I have played several episodes of campaigns, and enjoyed the gameplay very much, with a pretty high standard of localization. However, when it comes to names of units and technologies, the quality suddenly and disproportionately deteriorates. My educated guess is that the poor translators did their best, but they were not given enough references and context for short strings, so I think this is really a problem of localization management and lack of test playing.
Below is the list of wrong or correctable terms in Japanese I found (all confirmed on the tech tree screen). I actually reported many of them at the closed beta stage, but they were sadly not updated, including simple typos.
(Legend: [English]: [Current Japanese] “[what Japanese literally means]” → [Suggested Japanese])
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Professional Scouts: プロの斥候 “expert/skilled scouts” → 職業斥候
the word sounds like “professional” in the sense of “a professional job” rather than “by profession”. -
Double broadax: ダブル ブロードアックス “(transliteration of English)” → 両刃まさかり
it is a transliteration, so not technically wrong, but unnecessary. The English broadax has multiple translations in Japanese, so I guess translator were not given what it was used for. -
Specialized Pick: 取捨選択 “sifting through” → 採掘用つるはし, 専用つるはし
guess picked the wrong “pick” -
Hulk: 廃船 “wreckage, retired ship” → ハルク船
the most unfortunate naming in the game IMO
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Navigator Lookout: 航海監視 “navigation monitoring/surveillance” → (航海)見張り
a fixed terminology in Japanese -
Extra Ballista: 余剰弩砲 “excess ballista” → 追加弩砲
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Palisade: 杭柵 “picket fence” → 柵, 矢来
I remember I have mentioned this several times on each remake, but the word is for fence that surrounds your garden. I think the old AOE2 translation 柵 suffices. -
Fortify Outpost: 前哨地の強化 “outpost strengthening” → 前哨地の要塞化
here “fortify” is not a figure of speech but in its literal meaning. btw outpost was 前哨 in AOE2, but the current translation is more correct in Japanese -
Springald Emplacement/Cannon Emplacement: スプリンガルド防衛陣地/大砲陣地 “springald/cannon base” → スプリンガルド(弩砲)配備( or 砲座)/大砲配備( or 砲座)
the translation of springald will be discussed below -
Council Hall: 評議会議事堂 “board meeting house” → 参事会堂
there is a fixed term. who translated this was apparently not able to know if the “council” was a Jedi Council or a medieval city council. -
Balanced Projectile: 平衡投射物 “equilibrium projected(?)” → 矢(弾)の釣り合い, 飛翔体の釣り合い (many options)
the term for arrow balancing is 釣り合い; 投射物 is indeed a translation of “projectile” but I don’t see it much in the military context than 飛翔体, but for plain Japanese you may just say “arrow or bullet”. -
Keep: 天守 “keep (tower of castle)” → 城, 砦
as far as what I see in the game, this is an independent defense facility rather than a wing of castle, right? -
Tithe Barns: 十分の一税保管所 “(Biblical) tithe storage” → 納所
this building is not limited for Christian civs only but the current Japanese is. We should use general concept for such a thing in every religion. -
Springald: スプリンガルド “(transliteration of English)” → 弩砲
current Japanese term suggest a specific type of arbalest-like artillery in narrow sense, but it doesn’t look so in the game. I think translators may have thought to distinguish it from “ballista” in a tech, but I don’t think it worth. -
Conterweight Trebuchet: 改良型遠投投石機 “enhanced trebuchet” → 遠投投石機
not sure where “enhanced” prefix came from, as it is not contrasted to anything with a similar name -
Greased Axles: 滑らかな車軸 “smooth axles” → 車軸の潤滑
another one that should be literal “grease” -
Adjustable Crossbars: 調子可能クロスバー “melody-able crossbar” → 可動横木/調整可能な横木
first, this is a typo supposed to be 調整可能, but besides that the translation is still clumsy -
Siege Works: 攻囲兵器工房 “siege workshop” → 攻囲兵器職人, 攻囲兵器製造(技術) (many options)
yes, it’s confused with the very building name… -
