06.17.07
Deltora Quest (DS) – Harry Potter craze continues
What is it about people who think they know all about a language because they’ve started learning it? They are almost always cocky, and insists on being rude to people in that language so no one else around them can understand it. What fun do they derive from such base activities? If I was being rude, I’d rather my target(s) understood me from tone and mannerisms, rather than usage of slang. But then I guess I have respect for languages and cultural contexts (trust me, crucial for anyone assuming the role of translator), which they obviously lack.
Now I’ve no qualm about people learning a language or two – it’s good for your brain activity. People try and learn the language probably because they like the culture it comes from, and that’s also good. So, I’m flattered that so many Japanophiles learn my native tongue. BUT (oh, yes, the big ‘but’)… there is no reason for Japanophiles to go around calling themselves and each other with ‘chan’ affixed to their names – that sounds retarded to most grown-ups in Japan; there’s certainly no call to be rude by peppering your sentences with ‘baka(馬鹿)’, ‘urusai(うるさい)’ and the like.
What triggered this rant overload? One of the guild chats I was in yesterday afternoon. Well done, that this girl has been doing 4 years of the language via a tutor. But teachers can be wrong too… but I guess that’s difficult to tell unless you’ve had more practice. Every other time she wanted the guild chat to ’shut up’, she’d use the word ‘urusai’… which is plain wrong. ‘urusai’ is basically saying ‘(you’re) loud/noisy/etc’, but to actually tell people to ’shut up’, she’d have to use the word ‘damare(黙れ)’. (Think of the many times you’ve seen certain word typed wrong: ‘you’re’ and ‘your’, ‘its’ and ‘it’s’, for example.) She then sulked a bit and came back with ‘unless my tutor’s talking shit’… Now if anyone’s other half is foreign, and you learn that language via tutelage, you might on hindsight notice that your spouse’s way of speaking/writing it gets understood more often by natives than the way you learnt from tutors. That’s usually the case in any language, I hear. Language is fluid, and it’s constantly changing. Trust those who speak it, rather than teachers who use a set of outdated books (and probably doesn’t speak the language often enough).
So anyone asking for translations from me, bear these things in mind. A bit more of the linguistic respect wouldn’t go amiss either.
First up then: Soul Calibur IV trailer. You’ll need Windows Media Player for this. Meh… doesn’t quite make me want to see more of it somehow.
New Square Enix arcade game coming to a store near you! Goes without saying it’s in Japan only.DQ Swords from 21st this month, will be seen in about 200 shops nationwide (department stores, arcade stores). ￥100 (about 50p) per play.
Sonic’s due to make a cameo on Phantasy Star Universe come 23rd (his 16th birthday!) for a limited time only. No other events for him are planned – poor guy.
Deltora Quest is making it’s way over to the DS. Screenshots and characters can be seen here. Comes under the category of Full Touch Action RPG, approx. £25.20, out on 20th September, for 1-2 players. Apparently the original Australian book was a big hit over there, made it’s way over to Japan, became a hit too with kids (think Harry Potter craze) and made it as a anime series too. So, they’ve decided to make a game of it. Standard Japanese way of thinking.
For approx. £20, comes つんでツミキス (pronounced: ‘tsunde tsumikisu’; ‘tsumiki’ meaning ‘building blocks’). Kind of like Tetris, but these blocks aren’t so nice as to fit together smoothly without much help from you. And there are goals of various heights. Start off with ‘as high as an upright trumpet’, and end up with ‘as high as a pyramid’. For 4 players, out 30th August. Easy? Oh, did I forget to mention there’s a time limit? And a point system that will allow you bigger blocks – easier to build higher, but be wary of the smaller blocks foundation.
For those of you who’d like to pace yourself in a calm fashion, look no further than another of the cooking navigation DS software: しゃべる！DSお料理ナビ まるごと帝国ホテル. It’s like the other cooking navigation stuff, except it’s done by chefs from the Imperial Hotel. The promo vid is available from the above link (just click on TV/CM button on top right hand corner). Over 200 recipes included from top restaurants across Japan, and has tips from the chefs involved. Approx. £21.40, out 21st.