Anna Cairistiona
@annacairistiona.bsky.social
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Singer, Illustrator & J-E Translator
https://annacairistiona.wordpress.com/
pinned post!
I know FFX like the back of my hand. So, imagine my surprise when I finally got to watch the Eternal Calm cinematic and heard a speech from Tidus I had no memory of whatsoever. It turns out it was the result of a fascinating translation conundrum.
annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/08/25/t...
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The Line Tidus Never Said in Final Fantasy X
Saying I love Final Fantasy X would be an understatement. I know almost everything there is to know about it, from its obscurest gameplay mechanics to its most hidden morsels of lore. I even replay…
https://annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/08/25/the-line-tidus-never-said-in-final-fantasy-x/
3 months ago
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Donabe seasoning complete ✨
3 days ago
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Anna Cairistiona
I first played RE4 in 2023 and instantly fell in love with Leon's character. But apparently, when the OG came out, some fans blamed the EN translation for changing his character. In this month's blog, I set out to uncover if this was truly the case.
annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/11/19/d...
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Did Resident Evil 4’s English Translation Really Butcher Leon’s Character?
A huge part of the original Resident Evil 4’s charm lies in its dialogue. Its script is chock-full of corny one-liners and cheesy comebacks, courtesy of its wisecracking protagonist, Leon S. Kenned…
https://annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/11/19/did-resident-evil-4s-english-translation-really-butcher-leons-character/
6 days ago
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Finally put up some soundproofing panels in my office! Not the nicest looking setup, but it’ll do the thing. Maybe I’ll finally record a cover for the first time in forever.
5 days ago
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Promoting your blog in a sophisticated server vs. your friend's
6 days ago
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I first played RE4 in 2023 and instantly fell in love with Leon's character. But apparently, when the OG came out, some fans blamed the EN translation for changing his character. In this month's blog, I set out to uncover if this was truly the case.
annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/11/19/d...
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Did Resident Evil 4’s English Translation Really Butcher Leon’s Character?
A huge part of the original Resident Evil 4’s charm lies in its dialogue. Its script is chock-full of corny one-liners and cheesy comebacks, courtesy of its wisecracking protagonist, Leon S. Kenned…
https://annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/11/19/did-resident-evil-4s-english-translation-really-butcher-leons-character/
6 days ago
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I wanted to get the next chapter of my FFT translation comparison out this month, but unfortunately, it's taking longer than expected. Most likely going to be posting an analysis of OG RE4, instead. The concept of which I came up with back in 2023, when the remake came out, so uh... pretty timely.
7 days ago
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Anna Cairistiona
Square Enix
10 days ago
"If we should get separated, just whistle. I'll come running. I promise." - Yuna
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Cupcaaaaakes
15 days ago
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Just finished my first ever playthrough of Kingdom Hearts/// 👑💖 Those flying pink orbs in the final boss fight had me livid, but we got there in the end…
18 days ago
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It's so surreal to see my itty-bitty blog be the third result on google///
19 days ago
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Must. Play. More. Games. (+235 hours in BOTW on my JP account)
20 days ago
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読書会の準備✨
20 days ago
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Finished my October read just in the nick of time 🎃✨
25 days ago
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Spooooky
26 days ago
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I missed baked beans, so I tried a copycat recipe//// It actually tastes better!! And it was easier to make than I thought it’d be! ✨
28 days ago
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Anna Cairistiona
Mato
about 1 month ago
I updated my "Lost Woods" article! I've added more examples of how 迷いの森 (mayoi no mori) has been translated in many different ways into English
legendsoflocalization.com/articles/los...
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Legends of Localization: The Many Translations of the “Lost Woods”
The Japanese term "mayoi no mori" can be translated many different ways.
https://legendsoflocalization.com/articles/lost-woods-many-translations/
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Anna Cairistiona
Tom, Legally Certified Date Simmelier
about 1 month ago
I hadn't heard about this slipup before, but looking through the material, I agree 100%: the issue in question is a *really* easy mistake even for an experienced translator to make because of the mechanics of Japanese as a language. I've corrected this issue *a lot* on projects I've proofed/edited.
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This month, I looked at one of the most infamous mistranslations in Zelda history. In comparing the English translation with the original Japanese script, I hoped to uncover what may have led to this unfortunate error and how it might have been avoided.
annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/10/22/e...
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Examining Twilight Princess’ Biggest Mistranslation
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is one of my favourite entries in the franchise, not least for its charming English translation. Unfortunately, it’s ill-famed amongst the series’…
https://annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/10/22/examining-twilight-princess-biggest-mistranslation/
about 1 month ago
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Next blog post is scheduled and ready to go! Gonna be a shorter one while I work on some other projects~
about 1 month ago
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Finished Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box today! Tempted to find the next game in Japanese so I can fail at maths in my second language too~
about 1 month ago
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Anna Cairistiona
Rebo is back?
about 2 months ago
This is a GREAT piece that really seems to show how difficult localization can be. In this case, WotL was actually *more accurate* by paying attention to the type of speech being used and rewriting it into a similar type of English than the more literal and direct translation of the PSX version.