Imperial Official: 帝国の役人 “(literal translation of English)” → 官僚, 官人, 文官 (many options)
there are specific words for the Chinese bureaucrats, you can choose anything but the current one -
Palace Guard: 宮廷警護兵 “(literal translation of English)” → 禁軍(兵/部隊), 近衛兵
the specific term for the Chinese one -
Extra Hammocks: 余剰ハンモック “excess hammock” → 追加ハンモック
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Handcannon Slits: 手持ち砲狭間 “handheld cannon slits” → 銃眼
there is a specialized term -
Imperial Academy: 帝国アカデミー “(literal translation of English)” → 翰林院
the specific term for the Chinese one; at least you can’t use アカデミー because it means the Academy in Greek tradition -
Barbican of the Sun: 太陽の楼門 “(literal translation of English)” → ???甕城/譙楼/城楼 (not sure)
I’m not sure where it comes from but certainly not 楼門, which is a name for Japanese decorated gate(house). The Chinese structure usually translated as “barbican” is 甕城, but as what it appears on the Mongolian campaign, it could also be 譙楼(?) -
Fire Lancer: 火炎槍騎兵 “(literal translation of English)” → 火槍騎兵
the specific term for the Chinese one -
Astronomical Clocktower: 天文時計塔 “(literal translation of English)” → 水運儀象台
if you mean the very ones created in the Song dynasty -
Extra Materials: 余剰資材 “excess materials” → 備蓄資材
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Great Wall Gatehouse: 万里の長城の守衛所 “(literal translation of English)” → 長城関, (万里の)長城の関所
this is the correct naming according to their function IMO -
Spirit Way: 魂の道 “spiritual path(?)” → 皇帝陵, 皇帝廟
it means the road leads to the imperial tombs, right? (the exact name for it is 神道, but it’s the homograph of Shinto in Japanese…) -
Pagoda: パゴダ “(transliteration)” → 仏塔
we don’t usually call East Asian pagoda “pagoda” -
Enclave of the Emperor: 皇帝の包領 “emperor’s enclaved territory” → 内城, 故宮?? (not sure)
I can imagine nothing meaningful from the current Japanese name (or perhaps “royal demesne”?) The in-game model apparently looks like the Forbidden City though… -
Arbalétrier: アーバトリエ “Arba-trier” (typo) → アーバレトリエ
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Enlistment Incentives: 従軍の動機 “motive for enlistment” → 入隊奨励(金)
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Notre Dame: ノートルダム “(transliteration)” → ノートルダム大聖堂
I recommend explicitly adding “cathedral” in Japanese -
Prelate: 高位聖職者 “high priest” → 司教
not generally higher rank monks but “prelate” in HRE context right? -
Slate and Stone Construction: スレートと石材による建築 “(literal translation of English)” → スレート張り石造建築, スレート葺き石造建築
the Japanese name is not technically wrong, yet nor meaningful -
Inspired Warriors: 鼓舞された戦士 “(literal translation of English)” → 戦士の鼓舞
a bad usage of passive in Japanese -
Yam Network: ヤム網 “yam
network” → ジャムチ制 -
Abbey of the Trinity: 三位一体修道院 “(literal translation of English)” → 至聖三者(修道院/僧院)
Japanese uses different terminology sets for Catholicism and Orthodoxy. The current name uses the Catholic one. -
Improved Blessing: 祝福 (改) “blessing (updated)” → 祝福強化
btw the HRE “benediction” is also translated as 祝福, which could be changed to 聖別 for clearer distinction… -
Blessing Duration: 祝福の効果時間 “blessing effect duration (time)” → 祝福持続
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Wandering Town: 流浪 “roaming” → 走る町 (not sure)
I guess this name is an epithet for rams, isn’t it? -
All-Seeing Eye: 千里眼 “clairvoyance” → 全能の目
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Swiftness: 高速化 “making faster” → 敏捷, 迅速
it sounds funny to use the word seriously for human movement -
Zeal: 熱意 “eagerness” → 熱狂, 情熱
this word doesn’t particularly sound religious -
Baghlah, Xebec: バグラー, ジーベック → バグラー船, ジーベック船
not wrong as such but inconsistent with namings of other ships suffixed with 船. -
Madrasa: 学び舎 “learning house” → マドラサ, 神学校
not wrong as such but too confusing with 学びの家 “house of learning”. -
Improved Processing: 加工 (改) “processing (updated)” → 加工技術改良, 高度加工技術 (many options)
