Japan is known for its rich pop culture, which includes manga, anime, and video games. Rapid technological advancements and the growing demand for Japanese products have created a need for localization, which adapts these products to different cultures and makes them available in foreign countries. Localization is an important process for spreading the popularity of products; however, due to differences in language and culture, some adjustments or changes to the content may be necessary. This study examines how the personalities of characters in video games are expressed through various culturally bound language elements in Japanese, revealing that properly translating these can sometimes pose significant challenges for translators. This thesis focuses on language translation, particularly culturally specific elements in texts, in the Japanese game Final Fantasy VII. In conclusion, it points out that the complexity of localization, tight deadlines for translation of manuscripts, and the limited number of translators can lead to various inaccuracies and errors. It also emphasizes that successful localization of content-rich games requires collaboration among multiple people, as subjective interpretation in translation is unavoidable.
|