FIRE EMBLEM: THREE HOUSES
MASTER TRANSLATION COMPILATION
This document was originally part of the master analysis index, but I grew increasingly frustrated with its place there. Besides the fact that (for a number of reasons) it became a huge pain to edit, I’m also just not as convinced that these errors are as huge as we necessarily made them out to be before. (They are still important. Most of these errors obscured nuances, and the nuances are actually important in this game!) Combined with the fact that we kind of look like crazy people trying to reinterpret the game script to say what we want it to to the outside observer if we foreground the issues with the translation, I thought it was best to just move this whole thing elsewhere.
The initial wave of retranslation stuff was initially due to u/SigurdVII and u/SkylXTumn and focused on Edelgard and Edeleth. Because let's be honest: Treehouse made so many egregious errors that just happened to affect Edelgard that it kind of seems like someone at the company had an axe to grind against her. So it's worth separating out the Edelgard-related errors from the rest.
The Unique Relationship between El and Byleth - by u/SkylXTumn. This is actually not so much a "translation failure" as "Treehouse made a reasonable effort to translate something which just does not translate across languages." Basically, Japanese lets you write something one way while indicating that you can say it another, and it turns out that El is using a much more meaningful term than everyone else's Sensei for Byleth. Treehouse tries to capture this with "my teacher," but it doesn't really capture the essence of the difference.
Edelgard S Support and Ending Clarification (JP <-> EN) - also by u/SkylXTumn, this is absolutely a translation failure. Turns out that Edelgard's S support is much more romantic in the original Japanese. (Incidentally, Dimitri's and Claude's are less romantic. Go figure.)
So Treehouse Really Can't Translate Crimson Flower - by u/SigurdVII. You know that one moment in Crimson Flower where you kill Cordelia and she's all "muhahahaha everything is going according to plan?" Well, it turns out that translation missed a crucial word: NOT. (More precisely, Treehouse appears to have typoed (!) and turned "yours" into "ours", which reverses the entire meaning of Cordelia's death text.)
Probably the Worst Mistranslation of the Game - by u/SigurdVII, and it still holds the title. You know that part where Edelgard and Dimitri are having a debate in Azure Moon and Edelgard is all "you HIGHBORN" at Dimitri and it makes no sense because both of them were born to royalty? Yeah, that's not what she said.
A Comparison of the JP and EN Texts of Dimitri and Edelgard’s Conversation in Chapter 21 - by u/ReinaU. Another look at retranslating this debate. I’m not thrilled with it because it claims to be “objective” while (a) repeating a bunch of bullshit that implies that Edelgard fans are only ones distorting canon and bashing people to spread our views (b) implicitly absolving anyone else of any responsibility for doing any of these things (c) simultaneously taking everything in the most pro-Dimitri light possible while sticking to the actual text, but it is still better than the English version I guess so I’ll list it here.
Another "Shocking" Edelgard Mistranslation - by u/SigurdVII, this one is from the DLC and concerns Edelgard's reaction to House Nuvelle's loss of status. It's . . . bad. So much so that you may have looked at it and gone "is that Treehouse again?" like I did.
Edelgard's Portrayal Comparison - by u/SigurdVII, pointing out that Tara Platt's voice direction for Edelgard is generally different from the original Japanese. As noted in the original post, "[t]his isn't really meant to be a criticism so much as a look at where fault lines can lie between portrayals."
Your Duty is Done - by u/SigurdVII. Not even the only animated cutscene of FE3H escaped the Treehouse treatment! Turns out that El’s last words to Rhea were mistranslated.
Change from Japanese Edeleth Ending - by @mogiberii. Small but important note on omissions from the Japanese ending between Byleth and Edelgard - especially important since Edeleth is arguably canon in Crimson Flower.
How Treehouse’s Translation messed up the Edelgard Bandit Attack Conspiracy - by u/AnnaisMyWaifu. A look at the translation errors surrounding Edelgard’s conspiracy surrounding the bandit attack in the prologue. They aren’t huge, but it lends credence to the “Edelgard wanted Jeritza to be the new professor” theory and overall seems to be more in line with the rest of Edelgard’s characterization, honestly (her EN treatment of Kostas is overly callous given the rest of of her character in my opinion.)
Edelgard may be Treehouse's dearest friend, but that doesn't mean that the other characters of FE3H are safe from their special brand of love!
