This is a common occurance in classic text-heavy games -- so mainly JRPGs -- but I feel this bears the question. What kinds of mistranslated text, weird interpretations of the original Japanese, and other similar stuff appeals to you in gaming?
Here's my answer: the Edincoat in Final Fantasy 7. When I first played this dieselpunk adventure, I assumed that this "Eden coat" mid-game armor was some kind of protective trench coat or a nice jacket. Y'know, something out of The Matrix or something. After all, the dopey fat ass Palmer* dropped it, so I assumed this was his fancy beige suit. It also helps that in Final Fantasy Tactics there were purses as a female-only joke weapon type, and FFT Advance also included some robes and dresses as designer wear armor.
But no actually, this was a mistranslation of Agincourt, something I'd only find out a decade later due to the Final Fantasy wiki. Interestingly for FFT, Agincourt was a famous battle site that turned the tide in the Hundred Years' War, which FFT used in its backstory to lead into its retelling of the War of the Roses. Albeit, only 50 years in FFT... easy for me to misremember which was real and which was the fantasy version. >_>
And fitting enough, the Protect Vest accessory in FF7 and its remake are bullet vests! Perhaps that's where I got the idea that this bracelet was outerwear?
A former friend of mine once felt the same way, and pointed it out as such, about the weird limitations to in-battle text in Breath of Fire 2. Let alone the infamous Ted Woolsey translations. Such strange translations cause you to use your imagination, just like the item names without imagery in your inventory.
Speaking of Woolsey. Given the orbs of white light for Holy in FF6's SNES version, I accept his forced censoring by Nintendo of America into "Pearl". This is my runner-up favorite mistranslation.
Your turn, folks. ;3
(*I also love that Palmer was a nepo baby manchild in FF7 Machinabridged. He's such a goober in the original too though, and I adore this idiot perhaps more than I should. :p)
Here's my answer: the Edincoat in Final Fantasy 7. When I first played this dieselpunk adventure, I assumed that this "Eden coat" mid-game armor was some kind of protective trench coat or a nice jacket. Y'know, something out of The Matrix or something. After all, the dopey fat ass Palmer* dropped it, so I assumed this was his fancy beige suit. It also helps that in Final Fantasy Tactics there were purses as a female-only joke weapon type, and FFT Advance also included some robes and dresses as designer wear armor.
But no actually, this was a mistranslation of Agincourt, something I'd only find out a decade later due to the Final Fantasy wiki. Interestingly for FFT, Agincourt was a famous battle site that turned the tide in the Hundred Years' War, which FFT used in its backstory to lead into its retelling of the War of the Roses. Albeit, only 50 years in FFT... easy for me to misremember which was real and which was the fantasy version. >_>
And fitting enough, the Protect Vest accessory in FF7 and its remake are bullet vests! Perhaps that's where I got the idea that this bracelet was outerwear?
A former friend of mine once felt the same way, and pointed it out as such, about the weird limitations to in-battle text in Breath of Fire 2. Let alone the infamous Ted Woolsey translations. Such strange translations cause you to use your imagination, just like the item names without imagery in your inventory.
Speaking of Woolsey. Given the orbs of white light for Holy in FF6's SNES version, I accept his forced censoring by Nintendo of America into "Pearl". This is my runner-up favorite mistranslation.
Your turn, folks. ;3
(*I also love that Palmer was a nepo baby manchild in FF7 Machinabridged. He's such a goober in the original too though, and I adore this idiot perhaps more than I should. :p)
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