What do you think?
Rate this book
Legends of Localization #1
The Legend of Zelda
Join translator Clyde "Tomato" Mandelin on an in-depth adventure through Famicom disks, fixed-width fonts, board games, and Buddhism as he explains all the unexpected, unusual work that went into transforming The Legend of Zelda from a one-off experiment into a global phenomenon.
Any good localization starts with the game, but it can't end there - you'll travel through prototypes, player's guides, instruction manuals, and more. Because it's a long way from Japan to the West, even for a legendary hero.
Any good localization starts with the game, but it can't end there - you'll travel through prototypes, player's guides, instruction manuals, and more. Because it's a long way from Japan to the West, even for a legendary hero.
208 pages, Hardcover
Published November 1, 2015
15 people are currently reading
274 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
December 27, 2015
This was a amusing and informative look at the differences between the Famicom Disk System and NES releases of The Legend of Zelda geared towards superfans and the extremely pedantic. If that's you, then I'd say give it a go. It reads easily and contains an impressive number of images and screenshots.
The book's good, but not consistently strong. The first major chapter is on music and sound, and it's filled with invented, hyphenated adjectives and an overreliance on unnecessary adverbs. I get the impression that his talents lie elsewhere, that he doesn't have the vocabulary to talk about this subject area, and that he knows it. As a music guy, I was little disappointed here.
The author is a professional translator, and he finds his stride when discussing text localization issues, which is what most of the book is about. In-game text, manuals, and item and enemy names are all covered, including how translation choices and errors affect gameplay, persist in later installments of the series, and live on in our collective memory.
It's fun, it's conversational, and he writes some pretty amusing image captions. The best bits were when he brought in trivia from other games and paraphernalia or discussed Japanese translation for entertainment media in a broader context. Other times, it read too close to a basic listing of differences without much else. It makes me want to see something from him written with a larger scope, like a work on Japanese to English game localization in general.
The book's good, but not consistently strong. The first major chapter is on music and sound, and it's filled with invented, hyphenated adjectives and an overreliance on unnecessary adverbs. I get the impression that his talents lie elsewhere, that he doesn't have the vocabulary to talk about this subject area, and that he knows it. As a music guy, I was little disappointed here.
The author is a professional translator, and he finds his stride when discussing text localization issues, which is what most of the book is about. In-game text, manuals, and item and enemy names are all covered, including how translation choices and errors affect gameplay, persist in later installments of the series, and live on in our collective memory.
It's fun, it's conversational, and he writes some pretty amusing image captions. The best bits were when he brought in trivia from other games and paraphernalia or discussed Japanese translation for entertainment media in a broader context. Other times, it read too close to a basic listing of differences without much else. It makes me want to see something from him written with a larger scope, like a work on Japanese to English game localization in general.
January 27, 2016
The 3 star review is really a combination of 1 through 5 stars depending on which aspect of the book I'm thinking of at the time.
Having a Japanese translator meticulously comb through all of this material and comment on it was fascinating and in that way the book delivers on its core purpose. It's a gorgeous physical product as well and the art assets and primary source pictures and screen shots really help tell the story. This is a book with which it's fun to spend time.
That said, the writing itself is rarely compelling. There are essays and extended anecdotes that push forward the concept of the book as well as entertain, and countless interesting factoids throughout. However, there are also multiple extended stretches where the text devolves into the most basic version of itself: a translator checking through each line of dialog or written description and giving 1-2 sentence blurbs that each amount to "This is pretty much the same" over and over. It's the most literal and uninspiring execution of the idea and if those stellar art assets and screenshots were not present, I would've sped past many pages even faster than happened. This is not a commentary on the concept, just on a few stretches where the devotion to concept, though necessarily thorough, ground down the pacing of the book.
The order of the text is also challenging. The author sought to be holistic in his approach, which led to an incredibly in-depth discussion of the music/sounds and how those differed. It's a logical and even mandatory topic that the author presents in a unique way. Despite that, it's still writing about something the reader can't see nor experience properly through a book and somehow this was slotted as the very first localization section. It was a major momentum killer after a very good introduction and even the opening of the music section gives a URL where one can actually hear the sounds compared. Why is one of the first things in the first section of your book a link/QR code leading me away from your book? This probably would've been best left as an appendix or at least a middle chapter.
