[Try it] Cutscene Audio > Japanese

Oh, I also like Garuda English voice better

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Originally Posted by Ricky

Also Gaius English is WAY BETTER than Gaius Japanese, just imo

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I haven't heard Gaius in Japanese, but I tell you this: Gaius in English is horrible! You'll have to look far to find a more tryhard badguy voice that simply fails at it. I'm Norwegian so none of the languages ingame are native to me, but English is getting pretty close. I run the dialogue in French, simply because I find that those are the most fitting voiceactors in my opinion. And Gaius in French sound a great deal better than in English.

Just give us the english FFXII voice over team for the expansion and our suffering will end! English voice acting is so saturday morning anime and bad atm, there is 0 emotion to it.

Oh, this thread again.

All the classic buzzwords are even present! "Original JP Audio". "English subtitles" "English Dub" "JPs voice acting better" "More emotion" etc etc. This isn't anime, leave the anime logic where it belongs.

Fact: All four tracks were produced near simultaneously. So there's no "original JP audio". Furthermore, as someone above said, the English version of the game isn't a direct translation, but rather it's localized. (if you don't know the difference, a simple Google search will tell). This means the "English subs" aren't really subs at all. They've nothing to do with the Japanese audio, or any of the others for that matter. They adhere to the English localization only.

It's interesting how a lot of people claim that the JP audio is superior, when majority don't know the nuances of the language, yet I see things like "the emotion is so much better". The only things these people are responding to are the exotic foreign accents (like someone else mentioned above), and not the actual content. Fact of the matter is, MUCH LIKE THE ENGLISH VERSION, the JP audio is embellished and overacted and cheesy sounding. The fact that Yoshida made the remark about JPs switching to the English audio is a testament to that. They are ignorant about the nuances of English, much like NA's are ignorant to the nuances of JP, and therefore claim the foreign one sounds "better". This isn't just between JP/EN audio though...interestingly enough, a French friend of mine claimed the same thing about the FR audio...that it's cheesy, overly acted...so he switched to the English audio. lol


The problem with all four voice overs imo, isn't the acting itself, but rather, the way it was produced. The cut scenes were written with a textual output, not with voice acting in mind, so the voice acting is pretty much like they're reading an audiobook, not like an actual TV/movie script. Take..for example, when Minfilia uses transitional words such as "However..." Who actually speaks like that? Lol

Other things that are missing, aside from the clunky text, is the absence of proper body language and sounds. Simple things like "Ah!" or "oh" or a chuckle here or there, is missing..so we get a lot of awkward "readings" without any feeling in them, then more awkward silence as the cutscene shifts to the next voiced text. It's all just really really bad design.

There is a small part where Minfilia's FR voice actor did a small chuckle, which was even more jarring because while it sounded natural audio-wise, her body nor mouth reflected it XD So I do believe the voice actors in all four languages were limited by the design of the cutscenes themselves.

I hope that all made sense.

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Originally Posted by Vilhem

Oh, this thread again.

All the classic buzzwords are even present! "Original JP Audio". "English subtitles" "English Dub" "JPs voice acting better" "More emotion" etc etc. This isn't anime, leave the anime logic where it belongs.

Fact: All four tracks were produced near simultaneously. So there's no "original JP audio". Furthermore, as someone above said, the English version of the game isn't a direct translation, but rather it's localized. (if you don't know the difference, a simple Google search will tell). This means the "English subs" aren't really subs at all. They've nothing to do with the Japanese audio, or any of the others for that matter. They adhere to the English localization only.

It's interesting how a lot of people claim that the JP audio is superior, when majority don't know the nuances of the language, yet I see things like "the emotion is so much better". The only things these people are responding to are the exotic foreign accents (like someone else mentioned above), and not the actual content. Fact of the matter is, MUCH LIKE THE ENGLISH VERSION, the JP audio is embellished and overacted and cheesy sounding. The fact that Yoshida made the remark about JPs switching to the English audio is a testament to that. They are ignorant about the nuances of English, much like NA's are ignorant to the nuances of JP, and therefore claim the foreign one sounds "better". This isn't just between JP/EN audio though...interestingly enough, a French friend of mine claimed the same thing about the FR audio...that it's cheesy, overly acted...so he switched to the English audio. lol


The problem with all four voice overs imo, isn't the acting itself, but rather, the way it was produced. The cut scenes were written with a textual output, not with voice acting in mind, so the voice acting is pretty much like they're reading an audiobook, not like an actual TV/movie script. Take..for example, when Minfilia uses transitional words such as "However..." Who actually speaks like that? Lol

Other things that are missing, aside from the clunky text, is the absence of proper body language and sounds. Simple things like "Ah!" or "oh" or a chuckle here or there, is missing..so we get a lot of awkward "readings" without any feeling in them, then more awkward silence as the cutscene shifts to the next voiced text. It's all just really really bad design.

