Undertale

Legends of Localization #3

by Clyde Mandelin

Did playing UNDERTALE fill you with ketsui (Japanese for "Determination"), kesshin (Japanese for "Determination"), yaruki (Japanese for "Determination"), or ishi (Japanese for "Determination")? If you're not sure, but you'd like to find out, you're holding the right book—even if you've never read a word of Japanese.

For the third book in the Legends of Localization series, Clyde "Tomato" Mandelin dives into the Japanese localization of one of the most beloved indie games of the last 10 years, with total access to Toby Fox and the localization team. Each page is filled with historical detail, surprising language contrasts, and screenshots of the spreadsheets, notes, and sketches that made the localization possible.

You'll be able to watch from behind the scenes as the translation takes shape, from the toughest overarching script decisions to the smallest references and programming details. You'll learn how the creator, the localizer, and the audience all contribute to a great localization. And if everything breaks right, you'll come out of it with more ketsui than you had going in.

Genres: Nonfiction, Video Games, Linguistics

272 pages, Hardcover

Published November 1, 2022

Reviews

[Sydney Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love language. I love culture. I LOVE Undertale. I had a fantastic time reading this!

[Sab · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very entertaining book, both in its subject matter and the way the author communicated the information. You can tell Tomato knows what he's talking about and that industry knowledge really helps make this a more engaging read - so much goes into localisation that I had never even considered and in the case of Undertale a lot of the challenges stemmed from the game's silly nature. Such a good time book, just what I needed over the holidays

[Eleanor · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really entertaining book! There was clearly so much effort that went into localising Undertale and honestly I'm surprised it *only* took 18 months. Tomato does a great job of detailing the subtle intricacies of Japanese translations without it being overly technical and in-the-weeds. I learned a lot about Japanese writing systems and pronouns which was completely new to me! I'm was especially impressed by the translations that end up improving on the original jokes and references.

[Lex]

I love this shittttt if you are a translation nerd and also video game nerd then this is perfect for you

[Kathryn Hemmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is all about Undertale, and series author Clyde Mandelin provides expert insight both as a veteran translator and as an official consultant for the game’s localization and release in Japan. Mandelin chronicles the brilliant work of Keiko Fukuichi, who also authored the official Japanese translations of fan-favorite indie games like Hades and Return of the Obra Dinn as a member of the localization company 8-4.

Even more than in the previous two books in the series, this volume is committed to introducing the field of localization while explaining how cultural translation functions alongside linguistic translation. It’s a truism that a good joke shouldn’t have to be explained, but I was fascinated by Mandelin’s walkthrough of how Fukuichi broke down jokes and reconstructed them into lines that make sense to a Japanese audience. Even if you have no knowledge of Japanese, the third volume of Legends of Localization is a masterclass on the craft of writing catchy dialog.

I also appreciate the layout of the book. Every page is filled with full-color screencaps and illustrations, all of which are amusingly annotated. As much love and care as Mandelin devotes to language, he’s equally skilled at visual presentation. Legends of Localization: Undertale blurs the line between prose nonfiction and comics, and I’d happily recommend it to anyone interested in the literary art that goes into text boxes and speech bubbles.

[BVC · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ottimo testo che spiega nel dettaglio il percorso di traduzione dall'inglese al giapponese di Undertale, mettendone in luce gli ottimi risultati.

Parlando della traduzione, vengono anche spiegate varie delle scelte da parte di Toby Fox per quanto riguarda la caratterizzazione di certi personaggi, il significato dietro i loro nomi, riferimenti provenienti da altri videogiochi e show televisivi, etc.

Presenti qui e lì anche screenshot di sue annotazioni e scambi di messaggi col team di traduzione

N.B.: la traduttrice principale è stata Keiko Fukuichi, che si è anche occupata della traduzione in giapponese di giochi indie di rilievo come Hades e Return of the Obra Dinn

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely enthralling book about videogame translation/localization that I could not put down once I read the preview chapter. Super interesting insider information here on a game that I don't love as much as a lot of other people, but am nonetheless familiar with through internet culture and have played once through myself. Definitely need to get my hands on the other books in this series because Tomato is a super talented writer. I played his Mother 3 translation back in November and it was PHENOMENAL but I never got to actually finish the game, so let me go do that!

[Kristofor Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a book! I love Undertale and I've always found localization and translation fascinating since encountering the bitter debates that spark over some decisions in games being translated and localized to English, and this book provides a fascinating and educational look into the process that I think a lot of people would find enriching to learn about.

[Arabela · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is exactly what I wanted from a translation/localization book. Lots of historical and cultural context (for both the game and the translation), and a ton of really granular, almost line-by-line explanations of how and why things are translated the way they are. I would love to see a book like this for so many other Japanese games that were translated into English! Tomato is a class act.

[Cutler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely interesting examination into the localization process of Undertale. Gets really in the weeds about specific lines and jokes that didn’t make sense in Japanese whether for language or cultural reasons and how they went about changing the lines while keeping the original spirit in tact.

[Ethan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Breezy, but thorough look at how localization works and all the unexpected pitfalls and complications that come with translating a text that's like 80% memes and pop culture references into a totally different language for a culture that doesn't have the same reference points.

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such an interesting dive into what goes into localization and translation in a direction not often seen. All the references, jokes, and puns that got a laugh out of me while playing Undertale are here to show how they were localized for Japanese. It's incredible!

[javi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A passionate and detailed book on what goes into translating and localizing a game (and what goes into translation work in general)! It’s exceedingly easy to follow and fun to read. Clyde “Tomato” Mandelin does a fantastic job at getting his enthusiasm for localization across in a humorous way.

[serafin · Rating 5 out of 5]

ITS PEAKKKKKKKKK i love languages i love translation
This was insightful of course to the process of translation but also to both japanese And american culture! today i learned what a "hamburger helper" and a "plinko board" is

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the kind of thing that I absolutely eat up. My only complaint is that it wasn't nearly as long as the EarthBound book.

[adrienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

BANGER!!! MANDATORY READING!!!!

[Ravi]

a really interesting an in-depth look at the localization process for one of my favorite games. learned a lot about japanese culture

[サカナ · Rating 5 out of 5]

so awesome

[Calvin Snyder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why would Chara make me stay up until 5:00 am reading this?

[Noctourniquet · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is like drinking that peasant gruel for someone ambitiously looking to get into translation work like i am

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're curious about some of the major decisions that someone has to make when localizing a game from English to Japanese you'll enjoy this book. It's not a comprehensive book about how each and every line of dialogue got translated, instead Clyde focuses on character names, pronouns, and lines of dialogue that stand out for various reasons. If you're a fan of Undertale you'll also probably enjoy seeing how the Japanese translation informs the characters, and how dialogue changes made regional differences in fanart. Clyde's books are always interesting, and this one is no different. I would recommend if this interests you that you check it out.