All those things aside, this is a well presented, painstakingly researched book that had far more highs than lows for someone who played a goodly amount of Legend of Zelda as a kid.
Having a Japanese translator meticulously comb through all of this material and comment on it was fascinating and in that way the book delivers on its core purpose. It's a gorgeous physical product as well and the art assets and primary source pictures and screen shots really help tell the story. This is a book with which it's fun to spend time.
That said, the writing itself is rarely compelling. There are essays and extended anecdotes that push forward the concept of the book as well as entertain, and countless interesting factoids throughout. However, there are also multiple extended stretches where the text devolves into the most basic version of itself: a translator checking through each line of dialog or written description and giving 1-2 sentence blurbs that each amount to "This is pretty much the same" over and over. It's the most literal and uninspiring execution of the idea and if those stellar art assets and screenshots were not present, I would've sped past many pages even faster than happened. This is not a commentary on the concept, just on a few stretches where the devotion to concept, though necessarily thorough, ground down the pacing of the book.
The order of the text is also challenging. The author sought to be holistic in his approach, which led to an incredibly in-depth discussion of the music/sounds and how those differed. It's a logical and even mandatory topic that the author presents in a unique way. Despite that, it's still writing about something the reader can't see nor experience properly through a book and somehow this was slotted as the very first localization section. It was a major momentum killer after a very good introduction and even the opening of the music section gives a URL where one can actually hear the sounds compared. Why is one of the first things in the first section of your book a link/QR code leading me away from your book? This probably would've been best left as an appendix or at least a middle chapter.
All those things aside, this is a well presented, painstakingly researched book that had far more highs than lows for someone who played a goodly amount of Legend of Zelda as a kid.
October 19, 2016
The Legend of Spiritual Authority, Part II
Continued from The Legend of Spiritual Authority, Part I
“If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.” The myth of The Legend of Zelda was fresh in my mind while I struggled through Rene Guénon’s foundational treatise on how to invoke God to become more hateful demagogue; I had just finished Legend of Localizations: The Legend of Zelda. That book became my red ring, keeping me safe and sane in the treacherous terrain of a dangerous ideologue. It also reminded me that Zelda has informed a generation of game players about the power of myth, the fear of unchecked power, and the divine right of rule.
Part II
Spiritual Authority
LONG AGO, GANON, PRINCE OF DARKNESS, STOLE THE TRIFORCE OF POWER. PRINCESS ZELDA OF HYRULE BROKE THE TRIFORCE OF WISDOM INTO EIGHT PIECES AND HID THEM FROM GANON BEFORE SHE WAS KIDNAPPED BY GANON’S MINIONS. LINK, YOU MUST FIND THE PIECES AND SAVE ZELDA.Link is tasked with rescuing the rightful sovereign by reconstructing wisdom. Zelda, the chosen of Wisdom, rules by birthright and divinity. Gannon is a thief—an unsanctioned usurper—to power. By accepting a quest for eternal holy wisdom, Link’s destined coup is upright; unlike Gannon, he will overthrow the current regime correctly, returning to a prior era of divine glory. Temporal power exists to serve and protect wisdom, not rule in its stead:
This is what is represented in Hindu symbolism by the image of Skanda, lord of war, protecting the meditation of Ganesha, lord of knowledge. It should be noted that the same thing was taught, even outwardly, in the Western Middle Ages; indeed, Saint Thomas Aquinas expressly declares that all human functions are subordinate to contemplation as their superior end, ‘so that, when considered properly, they all seem to be in the service of those who contemplate the truth,’ the true raison d’être of the entire government of civil life fundamentally lying in the assurance of the peace necessary for this contemplation.Gannon ends this; wisdom is shattered when he seizes power. To return the land to how it was—ruled over by royalty chosen by a divine artifact—Link’s major tool is a wooden sword. The sword with straight quillions is a cruciform; wood is the substrate of the True Cross:
In the symbolism of the cross, the first of these two realizations is represented by the indefinite development of the horizontal line, and the second by that of the vertical line, these being, according to the language of Islamic esoterism, the two senses of ‘amplitude’ and ‘exaltation’, the full blossoming of which is realized in ‘Universal Man’, who is the mystical Christ, the ‘second Adam’ of Saint Paul.Except, “Many longtime fans of the first Zelda game refer to the first sword in the game the the “Wooden Sword”. Surprisingly, though, it’s not called that anywhere in the game - it’s simply known as “Sword” in the Japanese and English releases.”A mass cultural hallucination ascribing Link’s iconic weapon with the characteristic of wood does not to dispel Guénon’s symbolic reign of terror; Link, the sphinxian unity of wisdom and power, pierces enemies with an inverted cross.
