Localizing Exclamations

"Gnhhh!"

"Whhhhaaaah!"

"Bah....ah....gahhhhhh..."

"Hmmmf!"

"Ehiehhh..."

"Mhaemm!"

These grunts, sighs, squeals and miscellaneous other vocalizations compose roughly 1/4 of the dialogues in the early hours of Final Fantasy XIII.

One one hand, they're to be expected; Japan is known for its plethora of exclamations and onomatopoeiae. On the other -- when translated literally -- they make for a poor localization.

These sounds are often louder and longer than their English counterparts, or they simply have no equivalents. As such, they're difficult to remove or replace and are usually left untouched. They've even become something of an accepted "quirk" among the more dedicated fans of Japanese media, but that doesn't mean they couldn't be handled in a friendlier fashion.

FFXIII_Oerba_Dia_Vanille_16_9_by_Quick_Stop

As things stand, vocalizations often come across as alien and awkward. They break the flow of conversation and the suspension of disbelief, and can leave a new audience feeling put off.

Sure, one can always argue for the purity and cultural authenticity of any given product, but that's being a bit of a stick in the mud. Literal translations lack context and social nuances, and those fully familiar with them might as well experience the original versions. In order to make the products easily digestible by a different audience, though, some things need to change. FF XIII in particular is a title Square Enix wanted to be a global blockbuster, not just a Japanese game released to a niche audience outside of its home country, so it stands to reason that they'd want to iron out these kinks.

So how can this be done?

A couple of points:

Of course there are more issues to consider as well -- perhaps toning down on the dramatic, clenched-fist poses with characters uttering such phrases as "I'll do my best!" -- but those are a whole other topic...

Radek Koncewicz is the CEO and creative lead of Incubator Games, and also runs the game design blog Significant-Bits.