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Overwatch x banana bread
about 2 months ago
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Finally finished Dual Destinies! ✨
about 2 months ago
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May or may not continue this as I watch my husband play for the first time, but I wanted to see what changes have been made to the Japanese script before analysing the new English translation. As a non-native speaker, it's interesting to see how the text has been edited for spoken dialogue.
about 2 months ago
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Anna Cairistiona
Liz Bushouse
about 2 months ago
For
#InternationalTranslationDay
here's a roundup of some of my favorite articles/podcasts/etc. on video game localization from the past year or so, starting with this one:
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Liz Bushouse
about 2 months ago
And because the Final Fantasy Tactics remaster is out today, you'll definitely want to give this a read:
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Liz Bushouse
about 2 months ago
For more good game translation analysis, you'll want to give Anna Cairistiona a follow. She has a fantastic series on the terms surrounding Final Fantasy's summons (there's a link to part 1 in the replies of the quoted post):
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鋼のStephen Meyerink
about 2 months ago
Watching the launch stream of Ivalice Chronicle and absolutely thrilled that the new loc really is based on WotL's loc with VO tweaks. So glad it's not been thrown out
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Family gaming sesh 🎮✨ Me: Ace Attorney Dual Destinies Rayray: Silent Hill f Spyro: Sock
about 2 months ago
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I very almost didn't post this month's blog bc my inner critic was being obnoxiously loud, but I'm glad I didn't listen////
about 2 months ago
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Anna Cairistiona
Todd Ciolek
2 months ago
Man, I love deep dives like this. I'm looking forward to enjoying Final Fantasy Tactics with yet another localization (and additional dialogue!) next week!
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Arren
2 months ago
I've been griping about this for years to anyone who would hear me, so seeing someone truly more adept than I've ever been picking this content apart is hugely validating... If you're a big FFT fan you should give this a look, especially before playing Ivalice Chronicles. It's brilliantly laid-out.
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鋼のStephen Meyerink
2 months ago
This is old and I would probably write it differently now (it's partially a personal essay about what I learned playing WotL), but I also wrote about WotL and Final Fantasy Tactics back in the day when I was a baby translator.
www.rpgfan.com/feature/the-...
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The Lion War: Finding the Voice of Ivalice | RPGFan
I've pretty much lost count of how many times I've said that the War of the Lions retranslation of Final Fantasy Tactics led me to my current career as a
https://www.rpgfan.com/feature/the-lion-war-finding-the-voice-of-ivalice/
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Anna Cairistiona
鋼のStephen Meyerink
2 months ago
Shouting the part about "tough" being a misinterpretation of the JP from the rooftops. I know people love that line, but it is outright changing his intent from the JP to the EN in the OG PSX version. I wrote about this a long time ago on RPGFan, as well!
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A sleepy boy.
2 months ago
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Anna Cairistiona
Christina 🌹 | Play Twisted Wonderland!
10 months ago
A friend talked about a mobile game he was playing that had weird translation issues. That got me to thinking about what the cause of those issues could be, and considering the wider question of how many factors can influence a translation before even considering an individual translator's merits. 🧵
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Liz Bushouse
2 months ago
This does a wonderful job of showcasing how the Japanese text uses vivid wording and elevated diction just as much as the WotL translation. (FF4 also does this to an extent, which is another reason why I consider the DS translation to be the best both in terms of accuracy and writing quality.)
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Anna Cairistiona
September's blog is an in-depth comparison between Final Fantasy Tactics' OG translation and the WotL retranslation. To avoid spoilers, I've only covered the prologue. Can't wait to see what changes The Ivalice Chronicles brings to the table, too!
annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/09/24/f...
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Final Fantasy Tactics Translation Comparison (OG vs WotL)
The original 1997 English release of Final Fantasy Tactics is infamous for its numerous typos, translation errors, and overall clunky dialogue. Even so, many fans of the OG release strongly prefer …
https://annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/09/24/final-fantasy-tactics-translation-comparison-og-vs-wotl/
2 months ago
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September's blog is an in-depth comparison between Final Fantasy Tactics' OG translation and the WotL retranslation. To avoid spoilers, I've only covered the prologue. Can't wait to see what changes The Ivalice Chronicles brings to the table, too!
annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/09/24/f...
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Final Fantasy Tactics Translation Comparison (OG vs WotL)
The original 1997 English release of Final Fantasy Tactics is infamous for its numerous typos, translation errors, and overall clunky dialogue. Even so, many fans of the OG release strongly prefer …
https://annacairistiona.wordpress.com/2025/09/24/final-fantasy-tactics-translation-comparison-og-vs-wotl/
2 months ago
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Finished my September read// ✨ I loved the anime as a teenager, so I’ve always wanted to get into the light novels to see the full story. 1 down, 12 more to go, I guess—
2 months ago
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I passed a thing so Rayray surprised me with more FF MTG cards/// (sTiLl nO YUNaaaaaa ww also i want the balthier and fran full art so bad orz
3 months ago
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Spyro’s thoughts on Silksong so far:
3 months ago
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It’s time/// ✨
3 months ago
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Alexander O. Smith gave his thoughts on the translation change in the comments! It's an honour to get his perspective on something I've been curious about for so many years.
add a skeleton here at some point
3 months ago
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I finally tidied the cables under my desk!!! Now I can actually use the /standing/ function on my /standing/ desk www (Also now Spyro can’t nibble on the cable ties—
3 months ago
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久しぶりのカラオケタイム
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3 months ago
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I finally beat Metroid Dread! ✨ (Don’t look at the death count—) Definitely my favourite in the series so far// That final boss was so satisfying!
3 months ago
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I thought it was over…
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3 months ago
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Anna Cairistiona
Nob Ogasawara㊙️
3 months ago
アンナ・カリスティオナ 杏奈・狩棄恩菜
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Anna Cairistiona
Derek L.H.
3 months ago
This is a great interview with Brody Phillips, one of the translators that worked on Final Fantasy IX's fantastic localization. Absolutely worth a read!
www.timeextension.com/features/int...
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Interview: "Localization's Come A Long Way In The Last 25 Years" - The Incredible Story Behind Final Fantasy IX's Epic Translation
"Our whole goal was to capture the sheer variety and texture that was in the Japanese script"
https://www.timeextension.com/features/interview-localizations-come-a-long-way-in-the-last-25-years-the-incredible-story-behind-final-fantasy-ixs-epic-translation
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