Decreasing from the subtly of sword-as-cross symbolism, the Magical Shield has an iconographic cross emblazoned upon it. You may remember the magical shield as the large, expensive shield that was often eaten by the stack-of-pancakes monster somewhere around Dungeon Four. That monster has a name—Like Like—which has it’s own uniquely Japanese provenance:
It’s name comes from the proverb, “Even bugs that eat water pepper have their personal like-likes.”The book and the website explain the proverb in more detail, and I recommend them both. Even—especially?—when you’re not slogging your way through dated cultural theosophy.
This is referencing a Japanese proverb that uses a Japanese phrase that uses the Japanese word for “like”. But it switches things up slightly by introducing wordplay involving the Japanese word for “shield” and the Japanese word for “water pepper”. It’s such a tangled ball of Japanese culture and language that it’s almost impossible to explain it without localizing the explanation too.
If the cross image itself isn’t enough even remote amount of symbolism is too much, the original Japanese release of The Legend of Zelda still contains the Bible. The Bible. It was translated for the English release to "Book of Magic":
It’s also possible it wasn’t really meant to be the real-life Bible in the first place - I commonly see the word used in a generic sense in Japanese entertainment. The name and its related imagery just seem cool and exotic to Japanese sensibilities.If nothing else, it is proof that rudimentary knowledge of Christendom existed during development.
The way names like "Like Like" or facts like the Book of Magic having a cross on it came from reading the manual, which also contained a longer story than the opening:
In the midst of the chaos, in a little kingdom in the land of Hyrule, a legend was being handed down from generation to generation, the legend of the “Triforce”: golden triangles possessing mystical powers.Zelda, then, is not the legend but the possessor and sole bearer of the true legend of the triforce; representational geometry for wisdom and power that none but Zelda herself truly know exists:
No doubt, the prevailing tendency at present is to treat the facts of the most remote period of history as ‘legendary’, or even as ‘mythical’; and the same applies to other far less ancient facts since they are inaccessible to the means of investigation available to ‘profane’ historians. Those who might think in this way, by virtue of habits acquired through an education that today more often than not produces real mental deformity, should, if they have retained some degree of understanding, be able to at least take these facts simply at their symbolic value, a value which for us does not diminish in any way their own reality as historical facts.While this is a metaphorical attack on secularism for Guénon, it is a literal attack on the triforce for Gannon. These mysteries are represented by a golden force, the source of all power and wisdom; “Moreover, in the Catholic tradition Saint Peter is depicted holding in his hands not only the golden key of pious power but also the silver key of royal power”. Golden power is Spiritual Authority, and silver Temporal Power. It is crucial, then that Link—the living avatar of wisdom, carrying the mundane tools of mankind—does not defeat Gannon with the cruciform sword or the mysteries and magic of the golden divine. Instead, the only way to overcome Gannon is with the silver arrow. Silver arrow:
That is why the key to the ‘greater mysteries’ is made of gold and that of the ‘lesser mysteries’ of silver, for gold and silver are alchemically exact equivalents to what the sun and moon represent; the ‘Terrestrial Paradise’ is described as touching the ‘sphere of the moon’.It is—after a quest that seems to walk the symbolic path of subservience to Spiritual Authority—humanity that triumphs over darkness. The cruciform sword is useless; only silver—terrestrial freedom—can overcome celestial tyranny. Society breaks free not only of chaos but of legend unending: free from the cage wrought by blind doctrinal servitude; free from dependence on the random hierarchy of birth; free from control by unseen golden forces.