Unmasking the Master Tactician - by u/SigurdVII, and essential reading for anyone who wants to analyze Claude. I'll repost this when I get to actual analysis, but I need to post this in the section here because it turns out that Claude's character changed noticeably between the Japanese and English versions, and the changes smoothed out his rough edges. A lot.
Edelgard and Rhea/Sothis Content from Nintendo DREAM Interview - by u/SigurdVII. So not only is the game originally in Japanese, but Nintendo's development staff is also Japanese, and gets interviewed in Japanese. So the developers tell us important information about the game (depending on your definition and degree of belief in death of the author, of course) in Japanese and it has to get translated. Sometimes the original translations were bad. So stuff got retranslated over at r/Edelgard.
Dimitri Never Swore Loyalty to Rhea in CF - by u/SigurdVII. Exactly what it says on the tin.
So Nobody Noticed Dimitri is Willing to Screw Over Allies? - by u/SigurdVII. A mix of translation and interpretation, because the English version hints that Dimitri is trying to screw over his Church of Seiros allies in CF Chapter 17 but it turns out that it's much more explicit in the original Japanese.
Ashen Wolves, Crimson Flower Monastery Dialogue Translation + Analysis - By u/funjoushi. Turns out that Treehouse's Edelgard hate boner infests the DLC!
Hubert and Edelgard's A Support - By u/esterve. So you know that moment when Hubert confesses that he's in love with Edelgard in their A support and it feels really out of character? Yeah, that was Treehouse. (Original translation by @MikaHaruka_FE3H is here just below)
Dimitri and Edelgard's Conversation in the Mock Battle - By u/esterve. Different tone in the original Japanese.
Support Translations - by @MikaHaruka_FE3H. A gradually updating list of fan-translated supports. Of particular note is the Ferdibert support, which not only is the author's favorite but also got thoroughly shafted by Treehouse.
A note on Sylvain and Mercedes’ A support - by @LadyBergamotx. Treehouse’s translation omits the very real emotional impact on Sylvain that Mercedes’ seeing through him has.
Fire Emblem Fan Translation - An ambitious, ongoing effort to retranslate the entire script. I link to Chapter 9 of the Black Eagles, which is the latest release as of this writing.
Random Byleth Japanese Lines - So Byleth has apparently picked up some stuff from being a mercenary, like a love of booze and raunchy sex jokes, but you'd never know it by the English translation.
Dorothea’s Teatime Japanese Line - by u/SkylXTumn - Dorothea got censored!
Annette and Mercedes’ A Support Yuri FTW - by u/SkylXTumn - Treehouse censored the romantic subtext in Annette and Mercedes’ A support; here’s a more accurate translation.
Retranslated battle conversation between Dorothea and Manuela - by @mogiberii. A look at a battle conversation between Dorothea and Manuela in which the translation omits their special relationship.
Dimitri, Edelgard, and Azure Moon - by u/captainflash89. While this post is primarily an exploration of Dimitri’s character and the themes of Azure Moon, the author includes a very necessary discussion of the differences between the original Japanese script of the Blue Lions route and the English translation.
How the Backstory of Edelgard’s Parents was Mistranslated, and the greater implications - by u/esterve. Treehouse appears to have censored references in the original Japanese to what can be loosely described as harem politics. Adding back in the missing references adds context to why Edelgard, Arundel, and Anselma had to flee the Empire after the Insurrection of the Seven, what the Insurrection was all about, and what the political makeup of the Empire is like.
Dedue’s Lines in CF Chapter 17 - Treehouse removed some of Dedue’s lines during his transformation into a Demonic Beast in Chapter 17 of Crimson Flower, possibly because they are suggestive that he and Dimitri may be closer than master and servant. Notably hints that Dimitri may have more goals than revenge even in Crimson Flower.
Felix and Dimitri, CF Chapter 17 - The subtleties of Felix and Dimitri’s relationship are obscured in the translation of their battle conversation in Chapter 17 of Crimson Flower. Notably, the original suggests that Dimitri has to steel himself before fighting and potentially killing Felix, showing that CF Dimitri is not just a polite veneer over the punished Boar of the other routes.
A Comparison of the JP and EN Texts of “Reunion at Dawn” in SS/AM/VW - by u/ReinaU. Retranslates the reunion cutscenes during Chapter 13 for every route except Crimson Flower. I would personally take this with a huge grain of salt given that (a) a previous post indicates that the user is horribly biased against Edelgard (b) the convenient omission of Crimson Flower in light of that fact, but it’s still probably better than Treehouse.