A Partial Re-Translation Patch for Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories (GBA)
Kingdom Hearts is a tricky series, where the details really matter. As such, it’s a shame that some interesting elements of Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories did not make it into the official English release (and, from what I know, none of the other language versions). So here we are!
So What’s Changed?
The most important changes in this patch are, as you might’ve guessed from the title, pronoun related.
There is a section of the game, from the beginning of Twilight Town to a certain point in Destiny Islands, where Sora (and the NPCs in Destiny Islands) inexplicably change what pronouns are used to refer to Naminé. The official English release does not convey this element at all despite how much emphasis the game puts on this aspect, and thus loses any potentially significant implications of it.
As there’s no perfect English equivalent for あいつ aitsu, (a very informal/rough pronoun that is technically gender-neutral but leans toward masculine connotations, and is a strange way for Sora to refer to Naminé or Kairi), there are two versions of the patch.
“they” version. This is the one I recommend , as I believe it best conveys the intended experience; where there is a noticeably strange shift in language, but in such as way as to be fairly easy to write off as unimportant to the casual player.
“he” version. This one tosses all subtlety and ambiguity out the window and feels less natural, but conveys the masculine possibilities of the original that the other version can’t. Pick it if you’re feeling very daring.
Then, in the final stretch of the game, jp Naminé uses gender neutral terms in a way that seems potentially relevant, due to the pronouns situation stated in the previous section, and she is talking about two distinct people in her final conversation w/Sora, not just one. Both elements were lost in the official release.
Other Changes
Tweaked some word choice/phrasing for dialogue to more clearly convey repeated motifs (if you’re familiar with the jp terms used, 大切な / に taisetsuna/ni is generally denoted with “precious,” and 大切な人 taisetsuna hito with “dear”) as well as references to other parts of the game (primarily between Hollow Bastion and the floor 6+7 interludes)
They don’t call Sora the Keyblade master anymore, as this was sort of an impossible to predict localization misstep with the original release. (How were they supposed to know that jp script would start using the English phrase "Keyblade Master" as a distinct concept like 10 years later?) I did this just for fun.
This project was primarily built upon the contents of the essay “‘That Person’ How a Pronoun Revealed the Heart of a Story”, and would not exist without it. Read it after you finish the game (or before, if you want), it’s fantastic work.
Special thanks to this gba khcom quote generator and this transcript (both of which saved me SO much time and effort) as well as all my friends, whose excitement and input were invaluable.
Don’t want to actually play the game? Once I’ve settled on a final version, I’ll be putting up a cutscene compilation (for both versions) on youtube.
partial re-translation for Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories GBA
lots of persona 2 stuffs (and one persona 1 thing.) I have a lot of drawings and a lot of unfinished drawings. most of the memez are inside jokes with my brothling.. by the way I put my traced naoya kitty slam gif on discord gif search first so please use it and make me famous ok ? thanks :3
i don’t think mordecai and rigby were ever gay for each other but i do think many times rigby would be like dude if i was a girl would you want to fuck me and mordecai is like dude that’s weird. no. and rigby is all bent out of shape about it and in the middle of the night when they’re both trying to sleep he’s like why wouldn’t you fuck me if i was a girl. i’m cute right? or am i ugly and that’s why i’m single… and mordecai is like fine whatever i’d fuck girl you. stop bringing it up now. & the next day rigby is like fuck off muscle man i’m not ugly mordecai said he’d fuck girl me & then a portal opens to an alternate dimension where they’re genderbent like that adventure time episode and the voice of god is like mordecai you must make good on your word. fuck girl rigby.
i love headcanoning old men as ftm. like considering fandom loves to equate being transmasc to being young no one will probably agree with me but i look into his eyes and see the wisdom only a post-menopausal man could provide
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