This moment is why Legends of Localization allowed me to square Spiritual Authority & Temporal Power with the foundational representations of Power and Wisdom built into my NES-laden brain; Gannon is not modernity, but the abdication of personal responsibility over one’s own actions here and now. Who else but Guénon, née Gannon could state:
Among those who understand that it is necessary above all to denounce the vanity of ‘democratic’ and ‘egalitarian’ illusions in order to escape the social chaos in which the Western world is foundering, how many have a notion of true hierarchy based essentially on the differences inherent in the very nature of human beings and on the degrees of knowledge to which they have effectively attained?Those beliefs—that all people are not created equal; that subjugation to hierarchy is inherent within humanity—are truly words of a Prince of Darkness. It takes human strength—not hope in celestial paradise—to strive to do right; that is the true link between power and wisdom.
Addendum:
In the NES release, there’s a Goriya that says nothing but, “Grumble, grumble…” He blocks the way too, so you have to figure out a way to get past him. The answer isn’t immediately clear, but it turns out you have to buy some food and give it to him.That’s a really cool tidbit! I really loved this book, and if you want to know if you’d like it too (and this review didn’t answer your question), the website should be your next internet destination.
“Wait! His stomach is clearly grumbling!” you might say. But nope, it’s not actually that type of grumble at all!
This Goriya’s line is the same in Japanese, except it uses the onomatopoeia for the type of grumbling associated with complaining or muttering to oneself. So a clearer, alternative translation might be “Mutter, mutter…” or “Mumble, mumble…” Just by sheer coincidence, the English word “grumble” can also refer to the sound of a hungry stomach. And this coincidence makes the clue a little clearer in English!
Using Zelda—the pageantry, the surrounding phenominalism, the personal memories—to understand an out-of-touch theosophical treatise really shows the depth of its world. It also shows the reason books about it are worth reading in the first place. This does a wonderful job capturing it between two covers, and I recommend it to everyone I know—not in the least because I know you all played Zelda.
August 5, 2016
A mostly excellent and thorough look at the first Legend of Zelda game. After repeatedly hearing about this book and its author while listening to podcasts like Retronauts and NVC, picking it up was a no-brainer when it suddenly appeared «in the flesh» at my local nerd culture outlet.
Mandelin covers different aspects of the game, but the brunt of the book is dedicated to the differences between its various Japanese and North American editions. As Mandelin is a professional translator, his insight into the linguistic side of things makes for the book's greatest strength. The presentation is also nice and lush, with high quality scans and pictures; neat-'n'-tidy lists and tables; and a lucid, eminently readable prose style. Mandelin shines when he writes about what he really knows, namely localization/translation, and the cultural differences that both complicate and enrich this process.
My main criticisms about the book have already been touched upon by other Goodreads reviewers. Firstly, although I appreciate the effort and find it an interesting experiment, the comparisons of pieces of music and sound effects between the different versions of the game don't work all that well on paper. The descriptions of the sounds quickly turn repetitive, and due to the lack of a specialized vocabulary, they end up as subjective, adjective-laden associations rather than precise analyses. Secondly, many of the offhand image captions, while adding a certain degree of personality and charm, ultimately seem unnecessary and irrelevant, and only serve to clutter the otherwise excellent text.
Apart from these small nitpicks, I really enjoyed the book, and will surely be acquiring the next volume, dedicated to the classic SNES title «Earthbound», as soon as it becomes available. A book series like this is a great idea, and I wish the project the best of luck!
Mandelin covers different aspects of the game, but the brunt of the book is dedicated to the differences between its various Japanese and North American editions. As Mandelin is a professional translator, his insight into the linguistic side of things makes for the book's greatest strength. The presentation is also nice and lush, with high quality scans and pictures; neat-'n'-tidy lists and tables; and a lucid, eminently readable prose style. Mandelin shines when he writes about what he really knows, namely localization/translation, and the cultural differences that both complicate and enrich this process.
