Puyo Pop Fever localization question
What's the team's stance on Puyo Pop Fever's localization job? Is it a trainwreck? Is a literal translation? Does it take liberties? Are those liberties any good? What about Amitie's catchphrases? Do they have any root in the original Japanese? I'd like to know because I really find it fascinating.
As a team, we don’t have one clear stance on Puyo Pop Fever’s localization. Every member who has played the game has their own opinion on it (our head translator has actually played neither of the Fever games, so she can’t exactly give her opinion in depth).
But for the record, all translations must take some liberties, or the dialogue will be stilted and run the risk losing the intent of the line by being too literal.
So Puyo Pop Fever does indeed take liberties, but the original intent usually remains.
Here’s some translations from the WakuWaku and HaraHara openings along with the Japanese transcript with our translation for you to compare to the English localization:
Japanese Transcript WakuWaku: こんにちわ！ あたしアミティ！！
ステキな魔道士になるために魔道学校で勉強中なの
でも 今日 、 のんきに勉強なんてしている場合じゃないみたい
Japanese Amitie: Hello! I’m Amitie!!
I’m currently studying at the Magic School so I can become a fantastic magician!
But it looks like there’s no time for studying today.
(Literally: But it doesn’t look like today’s the day to be studying carefreely.)
Localization Amitie: Hello! The name’s Amitie!!
I’m hitting the books hard to become a wonderful magic user.
But today isn’t the day for studying.
As you can see, the only detail they dropped in the localization was that Amitie is studying at a school, but the content and intentions remain the same.
Japanese Transcript HaraHara: まったく、 わるいジョーダんだわ・・・
あの、どんくさいアミティに先をこされるなんて・・・
でも、 いい女 は あわてないのよ
あわてず さわがず 先まわり！
Japanese Raffina: Sheesh, you’ve got to be kidding me… (Literally: What a bad joke…)
How did that clumsy Amitie manage to get ahead of me…
But, good ladies never panic.
They get ahead without panicking or making a fuss!
Localization Raffina: Now that was in poor taste…
Letting that irritating Amitie go on ahead…
But we proper ladies never lose our composure.
Calmly, coolly, always a step ahead of the game!
As for Amitie’s speech pattern and quirky catchphrases, they do have basis in the Japanese! They’re just localized to give her a stronger personality in English.
Here’s a few of Amitie’s catchphrases and how they were localized, we’ve
included their literal meaning in Japanese for you to look at as well:
- やった ね！ (yatta ne) = Wicked!
- Lit. Hooray!
- えい (ei) = Yup!
- Lit. Take that! / Here!
- いく よ (iku yo) = Go!
- Lit. Let’s go!
- もっと いく よ (motto iku yo) = Go go!
- Lit. Let’s keep going!
- せの (se no) = Ready, steady, go!
- Lit. One, two! or Ready, set!
- いきます (ikimasu) = Watch me now!
- Lit. Here I go!
- イエイ (iei) = You betcha!
- Lit. Yay!
- ばたんきゅう (batankyuu) = Aw, phooey…
- Lit. Zonked… (an onomatopoeia for “going out like a light”)
- ばっちぐー (bacchiguu) = Goody goody!
- Lit. Perfect! (a phrase akin to “bacchiri”, it indicates that everything is perfect or right on the mark)
- ありゃりゃ・・・ (aryarya) = Fiddlesticks…
- Lit. Oh no…
For comparison’s sake, here’s Raffina’s. You can see that many more liberties were taken with hers:
- それ (sore) = Exactly!
- Lit. there!
- うふふ (ufufu) = Precisely!
- Lit. (giggling laughter)
- まだまだよ (madamada yo)= More to come!
- Lit. It’s not over yet!
- いくわよ (iku wa yo) = Don’t you know it!
- Lit. Here I go!
- あいて に なる かしら？(aite ni naru kashira?) = Are you a worthy opponent?
- Lit. Are you planning on being my opponent?
- おほほ！(ohoho!) = I’m good!
- Lit. (haughty laughter)
- やったわね! (yatta wa ne) = N-nice one!
- Lit. You got me!
- きゃ！(kya!) = Really nice!
- Lit. Eek! (shrieking sound)
- やる までも なかった わね (yaru mademo nakatta wa ne) = Not worth the trouble!
- Lit. I hardly had to do anything at all!
- な、なにか まちがいよ = Oh…la-ti-da!
- Lit. Th-There must be some sort of mistake!