Worst Fan Translations

[Danteh]

Have you guys encountered some poorly made fan translations?
In 2021 i found a fan translation for Yu Gi Oh Tag Force 6 for the PSP. It looked pretty ''normal'' because it was a work in progress translation, and not everything was fully translated, like some of the dialogues and cards. One of the dialogues of some of the characters seemed so out of character, like when you defeat Chazz and it says ''Fuck!'' or Yubel saying ''I'm a dude by the way'' and some crazy stuff. In the last year, i found out that it was a old fan translation that got re-translated and more faithful translation.

And sorry for my poor english is not my native language if this thread is something against the rules i delete this inmediatly

 

[Eclipse14]

Vietnamese Crystal.

If you know, you know.

 

[Strategist]

Yeah, I've seen plenty of fan translations of JRPGs that take such liberties and add a bunch of swearwords. From what I understand about Japanese, the language doesn't have as much variations of curse words as English and the few ones that exist could be translated as heavier words if the translator chooses to do so. But context matters, so it isn't considered correct translation in many situations.

 

[RageBurner]

A lot of J2E's output. Yes, they were important in their time, but accuracy was never a concern, and it showed.

 

[Stingy Perry]

You may come across such translations every once in a while especially the early versions. It’s a lot better than not getting translated at all.

 

[RageBurner]

You may come across such translations every once in a while especially the early versions. It’s a lot better than not getting translated at all.

While I don't disagree, it's no excuse to insert made up stuff or profanities where there weren't any in the original script.

 

[Strategist]

While I don't disagree, it's no excuse to insert made up stuff or profanities where there weren't any in the original script.

I don't think it is necessarily making stuff up. Most of the times it is liberal interpretations of the word "kuzo". That word can range from something as light as poo, damn or brat to heavy stuff like fuck or shit. It is hard to know what the right interpretation is without context. Sometimes the context is obvious but not always.

"Kuso" literally means "poo" or "shit" and serves as a jack-of-all-trades in Japanese profanity. As a standalone exclamation, "Kuso!" is equivalent to yelling "Damn!" or "Shit!" when frustrated. It's relatively mild, common in casual settings or media.

But "kuso" truly shines in its role as an adjective. Slap it in front of another word, and you've instantly created a Japanese insult. Take クソガキ (kusogaki) for example. By combining "kuso" with "gaki" (brat), you've crafted the delightful phrase "shitty brat."

Source: https://lingopie.com/blog/learn-japanese-curse-words-and-expressions-with-context

 

[RageBurner]

I do understand that usage, but they took a lot script liberties and just added things that don't belong in general, the profanity isn't the only point. I'll see if I can source a side by side to better illustrate what I mean.

Legends of Localization: Which Final Fantasy IV Translation Should You Play?

There's a new Final Fantasy IV translation every 3 or 4 years. Which is best?

legendsoflocalization.com

Not trying to diss on J2E here, they were important at breaking new ground, but it doesn't mean things aren't inaccurate, awkward or just plain stupid in places, much like Working Designs' stuff on the professional translation arena.

 

[Num]

when it comes to the yugioh tag force translations it was a meme translation and they just inserted a bunch of random shit regardless of the original which is where theres so much excess language. like i remember yugis grandpa talking about diddling kids

 

[RageBurner]

I believe that translation was revised and is actually proper at this point.

 

[Cu-Neo]

I remember this interesting line in DeJap Tales of Phantasia (snes) fan translation

 

[RageBurner]

I remember this interesting line in DeJap Tales of Phantasia (snes) fan translation
View attachment 11727

So... on all fours?

Seriously, though, I wish every game had a thorough side by side script comparison as Chrono Compendium has for CT.

 

[Strategist]

I remember this interesting line in DeJap Tales of Phantasia (snes) fan translation

That... cannot be right. lmao.

 

[Cu-Neo]

That... cannot be right. lmao.

https://legendsoflocalization.com/articles/tales-phantasia-boat-scene/

That article is a whole bible explaining things

 

[RageBurner]

https://legendsoflocalization.com/articles/tales-phantasia-boat-scene/

Thanks! I'm glad the stupid pre-pubescent humor has been mostly left behind in fan translations now.

 

[Strategist]

https://legendsoflocalization.com/articles/tales-phantasia-boat-scene/

That article is a whole bible explaining things

This is why we don't let teenagers do the work of professionals. lol. I bet they added that line just to amuse themselves.

 

[RageBurner]

This is why we don't let teenagers do the work of professionals. lol.

Indeed! the power of being able to do something is a dangerous thing, at times.

 

[bjork]

Not a game, but the original fan translations for Jojo part 4 manga. If you know, you know.

 

[RageBurner]

Not a game, but the original fan translations for Jojo part 4 manga. If you know, you know.

I'm going out of a limb and say they were even more outlandish and absurd than Jojo already is?

 

[bjork]

I'm going out of a limb and say they were even more outlandish and absurd than Jojo already is?

174 chapters that read like this (linked bc it's huge and I don't want to mess the page alignment up): https://tsuzukusekai.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/what_a_beautiful_duwang.jpg

 

[RageBurner]

Not a lot leaves me at a loss for words, but this has.

 

[demiurge]

Frontier Gate Boost+ an English Machine Translation by 1vierock.
There are several errors, especially in the capital letter for example the word : bACK, mENU.

 

[RageBurner]

Frontier Gate Boost+ an English Machine Translation by 1vierock.
There are several errors, especially in the capital letter for example the word : bACK, mENU.

I'm waiting for this one to be refined in a second or even third pass before I even try it.

 

[Karnik]

I remember a first, bizarre translation of Der Langrisser (snes) by Langfando-something into a "zombienglish", where articles, verbs, subjects, and adjectives seemed mixed and placed randomly in the sentence.

 

[RageBurner]

I remember a first, bizarre translation of Der Langrisser (snes) by Langfando-something into a "zombienglish", where articles, verbs, subjects, and adjectives seemed mixed and placed randomly in the sentence.

Oh yeah, that was terrible LOL