My main criticisms about the book have already been touched upon by other Goodreads reviewers. Firstly, although I appreciate the effort and find it an interesting experiment, the comparisons of pieces of music and sound effects between the different versions of the game don't work all that well on paper. The descriptions of the sounds quickly turn repetitive, and due to the lack of a specialized vocabulary, they end up as subjective, adjective-laden associations rather than precise analyses. Secondly, many of the offhand image captions, while adding a certain degree of personality and charm, ultimately seem unnecessary and irrelevant, and only serve to clutter the otherwise excellent text.
Apart from these small nitpicks, I really enjoyed the book, and will surely be acquiring the next volume, dedicated to the classic SNES title «Earthbound», as soon as it becomes available. A book series like this is a great idea, and I wish the project the best of luck!
January 8, 2016
The first third of this book is a rough start. The section on the sound effect differences just doesn't work in print and even the game text comparisons of the next section are a bit dry. The first Zelda game doesn't have a lot of text and, for the most part, the localization is pretty straight forward. There are no amazing revelations here. However, the later sections that look at the game manuals, marketing materials, and other content suddenly make the book far more interesting.
Even when the content gets more interesting, the book has a few pervasive problems. My biggest complaint? The author uses a staggering number of exclamation points! This seems strange for a professional translator; someone who should be a language expert, particularly with text! They get annoying rather quickly! I hope future volumes in this series calm down a bit!
The other big issue is a general lack of depth. While the author's own localization experience is undoubtedly a technical asset, the book is mostly a fairly shallow and dry side-by-side comparison. Differences and mistakes between the Japanese and English games are detailed but rarely explained in a satisfying way. He didn't do the English localization himself and he clearly did not have access to anyone who might have, so most questions just get a shrug and some speculation. It's a bit frustrating at times.
That said, the physical book is beautifully constructed and the page layouts are attractive. Ultimately the book becomes interesting and is a quick read. It's definitely worth looking at and I intend to check out future volumes in the series.
Even when the content gets more interesting, the book has a few pervasive problems. My biggest complaint? The author uses a staggering number of exclamation points! This seems strange for a professional translator; someone who should be a language expert, particularly with text! They get annoying rather quickly! I hope future volumes in this series calm down a bit!
The other big issue is a general lack of depth. While the author's own localization experience is undoubtedly a technical asset, the book is mostly a fairly shallow and dry side-by-side comparison. Differences and mistakes between the Japanese and English games are detailed but rarely explained in a satisfying way. He didn't do the English localization himself and he clearly did not have access to anyone who might have, so most questions just get a shrug and some speculation. It's a bit frustrating at times.
That said, the physical book is beautifully constructed and the page layouts are attractive. Ultimately the book becomes interesting and is a quick read. It's definitely worth looking at and I intend to check out future volumes in the series.
February 1, 2017
Interesting topic, with some fascinating insight, but it has some weaknesses. The first part of it where he's just talking about the audio differences just doesn't work in print at all. After that part it got more interesting, especially once he left the game's text behind in favor of the ancillary materials. I also enjoyed him pointing out the differences between the Zelda prototype disk and the released versions. The writing itself seemed very "matter of fact," which while fine, led to some portions feeling a bit drier than others (the snarky captions were a nice counter to that). I'm interested in checking out the other books in this series, so it didn't put me off!
October 3, 2020
Very disappointing, perhaps my fault for expecting something different. I was referred here by listening to the Tofugo podcast (and reading their blog) and this hard-to-obtain book kept being referred to. It sounded wonderful—a book about translating a Japanese game into English, with lots of specifics. Well, great!
As I'm studying Japanese, and played the original Legend of Zelda back in the day, it seemed a perfect match. I could learn all about the nuances of Japanese translation, in a context I actually understood. But that's not quite what I got.
