@koestl

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I'm currently reading Meikyuu and I'd like to thank you for your translation. I regularly start Kajitsu to refresh my memory on some events and I'm impressed at how some lines are kept exactly the same (the "nice ride" line in Yumiko route). Many TLs don't have that much attention to detail, sadly.

Thanks. Yes, I do try to be consistent with callbacks and minor references, although it can be challenging to remember in cases like this.
I keep archives of all the scripts for my projects in plain text form so I can quickly run searches to see if something came up before. I understand there's also "translation memory" software to help with this sort of thing, although I haven't looked into that in any detail.
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Liked by: Moritz Sandy Septi

Is there any reason why you used honorifics in Grisaia?

At the time I didn't want to write around the honorifics in several scenes where they're directly mentioned - or try to come up with half a dozen new nicknames for everyone (all the characters in Mihama refer to each other differently, and it's sometimes commented on).
I could maybe have worked around it with enough effort, but I think it works okay for the series? My personal feeling is that it's semi-defensible to leave honorifics in when a work's setting is very clearly Japanese, although they have no business being preserved in a story that's set in Marseille, France.
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Liked by: Sandy Septi Kilicool64

How am I supposed to cope with the ending of Cocoon of Caprice? HOW? If it's not released in two weeks from now, I'm watching the anime. You've been warned.

Please don't do that. The game is a lot better. I will work faster for you (maybe)

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How is MG's ef(s TL quality? (Idk who was in charge of it) (If you don't answer, I'll understand that it's bad and you don't wanna shoot MG down)

Please don't interpret a non-answer that way. I don't read / TL check all of Mangagamer's releases. I wish I had that kind of time on my hands

Why does Sakurai repeat descriptions (especially the Sky Garden) so often in Gahkthun? I don't get the effect she's going for at all.

Gahkthun actually has less of this than earlier games like Inganock, where the battle scenes themselves are almost entirely repetitive text with a few alterations.
Some people hate this technique, but I personally think the way it's used in Sakurai's games is pretty neat. You run into the passages at fairly regular intervals, like the chorus in a song. They're poetic and establish a certain mood; after a while, you come to expect that certain kinds of events will follow certain passages. They act as "anchors" for the episodic structure of the games. And when you see the familiar passages changing, you know the rules that applied to the story so far are shifting.
It's definitely something that won't appeal to everyone, but it's distinctive, and part of what I like about Sakurai's style.
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Liked by: Ressha Kilicool64 Sandy Septi Xythar

Does Sona-Nyl have more or less battles than Gahkthun?

Battles occur with similar frequency but are briefer. They aren't as much of a focus in Sona-Nyl.

How are you planning on translating the voice lines which differ from the written text in Sona-Nyl?

The solution I have in mind right now is using fade-in images for the spoken text, but that's not definite yet. They clearly need to be subtitled somehow.

During CLANNAD's Kickstarter, many backers said they'd prefer 4:3 images over cropped 16:9 images. Because of this, the images were left at their original 1280x960 resolution instead of being cropped to 1280x720. Couldn't you do the same with Sona-nyl?

The situation here is a little more complicated. Assets for the console release were made for a widescreen 1280x720 resolution, where the original was 4:3 (800x600). So we'll be dealing with some assets that only exist in 16:9 form (console content) and some assets that only exist in 4:3 form (18+ cgs).

What's going on with Baldr Sky's translation?

I'm not involved with that project, so all I can say is that it sounds like they're currently working on getting the details sorted out. I'm excited for the English release and hope it goes well for Sekai Project.

I have to say I'm rather curious about sona nyl release. Of course the PSP version is a dream come true for some, no 18+, HD widescreen... However I also feel like some public may be disappointed they may not see the "+18" of the original title.

We're hoping to make this a hybrid release with all the CGs from the original PC game, although there are some issues to be resolved there (since they only exist in 4:3 form at present)

When I read opinions on WaB I always get the impression that the series is untranslatable in english. That the end result will always end up being a shadow of its former self. What's your opinion on that? Do you think your translations can offer (at least most of) the original experience?

I wouldn't work on a title if I thought it was untranslatable. I like the prose in these games and would encourage anyone who knows Japanese to read them, but I want to offer a comparable experience for English readers.
There are always compromises that have to be made on the level of individual lines - for example, do I keep this sentence concise or use more words to convey all the nuance? I try to make those choices thoughtfully based on the broader context of the scene, and my understanding of what the author is trying to accomplish.
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Liked by: CanicheSlayer

Why does it seem like every VN translator follows the 4chan vnts despite all of them agreeing that it's full of idiots?

Stealth marketing!!
Actually I think they mainly enjoy seeing people make wild guesses about stuff that's going on behind the scenes.

