This frequency of English localization issues is unacceptable

[AziraSyuren]

It seems like the localization was more focused on delivering the dialogue in a more poetic/Shakespearean flair than communicating the information in a concise and accurate way, which is fine when it's not something particularly important and I do admit that it adds a nice oomph to the dialogue. It's only particularly egregious in this case because it presents Hydaelyn in a better light than she deserves, and if it was the only example of such then I doubt anyone would even care. Taking liberties is really not that big of a deal, and sometimes it can make a translation even better (or at least more emotionally resonant) than the original.

Here, however, it just compounds a lot of issues that were already present.

[Shibi]

THAT’S WHAT I’M SAYING LIKE why is the localization team straight making shit up now?!

Also I doubt the team was ever good. Apparently issues like this go back to ARR.

The way the NA developers screw up the story time and time and time and time again is a big reason on why I skip their secondary story and silly localisations.

I can never really forgive how they neutered Haurchefant.

But it's getting worse under the new Localisation lead (who was a contractor until they pulled Koji and Soken and more off onto FFXVI). She isn't that great in keeping the story true to the original.

[Xirean]

I'm assuming this thread is one of them.
and it's the usual suspects AS USUAL.

Sounds like you have a grievance their friend. Have you considered forging ahead?

[hagare]

Sounds like you have a grievance their friend. Have you considered forging ahead?

nah. I'll just make some more popcorn

[KageTokage]

I see a lot of people saying that the "The differences don't matter in the grand scheme of things", but I feel like it's still important for the enjoyment of a story to ensure that every localization is presenting dialogue with a similar enough context, tone, and wording that the different audiences are able to walk away with a unified impression.

IE, I've seen many who did not draw the connection that the WoL is Azem's reincarnation until 5.3, and that small difference of Emet Selch saying "It can't be..." vs. "You? It can't be..." is enough to get mental gears turning that might not have otherwise. It also makes it much more apparent that up until that moment he didn't actually realize precisely who we were, and I've likewise seen people chiding him for being extra terrible for behaving the way he did in the aftermath of the Innocence fight with the mistaken impression he already knew our soul's original identity but just didn't care anymore.

[VirusOnline]

The FR ver of the Elidibus death scene is nowhere near as flowery as the EN one, though... so many important lines by important characters are restructured to be stated so vaguely (Elidibus) or straight up lacking information (Midgard) in their quest to come up with cool-sounding one-liners. Or you have them making Y'shtola talk about the "havoc we've seen Zodiark's power wreak" which makes absolutely no sense because no, we haven't seen anything like that, or the mental gymnastics of "Hydaelyn prevented the final days by keeping Zodiark alive." They're both trying to get a point across, alright... the point being they're trying to tell us how GOOD GOOD GOOD Hydaelyn is and how BAD BAD BAD Zodiark is instead of showing us. They turned important lines into moments of literary weakness.

this is more of a story issue than a localisation issue, no ?

i also agree with shibi above in that more and more i'm tending to skip dialogue because honestly it's just become eh

[Xirean]

I see a lot of people saying that the "The differences don't matter in the grand scheme of things", but I feel like it's still important for the enjoyment of a story to ensure that every localization is presenting dialogue with a similar enough context, tone, and wording that the different audiences are able to walk away with a unified impression.

IE, I've seen many who did not draw the connection that the WoL is Azem's reincarnation until 5.3, and that small difference of Emet Selch saying "It can't be..." vs. "You? It can't be..." is enough to get mental gears turning that might not have otherwise. It also makes it much more apparent that up until that moment he didn't actually realize precisely who we were, and I've likewise seen people chiding him for being extra terrible for behaving the way he did in the aftermath of the Innocence fight with the mistaken impression he already knew our soul's original identity but just didn't care anymore.

This is a really spot on breakdown. The Emet point is a perfect example of the issue. If the intention of the writers is that he only knew at that exact moment then it shouldn't be something left to question "When did he know who the WoL was?" which is an actual conversation I've had with friends and FC mates because I didn't know there was an alternate line that makes it VERY clear when that moment was.

[Amenara]

I can understand the complaint a little, but at the same I feel like the english localization more or less conveys the same story from the examples I read in here. I feel like the big thing is you have to look at how the story is conveyed as a whole through localization vs using snippets of text and comparing the scenes. I don't know how the story was localized and conveyed as a whole in the other versions of the game so I have no frame of reference to compare the english localization to anything else as a whole.

If the complaint is about the story, then there is the 500+ page thread that is there for a reason.

[Fiel_Tana]

As an aside, maybe we should get an American English localisation and a British English localisation. I want to read favourite rather than favorite in dialogue.

I've often wondered why it's written in American English when most of the voice actors are British.

[Raoabolic]

It seems like the localization was more focused on delivering the dialogue in a more poetic/Shakespearean flair than communicating the information in a concise and accurate way, which is fine when it's not something particularly important and I do admit that it adds a nice oomph to the dialogue. It's only particularly egregious in this case because it presents Hydaelyn in a better light than she deserves, and if it was the only example of such then I doubt anyone would even care. Taking liberties is really not that big of a deal, and sometimes it can make a translation even better (or at least more emotionally resonant) than the original.

Here, however, it just compounds a lot of issues that were already present.

That's just localization. Getting an actual translation is rare now a days, lol.