Some have mentioned that the book is gorgeous. It's not, to my eyes. It's filled with tiny little hard to read screenshots (I'm 55. Maybe it's perfectly legible to younger eyes, but I had to purchase a magnifying glass through Amazon). You haven't tried to read Japanese until you've tried to read pixelated Katakana script in a 1 inch by 1.5 inch window showing the TV screen.
So it wasn't legible, which is a problem. A problem for me, rather than everyone, because I imagine most readers aren't learning Japanese and wanting to practice. But I wanted to see (and was expecting) text written out, and then how one would/might translate it, what the nuances are, and ultimately (though I could care less at that point) what the original translator did.
There's a bit of that. The author will point out that something gets translated as "meat" when it should be "bait," but it's all about as blunt as that. I didn't learn anything new about Japanese. I'm sorry I troubled the Inter-Library Loan folks at my university for so long, trying to get my hands on this. It wasn't worth it.
Good for fanatics about Zelda who are curious about what the "real" game called things prior to translation into English. Not so good for me. But I have a nice light-up magnifying glass now, that'll come in handy later.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). I feel a lot of readers automatically render any book they enjoy 5, but I grade on a curve!
As I'm studying Japanese, and played the original Legend of Zelda back in the day, it seemed a perfect match. I could learn all about the nuances of Japanese translation, in a context I actually understood. But that's not quite what I got.
Some have mentioned that the book is gorgeous. It's not, to my eyes. It's filled with tiny little hard to read screenshots (I'm 55. Maybe it's perfectly legible to younger eyes, but I had to purchase a magnifying glass through Amazon). You haven't tried to read Japanese until you've tried to read pixelated Katakana script in a 1 inch by 1.5 inch window showing the TV screen.
So it wasn't legible, which is a problem. A problem for me, rather than everyone, because I imagine most readers aren't learning Japanese and wanting to practice. But I wanted to see (and was expecting) text written out, and then how one would/might translate it, what the nuances are, and ultimately (though I could care less at that point) what the original translator did.
There's a bit of that. The author will point out that something gets translated as "meat" when it should be "bait," but it's all about as blunt as that. I didn't learn anything new about Japanese. I'm sorry I troubled the Inter-Library Loan folks at my university for so long, trying to get my hands on this. It wasn't worth it.
Good for fanatics about Zelda who are curious about what the "real" game called things prior to translation into English. Not so good for me. But I have a nice light-up magnifying glass now, that'll come in handy later.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). I feel a lot of readers automatically render any book they enjoy 5, but I grade on a curve!
April 26, 2025
This is a great book if you're insterested in learning about the differences between the japanese and US/UK release of The Legend of Zelda. Aside from the visual and audio differences between the Famicom disk system release and the cart release. It also goes into information around the release, like the commercials, and product tie-ins.
The author also offers their thoughts on how the initial localisation could have been done better and how, subtleties in Japanese are lost in the translated text, like how a native japanese speaker, would be able to tell the gender of the person speaking, or how different age groups use different sentence construction.
It also highlights how the names for various items and enemies, differed between region releases, and also between the game and the manual, and magazines/game guides, were different, and has some thoughts as a translator on why that might be the case. There is also a link to a youtube video that shows differences, between the famicom disk system release and the cart release, and the fds version definitely sounds better.
Overall a great book if you're interested in the original Legend of Zelda game.
The author also offers their thoughts on how the initial localisation could have been done better and how, subtleties in Japanese are lost in the translated text, like how a native japanese speaker, would be able to tell the gender of the person speaking, or how different age groups use different sentence construction.
It also highlights how the names for various items and enemies, differed between region releases, and also between the game and the manual, and magazines/game guides, were different, and has some thoughts as a translator on why that might be the case. There is also a link to a youtube video that shows differences, between the famicom disk system release and the cart release, and the fds version definitely sounds better.
Overall a great book if you're interested in the original Legend of Zelda game.
September 20, 2017
An interesting look at the changes made to the original Legend of Zelda game when it was brought over to the US, as well as the various versions of the game that were released. As others have noted, the opening chapter on sound doesn't work in book form (although there is a link to go listen to the samples online), and it would've been nice if Clyde had been able to track down someone who worked on the original game or localization to answer some of the questions he poses, but it's still a unique look at the early days of Nintendo translation full of screenshots and images of related Zelda ephemera.
