It’s cowboys and robots in this edition of the breakdown of Live A Live’s 20-year-old fan translation. Both chapters are on the shorter side, but have some idiosyncrasies of Japanese to talk about.
Author: Anthony
Living the Live A Live Life: Part 4 (Kung Fu)
Set in historical China, the kung fu chapter contains thematically-appropriate Chinese text even in Japan. But was leaving it untranslated the right choice for Aeon Genesis’ patch?
Living the Live A Live Life: Part 3 (Oboromaru)
Set during the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate, the shinobi-focused chapter is filled with regular Japanese words that weren’t localized at all, even in names!
Living the Live A Live Life: Part 2 (Masaru)
To become the strongest, our worldly warrior will have to face off against the best fighters in each discipline. References to real-world fighters and martial arts abound!
Living the Live A Live Life: Part 1 (Pogo)
The first chapter of this ancient JRPG is set in a time before language, and all information is communicated with sound effects!
Why ‘Dynamic’, ‘Cabbage’, & ‘Yashigani’ Are Insults for Anime
Three of the most notorious animation failures in history have been immortalized as Japanese slang.
Translating “Dilly-Dally, Shilly-Shally” Was a Drag
Tifa’s iconic line from Advent Children was originally a type of adjective that’s much rarer in English.
999’s First Puzzle is Completely Different in Japanese
Localizers couldn’t preserve the original puzzle and have it be solvable by western audiences.
Harvest Moon 64 Gives This Dog a Hand? Huh?!
When you show Popuri your dog, why does she say ‘hand’?