Has anyone ever translated Quiz King of Fighters?
- Thread starter MattBlah
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't a lot of the questions in this game related to Japanese culture? Quiz games usually don't get translations since they require more than a direct translation to work well as a game. For a recent example, the quiz DLC in Ace Attorney Dual Destinies got skipped over because of this.
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There is some truth to that, but it applies far less to Quiz KOF then it does to the other 3 quiz carts. Truthfully, it doesn't matter what you translate the text to say. We don't need a translator to make the game understandable, rather we need it to make the game playable; and more enjoyable.
All we need is someone to figure out the key positions in the rom files of where all the text of the questions & answers are stored. Then, using carefull hex editing, implement English (or any other language) text in place of it.
Questions could be about anything. Neogeo trivia. General trivia. Video game history trivia. Sports trivia. Etc. The sky would be the limit.
All we need is someone to figure out the key positions in the rom files of where all the text of the questions & answers are stored. Then, using carefull hex editing, implement English (or any other language) text in place of it.
Questions could be about anything. Neogeo trivia. General trivia. Video game history trivia. Sports trivia. Etc. The sky would be the limit.
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If someone were to get me the Japanese plaintext I could do a mediocre job on it.
Sikleflaming
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Was originally going to reply that this was a silly undertaking: directly translated the game would be nearly unplayable by a westerner because of how Japanese-specific most Japanese quiz games are, and if someone were to put western-answerable trivia in there it would really cease to be the same game, and there's no point in doing that instead of just taking those questions and making your own little simple neo-geo trivia game.
But I just looked up some footage and my god this game is beautiful, not a lot of movement but the sprite art is next level, I can see why someone would want to play this
But I just looked up some footage and my god this game is beautiful, not a lot of movement but the sprite art is next level, I can see why someone would want to play this
xsq
Thou Shalt Not, Question Rot.,
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...unless it was remade with KOF & Neo Geo trivia...
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A lot of them tend to be old pop culture references or questions about baseball players and such.
Sikleflaming
Quiz Detective
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I didn't do it on purpose, but I kind of did this. Most of the old quiz games have categories, and years and years ago while playing through a partially translated version of Nanairo Dreams I actually managed to get most of the "anime and manga" questions. Some of that shit really is obscure, though, even for my adolescent nerd ass.
Anyway long story short Saki Kanebou for MvC:I
xsq
Thou Shalt Not, Question Rot.,
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rethorical. you know the answer is "of course".
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It looks like others have already pointed out some of the difficulties that would be encountered if a direct translation of this game were to be attempted. Despite being able to read the japanese text myself, the multitude of sports, environment/geography, and pop culture questions usually halt any steady progress I am able to make in this game.
I agree that the sprite work is really cool and I like a lot of the original sprites that were created just for this game. The title is worth messing around with just to see some of the funny expressions of the characters.
I agree that the sprite work is really cool and I like a lot of the original sprites that were created just for this game. The title is worth messing around with just to see some of the funny expressions of the characters.
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Although not a bad idea, that approach still affects the original intended difficulty balance of the game and potentially creates new problems if this translation is to be enjoyed by a global english speaking audience. For example, very early on the game can throw the following 2 questions at you:
1. Who is the main character of the anime "Ribbon no Kishi"? (correct answer: Sapphire)
2. Finish the title of the following song by Minami Haruo: "___ Okesa". (correct answer: Chanchiki)
The first question is an anime that ran in the 1960's based on a manga by Osamu Tezuka. The second question is a song from 1958. To change the subjects of these questions to a different anime or 1950's song would still pose a significant localization challenge that would vary significantly from culture to culture if the translation is to be serviceable for a global english speaking audience. (i.e. Would a popular classic 1950's song by "The Champs" be recognizable by an english speaker outside of the usa?).
I'm willing to invest some time and assist. It's just that the processing of localization is a lot more difficult than your statement makes it seem is all.
Edit: fixed sp error
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This could be a good side project and I'm definitely willing to help make this happen for the community if the demand is there.
ebinsugewa, I'm not sure if you were joking about helping with the translation work, but if we can split the task up amongst other japanese speakers here it may make the initial job of direct translation a lot easier for us to handle. Fitting english text into the same space that was intended for the japanese kana will be a pain, but we can cross that bridge when we get to it.
ebinsugewa, I'm not sure if you were joking about helping with the translation work, but if we can split the task up amongst other japanese speakers here it may make the initial job of direct translation a lot easier for us to handle. Fitting english text into the same space that was intended for the japanese kana will be a pain, but we can cross that bridge when we get to it.
JoeAwesome
I survived Secret Santa, It wasn't Easy.,
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What I've seen of translation projects is this: trying to drum up excitement before anything's been done is not the way to get steam, a proof of concept is; most translations don't have big teams, so think of what effort you'll dedicate without expecting several translators shouldering the load; and lastly, fitting English text in Japanese text is generally a pain that needs to be crossed early on. Why would you translate something extensive without the ability to fit it into the game? Imagine if you somehow couldn't.
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Whats up Joe! There's no need for me to drum up excitement for a project that doesn't exist yet. I simply want to know if any support and demand is even there to begin with.
Regarding text placement, you're exactly right, but there may still be a value in sharing the translated script itself. As a noob on this site, I still can't create polls and surveys so I can only inquire via thread.
Off topic: Your sig says you're playing ninja gaiden (arc), which is awesome. Are you playing on a cab?
JoeAwesome
I survived Secret Santa, It wasn't Easy.,
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My point is translations are a labor of love. Polls and finding out demand shouldn't be that much of a motivating factor to start. No one would be against a translation, but not getting support at first shouldn't be a detriment, as long as you bring something concrete to the table. In other words, either start translating/coding on your own, or stop the project altogether.
Regarding Ninja Gaiden, no cab. I'm using a PCB and supergun.