September 1, 2022
Very thorough look at how the original Legend of Zelda was localized in English. Only thing I would have liked a little more of was for the game's katakana to be printed in the book or written out in romaji. Was kind of hard to read the screenshots.
But the book isn't intended to be a language lesson, it's intended to compare the original meanings to what wound up in the game and why. In that, it's pretty thorough.
But the book isn't intended to be a language lesson, it's intended to compare the original meanings to what wound up in the game and why. In that, it's pretty thorough.
November 18, 2023
A passionate and ridiculously thorough deep dive into the localization of Zelda 1. Picking such a narrow topic for the book ends up being pretty satisfying as it genuinely feels like the topic is explored exhaustively in 150 pages.
The material could feel redundant but Mandelin offers enough anecdotes, humor and insight to keep things engaging throughout. The hardcover book itself is quite a beauty.
The material could feel redundant but Mandelin offers enough anecdotes, humor and insight to keep things engaging throughout. The hardcover book itself is quite a beauty.
January 2, 2018
Well written, and very entertaining. This book does a more thorough job of going through the efforts to localize the original Legend of Zelda than I would have expected. There is a surprising amount even though the game itself has little text.
If you do not care about video games and/or Legend of Zelda, then I think you should skip this book. I don't expect there is much in there for you.
If you do not care about video games and/or Legend of Zelda, then I think you should skip this book. I don't expect there is much in there for you.
December 25, 2017
Very thorough examination of the first game's translation filled with great details. Really well thought out and each page is delightful. Highly recommended if you're interested in how games are localized from Japanese to English, and if you're a fan of the series.
August 3, 2019
It took me over a year to finish this, but it was a really interesting read. I love thorough projects like this.
November 30, 2021
Enjoyable reflection on the differences between the OG text and the localization of the time. Would love to see an analysis of a more modern work too!
December 31, 2020
Very well researched and deep analysis of tuning this amazing game for the English speaking audience.
February 3, 2020
An incredibly detailed guide to how the original Legend of Zelda was localized from Japanese into English. Highly recommended for Zelda fans or anyone interested in localization!
January 9, 2017
Legends of Localization is a really weird kind of book. Its audience sits in the intersection between The Legend of Zelda fans and people with an interest in localization, and the style (informal, small sections, jokes in the picture captions) reminds me of old HTML fan sites (appropriately, given its origins). This is probably really boring if it's not your kind of thing, but it happens to be exactly my kind of thing! I really can't imagine a better version of this book, but since this is a very subjective rating system it only gets 4 stars (I didn't quite love it). Still, definitely worth checking out if it sounds interesting to you.
June 7, 2016
if you consider yourself a Legend of Zelda fan, then you need to read this book. The author, Clyde Mandelin, gives an informative and sometimes humorous account of the differences between the Japanese and American releases of the original Legend of Zelda game. He covers every localization difference - from text to art to sound - it is all here.
As much as I loved it as a kid, I always thought Zelda 1 was kind of a weird, mysterious game in many ways. Now, decades later, this book has finally shown me why! I now see one of my favorite games of all time in a completely new way. I plan to invest time in another play-through soon just because of this book. Thanks Clyde!!
As much as I loved it as a kid, I always thought Zelda 1 was kind of a weird, mysterious game in many ways. Now, decades later, this book has finally shown me why! I now see one of my favorite games of all time in a completely new way. I plan to invest time in another play-through soon just because of this book. Thanks Clyde!!
May 4, 2016
As someone who primarily plays Japanese games, I find localization practices to be fascinating. I also appreciate an attractive, well-made book. This tome was satisfying on both counts. Also, it came with a little translation workbook that includes a simple Zelda-based Japanese-English dictionary! I am quite tempted to use these as references to play the original Famicom Zelda release in Japanese.
December 29, 2016
It's very interesting in how a game comes from Japan and more than the text is changed. A great in depth look at Nintendo in the early days in bringing a classic West.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews