After closely listening to the music in games, why not listen to the sounds characters make as well, i.e. their voices?
It's actually rather interesting how when we play a game, say a Nintendo game, we are often listening to voices in different languages without even knowing it. Smash games are a great example of this since they showcase such a variety of characters from different games.
In Melee we hear characters grunt, sigh, and make noises in two languages. These little noises we hear are in fact "language", not so much in an advanced form, but still language nonetheless.
Link grunts in Japanese because his voice actor is Japanese. Mario woo-hoos in English because Charles Martinet speaks English. We often don't think about these things, as frivolous as they may be, but they actually give games a multilingual feel to them. Some of the sounds characters make are native to a specific language. "Yippee" for example, is an English word, but a sound like "Gyaaah" is more Japanese-sounding than English. A lot of these sound effects stem from comics as well. If you look up these words in their respective dictionaries, you'd find them there.
Some games take it a step further and incorporate different spoken language within the actual game. Melee did this by leaving Marth and Roy's spoken dialogue in tact to keep true to their Japanese roots. Other games like Tekken 4 and Tekken 5 have multiple characters speaking to one another in different languages. Anna speaks to Lee in English while he speaks to her in Japanese, and somehow, everyone understands each other. Also note that Kuma and Paul have a conversation - Kuma being a bear...
Another thing to note is how English is becoming more mainstream in games and in general. Think back to Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time. Navi kept reminding you of things with her "Hey! Listen!" - even in the Japanese version. Even the names of some of the characters that originated in Japan are Western names - Mario, Peach, Zelda.
I guess this is the obvious outcome of a playing a game that was created in Japan and marketed worldwide, eh?
It's actually rather interesting how when we play a game, say a Nintendo game, we are often listening to voices in different languages without even knowing it. Smash games are a great example of this since they showcase such a variety of characters from different games.
In Melee we hear characters grunt, sigh, and make noises in two languages. These little noises we hear are in fact "language", not so much in an advanced form, but still language nonetheless.
Link grunts in Japanese because his voice actor is Japanese. Mario woo-hoos in English because Charles Martinet speaks English. We often don't think about these things, as frivolous as they may be, but they actually give games a multilingual feel to them. Some of the sounds characters make are native to a specific language. "Yippee" for example, is an English word, but a sound like "Gyaaah" is more Japanese-sounding than English. A lot of these sound effects stem from comics as well. If you look up these words in their respective dictionaries, you'd find them there.Some games take it a step further and incorporate different spoken language within the actual game. Melee did this by leaving Marth and Roy's spoken dialogue in tact to keep true to their Japanese roots. Other games like Tekken 4 and Tekken 5 have multiple characters speaking to one another in different languages. Anna speaks to Lee in English while he speaks to her in Japanese, and somehow, everyone understands each other. Also note that Kuma and Paul have a conversation - Kuma being a bear...
Another thing to note is how English is becoming more mainstream in games and in general. Think back to Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time. Navi kept reminding you of things with her "Hey! Listen!" - even in the Japanese version. Even the names of some of the characters that originated in Japan are Western names - Mario, Peach, Zelda.
I guess this is the obvious outcome of a playing a game that was created in Japan and marketed worldwide, eh?
Labels: games, Japanese, languages, nintendo, smash bros
Today's update revealed that each character would be getting 3 different taunts to exploit during matches. I personally like this new addition since taunts are how you can play with your opponent - when you're not actually fighting him that is.
The update today also showed another screenshot with text. And you know what that means!
Dedede critiques the food - "Add soy sauce to the curry"
Wario is questioning himself? - "What's that?"
And Snake has gone mad - "Ahahahaha"
But will Brawl allow us to switch from English to Japanese like Melee did? Or will the fact that US Wii games contain instruction books in English, Spanish, and French deter this idea?
The update today also showed another screenshot with text. And you know what that means!
Dedede critiques the food - "Add soy sauce to the curry"
Wario is questioning himself? - "What's that?"
And Snake has gone mad - "Ahahahaha"
What I wonder is how Nintendo is doing that. How are they producing identical screenshots in English and Japanese and having all the text differ? They did this with the trophies update as well, and I think there can only be a few possible ways to do this: 1)Pause, take a screenshot, then change the language and take another screenshot, 2)take two separate screenshots (highly unlikely due to precise pausing and character placement on-screen), and 3) simply Photoshopping the text for the purpose of smashbros.com updates.
If the the third one is right, all these screenshots with text we are seeing may not be the final look the game will have in regards to font and lettering. If the second one is right, better and more expansive multilingual options might get implemented for the final product.
If the the third one is right, all these screenshots with text we are seeing may not be the final look the game will have in regards to font and lettering. If the second one is right, better and more expansive multilingual options might get implemented for the final product.
But will Brawl allow us to switch from English to Japanese like Melee did? Or will the fact that US Wii games contain instruction books in English, Spanish, and French deter this idea?
Labels: games, Japanese, languages, nintendo, smash bros, wii
As soon as Masahiro Sakurai began dishing out daily updates for Smash Bros. Brawl, we knew this game was going to be special. A game of this magnitude deserves a unique way of being presented. Usually upcoming games, even the multi-selling hits, get previews, trailers, and the occasional playable demo videos posted on gaming websites for fans to see. Not many games get so in depth as Brawl has gotten in showcasing their specs. Not many games get daily developmental updates in six languages.This is where the power of Brawl comes in.
Not only is Brawl becoming a grand scale game in Japan or in the US, but it’s becoming a game that is creating fans in different parts of the world simply due to its multilingual aspect - and this isn't even referring to the game itself.
All the updates originate in Japan and in the mind of Masahiro Sakurai. Whether or not he consults his team – he mostly likely does to prevent any overlapping errors or unintended spoilers – the updates are his doing at least. Sakurai has already shown us his like for blogging earlier this year and last year when he started posting updates for his game and when he answered questions and took suggestions for Brawl. And we all know he listened.
Now, because his thoughts need to be translated to reach his fans, some problems can arise. Translation always leads to something getting lost or misinterpreted. It’s natural and it’s why languages are so complex and unique in their own right.
At first I thought Nintendo translated the Japanese into English, and then based on the English, the other sites would get translated. But recently I’ve come to the conclusion that each one gets translated from Japanese except for the UK English site. I base my hypothesis on the fact that each translation has its own amount of originality, flexibility, and wit that does not appear to come from a more straightforward English based source but instead from the more ambiguous Japanese.
As readers of his updates have noticed, Sakurai tends to be vague in delivering news. It’s natural for anyone to not want to reveal everything about an upcoming game to avoid causing spoilers. Ironically, isn’t he already doing that through each update he produces? His vagueness comes out as being playful though and it creates more speculation and makes his fans more interested in what the interpretations might mean. He has reason for playing with us.
The problem in this vagueness comes when it’s translated. Japanese is a very vague language. Often, a sentence won’t directly contain a subject, or a gender, or even a case. When translated into another language, it can get tricky and even somewhat deceptive.
Take for example these sentences:
Beak the Targets update:
This time, there are five different maps of varying difficulty—challenges you can take on with your favorite character.
今回は難易度が異なるマップが5つあり、
好きなキャラクターでチャレンジできるようになり
Dispondrás de cinco mapas diferentes que variarán en dificultad. ¿Estás dispuesto a asumir el reto con tu personaje favorito?
Lucas Special Moves update:
There’s a character named Ness who has appeared in the Smash Bros. series up until now, and Lucas is very similar.
いままでのスマブラシリーズに登場していた“ネス”という
キャラクターがいますが、リュカはそれに近いです。
Seguramente os acordaréis de Ness, un personaje que apareció en anteriores ediciones de Smash Bros. Pues bien, Lucas es muy parecido a él.
Whether you understand them or not, each one has a difference in tone and meaning. "Five levels" for each character or "five levels of different difficulty" set for everyone? "Up until now?" or "so far"? Each one has a similar point, but the ideas they convey, their connotation, vary,
Why wasn’t Sakurai simply more straightforward when it came to these updates if his intention was to reveal new information?
Are these Brawl updates really intended to satisfy us fans, or do they deny us certain things that make us crave them even more?
You "translate" it!
Labels: games, languages, smash bros
Hello all. My name is Yoshi/Gian. This blog will be my chance to interpret various subjects in different languages through translation.
For this time, I shall be focusing on the new Super Smash Bros. Brawl game soon to be released for the Nintendo Wii. Updates are posted daily at smashbros.com in different languages. Oftentimes, however, the meaning of certain things is lost in the translation. I shall try to retain those meanings and ideas here! :)
I'll also use this blog to write anything that comes to mind from languages to technology to games and more etc.
For this time, I shall be focusing on the new Super Smash Bros. Brawl game soon to be released for the Nintendo Wii. Updates are posted daily at smashbros.com in different languages. Oftentimes, however, the meaning of certain things is lost in the translation. I shall try to retain those meanings and ideas here! :)
I'll also use this blog to write anything that comes to mind from languages to technology to games and more etc.
