the difference in between english version and japanese version of scripts

[Lanceton]

it seems to me that the english version of in game text is often far more lore-rich with better literature level while the japanese version feels like a lousy translation job...

take the first description that made me feel this way as an example, the description of Legacy Chocobo:
English - "Five years and a realm-shaking Calamity were not enough to break the bonds between you and your loyal steed. A single whistle and he will be at your side once again."
Japanese - "時を越えて巡り会った名チョコボ (the chocobo you meet again across the time)"

after 2.3 the japanese version has the text kind of expanded in the mount list - "賢者ルイゾワの秘術によって、次元の狭間へと送られていた冒険者が、5年の時を越えて巡り会った名チョコボ。長らく主なしで放浪の旅を続けていたらしく、たくましさと独特の風格を兼ね備えている"
still feels like a lousy effort just to expand the original text...

perhaps it's just a preference thing, but things like this are all over the place which made me wonder what's the story behind it.

has anyone discussed about this before?

[Torquil]

I'm not an expert, but I've read articles on localization etc. that suggest this is not uncommon. It kinda stems from cultural expectations. English speakers are far more explicit in their communication, whereas Japanese is very implicit. Especially in large, lore-rich games like this there is often a fair bit of embellishment and fleshing out of detail in the localization process.

[Charmin]

I've read articles on localization etc. that suggest this is not uncommon. It kinda stems from cultural expectations. English speakers are far more explicit in their communication, whereas Japanese is very implicit. Especially in large, lore-rich games like this there is often a fair bit of embellishment and fleshing out of detail in the localization process.

Thanks for that, you reminded me of an article I read when Wings of the Goddess was released for XI. It went a bit into the localization and why it was done. The Japanese name for the expansion was, directly translated, "Divine Soldiers of Altana". However, that name caters to the directness of Japanese and the - as you mentioned - implicit understanding that those soldiers were what lifted her up. However, to English speakers, it sounds a lot more fanciful, "epic", and mysterious if the implication of the Japanese name was just explicitly stated as the title "Wings of the Goddess".

[Anonymoose]

Torquil is definitely right about it being partly a cultural thing; Japan has a knack for conciseness. On top of this, English is also a very versatile language, and on top of both of those things, the English localization team, since the very launch of the game, has had a reputation in every region for going above and beyond in their content and style. We're quite fortunate, imho.

Also keep in mind that different languages have different text, but still have to use the same number of text bubbles. You know when you scroll "pages" of the speech bubble by mashing a button? If Japanese uses 10 plates, English must use 10 plates... and if Japanese was concise, English either has to have a ton of short plates, or has to have fun fleshing out some filler.

[TinyRedLeaf]

I think it'll be interesting, in general, to compare the text of every version — Japanese, French, German, English, and Chinese (?) — but I'm not sure if the English sub-forum is the best place for it.

As for the apparent "paucity" in the flavour of Japanese text, as everyone else has pointed out, it's a cultural nuance that gets lost in translation.

Anyone who has studied the language, or who has read and viewed a fair bit of manga or anime, would know that a great deal of meaning in Japanese has to be found in between the lines. Many things are often left unsaid and deliberately left ambiguous, but enough clues are usually given for audiences to guess what was really meant.

Admittedly, you'd probably have to be very familiar with the cultural cues to spot the clues.

Take the famous Japanese 17-syllable haiku, for example. To most foreigners reading the translated versions of the poems, the intent and beauty of the composition would be lost on them, since many of them appear to describe very mundane, everyday scenes.

I, for one, would be very interested to read the Chinese localisation of the text. Many Westerners may think the languages are similar, but just because Chinese and Japanese share similar writing systems doesn't mean concepts are conveyed in the same manner.

In fact, Chinese can be even more concise than Japanese, while at the same time appear more flowery — or even bombastic — to non-Chinese readers or listeners.

[Alice_89th]

First off, I have no idea what is translated to what, or what was the Source Text.

The scenario writers are Japanese, so I am assuming most of the scenario is translated from Japanese to English (and other languages).
But we know that Fern was the one who created the Sylph language, so there are at least some parts that are translated the other way around.
And depending of how they work things might even go back and forth for a while before a final decision is made.

Second, there are a lot of things in the game that are very culture specific. Just think about all the references to songs, tv shows, books, proverbs, etc etc in the names of quests and fates (and sometimes items). We probably wouldn't understand a lot of the Japanese references, while a lot of the English references might be lost on non English speakers. I have no experience with the French and German versions but it is very likely they will have cultural references as well. Simply translating those references would likely make no sense to those reading the translation. So instead many translators opt to replace references with something that their audience will understand. The more you do this the more you approach transcreation as opposed to translation. (a term that was also used, if not coined, by one of the translators of FFX if I am not mistaken).

And, like others mention, different languages work in different ways, and different cultures expect different things. A translation needs to be adapted to appear natural.

[StarDrake]

FFXIV is also somewhat unique in that the localization lead, Michael "Fernehalwes" Koji-Fox, is also one of the primary world designers. He's not the only one and all of the scenario writers are Japanese, but he's been involved with the world since its conception and is in a position to slip in a lot of details with authority where other localization teams might not have quite that much "freedom".

That said, this isn't the first time I've heard about the comparative sparseness of the Japanese text and how the Japanese sometimes feels almost like a translation of the English and not the other way around. (There are other things, such as the Scholar spell names, which make it enormously clear this isn't the case, but.) I do wonder if the Japanese team should perhaps be a little more free with the details in their flavor text.

[Saikou]

The more conversational translation for Wings would have been "Crusaders of Altana," which has unfortunate religious implications.

I also remember "Chains of Promathia" being "The Curse of Promathia," which has led me to believe that, regardless of whatever has been said, names changed in localization were changed to generate interest in what the title actually refers to. The funny thing about Wings is that the goddess doesn't even get talked about much when both japanese and english titles reference her. Chains is definitely a more mysterious thing, since Promathia's mythology involves both literal and metaphorical chains. I don't remember if Treasures differed, but I'm pretty sure Zilart did - though I don't remember the Japanese title.

[StarDrake]

ファイナルファンタジータXI ジラートの幻影.

幻影 is most commonly translated as "Phantom", so it would be something like "Phantom of the Zilart".