Aeris vs Aerith.

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It was an accident in that they didn't have any specific reason we know of to make their decision, but they didn't just pick the name out of thin air - the translators knew that it could have been translated as either Aeris or Aerith. I suppose we don't know that they didn't just flip a coin when originally deciding which one to go with, but it's pretty plausible they picked the one that sounded best to them. It's what they did with other names, after all - we need an English equivalent to this name, these are the options that are reasonably close to the Japanese version, what sounds best?
 
I played the French game before the English one, and, I can say, the mistakes are worse at many points. There's even a dialogue in the game that was left in English. They renamed Cloud to Clad, apparently so it would be better for people who don't speak English. Aeris was left as is (except for an acute accent, making it Aéris) but translation - as far as I know - is way worse. I've always written Aerith and said Aeris, because that's how it should be written and said (Aerisu is the correct spelling, right?), Sephiroth and said Sephiros.

LostWing: I see what you did there.

Damn, Covarr ninja'd me. Son of a submariner you
Damnit Iros did it too.
 
I played the French game before the English one, and, I can say, the mistakes are worse at many points. There's even a dialogue in the game that was left in English.
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Wait ... you mean the French version was translated from the English version, not directly from the Japanese? That ... sounds awkward.

Although I guess you can't say that for sure just from that one thing, there could be other explanations?
 
There's a big difference here, though. That change was made on purpose. I can't remember why, offhand, but I know I read an explanation of what Woolsey had in mind. Aeris, on the other hand, was a goof, a change made by accident.
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The reason was that Tina is an ordinary name for English, but really exotic for Japanese.  That's what I read anyway.  As for the reason it ended up Aeris... well, given the choice between the two, I am willing to bet most people would think that's what the writers intended... but unfortunately, that proved to not be the case.  That's why communication is essential.  If I had been given Earisu (romaji of the kana) and asked to place it into the correct spelling, I would have also gone Aeris on the balance of probabilities.  Unless, S is usually "so" in kana... I am not sure if that's the case, but su can be s for sure anyway.
 
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To be honest - if I'd been translating the game, and the developers had come back to me and said "No, it should be Aerith, not Aeris. Because it's based on 'Earth', right?", then my response would have been "Well, you're the boss. But ... you crazy, man. Maybe that works super well in Japanese, but if you're wanting to imply this name is something to do with earth, then both of those options are rubbish - because they begin with 'Aer', which is basically the root of probably hundreds of words in European languages that are all to do with air. But, you know, if you're stuck on this 'Aerith' thing because that's what you've already decided on, then fine..."

Evidently 'Aerith' is what the writers intended. Of course, there's sometimes a difference between what the Japanese authors decided on, and the impression it makes in English...
 
FFVII was first translated from Japanese to English, and then all other official re-translations (French, Spanish and German as far as I'm aware) are translated from the English game. I didn't know that myself before Covarr told me, but that's how it looks like.
 
FFVII was first translated from Japanese to English, and then all other official re-translations (French, Spanish and German as far as I'm aware) are translated from the English game. I didn't know that myself before Covarr told me, but that's how it looks like.
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I didn't know I told you that. In fact, I didn't even know I knew that. It makes absolute perfect sense, but I hadn't thought of it until just now. You sure it wasn't someone else who told you?
 
It is the case, unfortunately, whoever told you.  Which compounds the problem even further.
 
I'm playing FF8 just now and I can't help but notice how the translation is so much better. Not only from Japanese to English, but also from English to other languages. (Note: Spoilers ahead) For example, you have to get, among other items, 6 Steel Pipes to summon Doomtrain. In the Occult Fan I, it says someone from Timber was building a fence with steel pipes (of course referring to the item). In French, the item is named Samadhi (where the hell did that come from?) and, in the Occult Fan I, it says the person was in Samadhi, a yoga posture.

That was the main thing that made me realize how careful the translators were for FF8.
 
Basically... the main problem is that success=profit, and that, for most writers and film makers, trumps quality.  Instead of just ending a movie or franchise, they realise they can make uber millions with crappy additions.  I guess it isn't all their fault... I mean, people keep buying it so.
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Hey DLPB,

You ever see Mr. Plinkett's reviews of the Star Wars Prequels?

http://redlettermedia.com/plinkett/

He does the best job I've ever seen of explaining what's wrong with those films. I completely agree it's a monetary thing. There's this great documentary on the DVD/Blu-Ray version of Episode One about the making of it where everyone sits down and watches the cut of the film. The audience is so shocked by how terrible it is that they're speechless. Even Lucas admits there's too much going on before back pedaling and claiming it's the greatest thing ever.

This is where it begins:

BTW, really looking forward to see your translation get finished. While I'm partial to Aeris, I understand where you're coming from and it's ridiculous that anyone is giving you crap for it. While some of the mistranslations are pretty funny, it really pulls you out of the game when you see "Do, what now?" (reminds me of meatwad!!!). But, fanboys and fangirls are just that. It's like trying to convince a brick wall to grow wings and fly away. You can try, but you'll just end up feeling like you wasted your time.
 
I love Plinkett!  Really gets to the heart of the problems with films.  8) and does it in a really cool way.  Plus he is funny as f.  And yeah, you are right.  :)
 
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