There is a small part where Minfilia's FR voice actor did a small chuckle, which was even more jarring because while it sounded natural audio-wise, her body nor mouth reflected it XD So I do believe the voice actors in all four languages were limited by the design of the cutscenes themselves.

I hope that all made sense.

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Well, I speak and understand both English and Japanese, but I am neither, since not everyone here is American. What language should I prefer, then?

I can safely say that, in videogames and anime, Japanese dubbing is usually better for a very simple reason: budget.

When you have to localize, you are allocating budget in order to hire actors - and most of the time, since you have to localize into different languages (thus diluting the total budget for "Localization") you won't be able to hire local top-class voices - and the result will most likely be poorer than the original version.

I've been working for a videogame localization firm for years (that actually had something to do with this game as well), so I have a bit of knowledge on the matter.

Obviously, if you are fluent in one or more of the said languages, then it doesn't apply to you..since you DO have the understanding of the language. -_- figured that would be a no-brainer :p

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Originally Posted by Vilhem

Obviously, if you are fluent in one or more of the said languages, then it doesn't apply to you..since you DO have the understanding of the language. -_- figured that would be a no-brainer :p

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Still, by your previous reasoning that does not explain why I find Japanese better 99% of the time :P

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Originally Posted by Vilhem

Oh, this thread again.

All the classic buzzwords are even present! "Original JP Audio". "English subtitles" "English Dub" "JPs voice acting better" "More emotion" etc etc. This isn't anime, leave the anime logic where it belongs.

Fact: All four tracks were produced near simultaneously. So there's no "original JP audio". Furthermore, as someone above said, the English version of the game isn't a direct translation, but rather it's localized. (if you don't know the difference, a simple Google search will tell). This means the "English subs" aren't really subs at all. They've nothing to do with the Japanese audio, or any of the others for that matter. They adhere to the English localization only.

It's interesting how a lot of people claim that the JP audio is superior, when majority don't know the nuances of the language, yet I see things like "the emotion is so much better". The only things these people are responding to are the exotic foreign accents (like someone else mentioned above), and not the actual content. Fact of the matter is, MUCH LIKE THE ENGLISH VERSION, the JP audio is embellished and overacted and cheesy sounding. The fact that Yoshida made the remark about JPs switching to the English audio is a testament to that. They are ignorant about the nuances of English, much like NA's are ignorant to the nuances of JP, and therefore claim the foreign one sounds "better". This isn't just between JP/EN audio though...interestingly enough, a French friend of mine claimed the same thing about the FR audio...that it's cheesy, overly acted...so he switched to the English audio. lol


The problem with all four voice overs imo, isn't the acting itself, but rather, the way it was produced. The cut scenes were written with a textual output, not with voice acting in mind, so the voice acting is pretty much like they're reading an audiobook, not like an actual TV/movie script. Take..for example, when Minfilia uses transitional words such as "However..." Who actually speaks like that? Lol

Other things that are missing, aside from the clunky text, is the absence of proper body language and sounds. Simple things like "Ah!" or "oh" or a chuckle here or there, is missing..so we get a lot of awkward "readings" without any feeling in them, then more awkward silence as the cutscene shifts to the next voiced text. It's all just really really bad design.

There is a small part where Minfilia's FR voice actor did a small chuckle, which was even more jarring because while it sounded natural audio-wise, her body nor mouth reflected it XD So I do believe the voice actors in all four languages were limited by the design of the cutscenes themselves.

I hope that all made sense.

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Yep I agree with all of that. SE need to step up their localisation efforts in general. Been a huge downgrade since PS2 era for who knows what reasons. Even FFXIII had super dry acting.

I am bilingual Spanish/English, and most of the time I prefer Spanish audio on my media. I would think it's just a preference, albeit one made WITH the understanding of the language, and not just going off by how "cool" it sounds without understanding a single word :p

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Originally Posted by Kule

Yep I agree with all of that. SE need to step up their localisation efforts in general. Been a huge downgrade since PS2 era for who knows what reasons. Even FFXIII had super dry acting.

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Are you sure they "need" to do that?

Keep in mind that developing games has a cost, and costs now are incredibly higher than how they were just a few years ago.

It's only reasonable to cut down costs where less "needed" - and unfortunately the localization process is not an essential part of a game like this.

