER]

I figured that there being a spotlight on this stuff would be of interest to folk here (also maybe some thoughts and opinions)

Via: http://kotaku.com/the-first-few-lines-of-final-fantasy-vii-are-a-little-d-1797351693





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[Pixel]

I love stuff like this. I doubt he'll cover npcs seeing how little he covers in this vid. The people in sector 7 and Jessie have some of the most interesting world building stuff that wasn't translated properly.

 

[Ite]

Awesome vid! I really hope it becomes a 940 Part series.

 

[ForceStealer]

Yeah I saw this yesterday, pretty cool. I do indeed hope it becomes a regular series.

 

[X-SOLDIER]

http://kotaku.com/final-fantasy-viis-barret-is-solid-snake-in-japanese-m-1797836407

(amused that he doesn't understand "shi't")





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[Cthulhu]

I like how he made the video exactly 13:37 long

 

[Lex]

I love this guy. I'm becoming so attached to his sardonic delivery

 

[X-SOLDIER]

SHOUTOUT TO US @ 1:32!!




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[Pixel]

.

 

[ForceStealer]

It was great to hear the shoutout! I had to rewind when I heard it

 

[Lex]

Wooooooooooooooo that's awesome!

 

[Pixel]

If there are any lines you guys would like him to cover, let me know. I've been talking to him about the possible reasoning behind "this guy are sick" and other stuff he's covered here. Next vid will mostly be wall market since there's a lot of interesting cultural stuff there.

 

[ForceStealer]

Well we already solved the "So that's how you'll fool them" mystery, but it might go well with this. I wouldn't be surprised if he addressed it anyway though

Also flunkies. Obviously.

 

[Theozilla]

This video series is really interesting. I never knew the "childhood friend"/osananajimi term in the original Japanese was a much more meaningful/emotionally charged phrase with implied depth.

Also surprised that Aerith's original Japanese description of her relationship with Zack kinda implied they never had a formally established dating relationship (though the Compilation definitely reversed that notion). I wonder if the decision to revise their relationship to being more serious came about in part because Zack was one of the last characters to be created/fleshed out. If this dude plans on doing the entire game for this video series, I hope he covers the Shinra mansion flashback scenes that got added in the NA/International version of the game. I wonder if that's (the International edition additions) when Square decided to revise Zack and Aerith's relationship to having a more formalized romantic history because Zack's dialogue in the flashback seems to have him referring to Aerith as his "girl" and was initially hoping to crash at her place when they got to Midgar (unless those lines are another case of there being major mistranslation).

 

[Shademp]

Zack's dialogue in the flashback seems to have him referring to Aerith as his "girl" and was initially hoping to crash at her place when they got to Midgar (unless those lines are another case of there being major mistranslation).

I refer now to this post written by hito back in 2013.

It was actually multiple girls he was talking about.

The English version only sounds like one person:

Zack
“I know what I'm gonna do.”
Zack
“I got a place I can crash for a while…”
Zack
“No wait, the mother lives there too.”


But the Japanese one talks about a number of girls:

ザックス
「俺はあちこちにあてがあるんだ」
"I've got people I can count all over."

ザックス
「みんなの世話んなって……」
"I'll get everyone to help me out..."

ザックス
「あ、どの女の子も親といっしょに住んでるのか……」
"Oh, does every girl live with their parents..."

Each line specifically highlight that he's talking about multiple people (the bold parts), rather than the single person he is talking about in the English script.

 

[ForceStealer]

Which does fit more with Aerith describing him as a bit of a playboy.

 

[Theozilla]

Now I am also curious if the dialogue you get with Zack's parents and Aerith in Gongaga is/was significantly different compared with the original Japanese? Especially since the English version has Zack's parents wondering if Aerith was the girlfriend Zack had written to them about 6-7 years ago and Aerith described her false hope of Zack still being alive was because he "found someone else".

EDIT:
Or perhaps the Easter egg letter in the International version of the the game is the first time they are reframed as a formal couple?

Also, would this mean that (besides the Ultimanias) The Maiden Who Travels the Planet (and Before Crisis?) was the first FFVII media before Crisis Core that revised/reframed Zack and Aerith's relationship as having been more serious/formally dating?

 

[Shademp]

For anyone not in the know, the letter from Zack to his parents can be found in the bonus disc that comes with "FFVII International", the Japanese re-release of FFVII. The letter can't be found and interacted with in the normal game. It is only there in the bonus disc.

 

[The Twilight Mexican]

With regard to Zack's "P.S. I got a girlfriend" (P.S ガールフレンドができまし&#12383 letter, there's no missing nuance I can see, either in the letter itself or the conversation with Zack's parents.

 

[Channy]

Wow, never heard of that letter before, thanks for bringing it up guys. Didn't realize he was a little more loose in the Jap version. Definitely enjoying these little videos.

 

[Theozilla]

With regard to Zack's "P.S. I got a girlfriend" (P.S ガールフレンドができまし&#12383 letter, there's no missing nuance I can see, either in the letter itself or the conversation with Zack's parents.

Hmm, since I don't see any reason for the player to not assume that the "girlfriend" in Zack's letter and his parents's dialogue is supposed to be Aerith, would that then be an inconsistency in the writing when contrasted with the more accurate translation of Aerith's playground dialogue? Or should it be taken as evidence of Aerith's mourning process/coping with Zack's disappearance and is deliberately downplaying their relationship as part of that?

 

[Shademp]

My interpretation would be that while Zack and Aerith's relationship was originally more casual, Zack's playful/playboy attitude disguised his true feelings for Aerith which is then reflected in his letter to his parents. Given how confident Zack is, I can easily see him prematurely declaring Aerith "his girlfriend" even before the relationship officially reached that level. Zack would be the kind of guy to assume he had already won her over in that way.

That's one way of looking at it.

 

[The Twilight Mexican]

I suspect the latter, Theo. Zack found whatever their bond was worth writing home about.

There's not really an inconsistency in his behavior either. His lines in the truck don't start out as specific as the translation, no, but "Does every girl live with their parents?" is obviously still referring to Aerith. It's common in Japaense (hell, in English too) to speak in a broad sense when you're referring to someone specific.

 

[X-SOLDIER]

Wow, never heard of that letter before, thanks for bringing it up guys. Didn't realize he was a little more loose in the Jap version. Definitely enjoying these little videos.

Enjoy! https://thelifestream.net/news/fina...al-fantasy-vii-4th-disc-perfect-guide-images/





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[Pixel]

Unfortunately Kotaku only wants 2 more of these vids, so the next one will go through to the Kalm flashback. Then after that, at least up to Aerith's death. Obviously it will have to skim over a lot, but hopefully he can cover the most interesting stuff.