Why is it taking so long to translate the 18 version of meikyuu so long? it seem it will take even longer than kajitsu and probably will be released after rakuen. also saying there will be news after anime expo and waiting a month just to be told its 35 recent done kinda sucks

It's a little bit complicated but...
35% is an estimate of the amount of necessary additional work (not already done for Steam release) that's been completed. As a whole, the game's more like 80% done.
There's been a lot of work done on "new scripts" (not present at all in Steam version) already. But finalizing the Steam version script has to be done before too much work can be done on scripts that were just "changed" can really begin, and there is still a bit of post-release editing / fixing going on.
That said, the single most important factor is that I'm trying to set a certain pace to finish Rakuen relatively soon. That takes away time from other project priorities. But it isn't being ignored, and I'm looking to get some assistance to speed things up in general.
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Liked by: Sandy Septi

Gahkthun is referred to as N'gah-Kthun sometimes? Was there any discussion about that?

N'gah-Kthun is the Lovecraftian term that Sakurai's "Gahkthun" developed from. It's only referenced very vaguely in one story: someone is quoted as speaking "an unpronounceable word or name, possibly N'gah-Kthun."
In Japanese the original term would usually be rendered ンガ＝クトゥン. The word ガクトゥーン used in Sakurai's title is a corruption or variation of it which warrants a different romanization, in my opinion.
Several Lovecraft terms used in the Steampunk series are modified in similar ways, which can make identifying the references more challenging.

What was you point for keeping things like "Reich-dono" while cutting honorifics everywhere else?

The character Berta Wiegert is obsessed with the "Far East," for reasons that are elaborated on in his chapter. It felt reasonable to maintain honorifics in Berta's speech as an affectation.

Hi there. There is specific 'Gestapo' joke in the first hours of Grisaia 1, which seemed to me rather odd. Also few jokes like "they're acting like american politics" was odd as well. Was it in original script, or were you trying to localize to humour to western audiences?

Japanese people make jokes about America too. This comes up a lot, but they were in the original script.
That said, I do often try to localize humor when it doesn't translate (especially puns, wordplay, certain obscure references) - I want to provide a experience that's comparable to the original, which means I don't want readers googling or looking up a TL note at a point where the Japanese readers would be laughing (or at least rolling their eyes).
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Liked by: Moritz Xythar 猫猫茶 Eden Reading Steiner

Did you get any flack from people for axing the honorifics? Makes sense to me, but I know how rabid some people can get.

There's no one correct way to approach a translation, so people are always going to disagree with some of your decisions. What matters to me is that I have coherent and consistent reasons for the choices I make.
It doesn't bother me if people prefer a different approach, or would prioritize different things than me. It does annoy me when people refuse to admit there are even valid alternatives to bluntly literal* scripts.
*not actually a thing
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Liked by: Moritz Xythar

Is there some specific game you're in talks for or do you just mean you want to work with Mangagamer in general?

There are a few games belonging to their partners which I would love to translate if I got the chance.
MG is also nice to work with (in general) because they are well-organized and have a good staff, in terms of both commitment and competence.

Hey koestl. I'm super-curious; what was the literal meaning of the sentence? https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CdS2x-AWIAAPMUO.jpg

That translation is actually pretty literal. Izumi speaks English a little oddly, with an unusual dialect or accent.
The characters in Gahkthun are explicitly described as speaking English, since the Academia is an "international school" environment. This also informed my decision to avoid any overly "Japanese" quirks of language in the script - maintaining honorifics, as a basic example, would clash badly with the established setting. In general, I leaned a little more towards "localizing" the dialogue than I would with a game set in Japan.

Will you be working on anything for mangagamer in the near future? For example, something that might be announced in the upcoming con season?

I'm looking forward to hopefully taking on another Mangagamer project later on this year, but right now I'm devoting all my time to the Grisaia and Muv Luv kickstarters.

can you explain the whole card speculation, g2a key selling thing, i don't really get the math and how people lose money from it. Like isnt a key just zero $ regardless of whatever happens to it latter like people selling it, so how does iy cause be to lose money?

Payment processors frequently charge merchants fees when a chargeback is initiated against them:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chargeback#Merchant_penalties
Apart from these penalties, frequent instances of fraud can also result in the payment processor cutting off the merchant entirely. MangaGamer has been unable to take orders through their main website for some time, resulting in lost sales.
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Liked by: Moritz

Can you tell me why you recommended legend of galactic heroes? space opera sound awesome but what make it so good?

The anime is the best Space Politics show in existence, basically. That might make it sound a little dry, but all the maneuvering is really entertaining and the show rarely feels "slow." The setting is well-defined and consistent; the characters are endearing; the dialogue can be really clever...
Also, judging from the sample chapter that's been released, the translation of the novel is very solid. That always makes me more likely to shill for something.
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Liked by: Moritz

What are you translating now that Gahkthun is done?

I'll be working on finishing up the Grisaia series for Sekai Project for a while.

I see you still haven't changed that birdy guy avatar animal. You've some unique taste.Now, why can't moe games appeal to AAA translators? The TLWiki mafia and allies only aspire to TL the kamige BUT kamige should stay still, intact, etc. I want to play epic games when I learn da JP for now give moe

What is an "AAA translator"
If you get me a 100 million dollar budget from Activision I will translate Pure x Connect for you right now bud
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Liked by: Moritz Kastel (Eristia Writer)

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