After all, people will most likely play a MMO regardless of its translation, considering how many people skip dialogues altogether anyway because OMG NEED LEVELS.

When VO has taken a hit in all of their games something is wrong and yes they need to fix it. In terms of localisation Vagrant Story and FFXII were massive steps forward and seemingly lost to SE as a whole.

This is also true. I almost feel like if they're just gonna half-ass the voice acting, they shouldn't include it at all. Having FOUR voiced languages spreads them even thinner. I think the game would do perfectly fine without it.

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Originally Posted by Vilhem

This is also true. I almost feel like if they're just gonna half-ass the voice acting, they shouldn't include it at all. Having FOUR voiced languages spreads them even thinner. I think the game would do perfectly fine without it.

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Well, you would be suprised by HOW MANY players do not speak English, even in 2014.

In some European countries, like French or Italy, people are used to have localized media all the time (movies in threatres are ALWAYS dubbed, for example). I can assure you that a game in one of those countries will sell A LOT less if it's not available in their local language.

Developers take this into account, and try to estimate whether localizing costs will be justified by an increase in sales. Of course, most people do not really understand quality - or are not bothered by the lack of it, as long as they understand what's being said. So, as long as the dialogues are understandable, everything is cool.

Sadly this is how the industry works nowadays :/

Yes, I'm aware of that. I've been a strong supporter on here about getting a Spanish version localized. Fact of the matter is, right now 4 languages are localized, and 4 voice overs were made, and while I do see the intent of this, the voice acting itself feels unfinished and clunky in general. The game text itself is just wonderful though (I've played a little bit of the French one and I do enjoy a lot of the subtle differences between the languages)

Yes, I get what you mean.

Unfortunately I am not allowed to talk much about this matter, but I can say this: more often than not, localization processes are damn hard. The biggest issue? Time constraints. You have to deliver the product on time because the game is being released - and developers usually do not understand all the stuff that proper dubbing requires. It's not like dubbing movies - sometimes videogame dubbers do not even have cutscenes to refer to, basically working blindly.
This results in the VO being rushed because the developers want the final product on their desk, f*** quality, who cares.

Just sayin', cause it's not like localizers / dubbers are stupid and incompetent - they usually tend to do their best given the amount of resources they are granted, that's all.

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Originally Posted by Vilhem

Fact: All four tracks were produced near simultaneously. So there's no "original JP audio". Furthermore, as someone above said, the English version of the game isn't a direct translation, but rather it's localized. (if you don't know the difference, a simple Google search will tell). This means the "English subs" aren't really subs at all. They've nothing to do with the Japanese audio, or any of the others for that matter. They adhere to the English localization only.

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Yeah, this. I may prefer the Japanese voices but acting like the English track is somehow sullying the purity of the original story is stupid, the English localisation team is based in Japan and helps write the main script, the Japanese and English versions are equally "the original version".

Right that's kinda what I was getting at. Everything just felt rushed and limited (limited text, limited options for voice actors etc). Just bad design translating from text based cutscene to voice acting without proper scripting. :/

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Originally Posted by FJerome

Yeah, this. I may prefer the Japanese voices but acting like the English track is somehow sullying the purity of the original story is stupid, the English localisation team is based in Japan and helps write the main script, the Japanese and English versions are equally "the original version".

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I think most of the complaints concern the dubbin rather than the translation. The English translation has some very neat little gems.

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Originally Posted by Vilhem

Right that's kinda what I was getting at. Everything just felt rushed and limited (limited text, limited options for voice actors etc). Just bad design translating from text based cutscene to voice acting without proper scripting. :/

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Yes, this is a perfect example of what I wrote earlier - SE needed this game to be more "widespread" in countries with not many English-speaking players. Quality was not really a concern, since more quality would NOT have meant more income, so basically who cares?

It's perfectly reasonable from a business point of view - of course it would be annoying for some..but still, who cares? People complaining bought the game already, and it's unlikely that they will stop subscribing because some foreign language has not been dubbed properly :P

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Originally Posted by Kule

When VO has taken a hit in all of their games something is wrong and yes they need to fix it. In terms of localisation Vagrant Story and FFXII were massive steps forward and seemingly lost to SE as a whole.

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That's really more just because Alexander O. Smith is a genius than it is anything else and he's since left the company.

(No offence to the current localisation team, you guys are brilliant too.)

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Originally Posted by FJerome

That's really more just because Alexander O. Smith is a genius than it is anything else and he's since left the company.

(No offence to the current localisation team, you guys are brilliant too.)

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Well, actual localization and dubbing are often outsourced anyway, so it's not really relevant in many cases :P