Embarrassing new english audio: English Mystic Arte exhibition

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSgGq_gcHE8

Granted the uploader has made it very difficult to hear anything with the low quality audio recording and the fact he slapped a backing track over it, but whatever. Any of the PS2 content that has now been recorded in English does not sit well in the game! There is a sharp difference in volume, and the lines (at least in my opinion) are not being delivered as they should.

1. Despite Symphonia and Vesperia sharing the identical incantation and voice actor for Shining Bind, the two localizations are now different. I'm not 100% but I'm fairly sure Cam Clarke says "Chains of the heavens... Shining Bind!" instead of the far more accurate "Struggle against these holy chains..."
2. Following the first point, Kratos, Zelos, and Mithos all yell Shining Bind when the screen shows Holy Binds.
3. Presea mumbles all of her lines as opposed to shouting them as she does in Japanese. There is no epicness.
4. There is no echo where needed. Meaning, Raine's incantations for Sacred Light and Fairy Circle sound like regular spells.

*sigh* Maybe it won't be so terrible without the background music and compressed audio quality in that video.

Xillia 1's voices were oddly quiet at times, so I'm guessing they used Cup of Tea and the same equipment again for this instead of Blindlight, the company that did the mixing (and casting) for ToS1.

At least they proved they can bring everyone back when they're willing to cough up that union dough.

Aye, I'm impressed that everyone has returned. And everyone for the most part sounds the same.

Well, they tried, and they really didn't HAVE to. Thought that counts. Really Kari Whalgren and Mithos (Forget her name, gah) were the only ones that sounded "out of time"- Strong and Freeman actually surprised me, from what I could make out. And yes, we need a BGM-less version, the guy was trying to copy the Japanese exhibition video while having no clue on audio equalizing. I don't either, but then I would have realized that and just muted the music and left it to voice.

Mithos did sound strange, but I am not quite sure, though.

The wrong(?) Arte names/incantations will not be a problem for me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWWkv_I9HkY

This sounds a little better.

Edit1: I take that back.

Edit2: OH MY GOD THEY GAVE PRESEA'S LINES TO GENIS

Edit3: Luminous Bind

 

Okay, that is a problem XD

I really hope they will make a patch, that's just too sad
Whom am I kidding, they won't fix that, right?

Horrific. Just what were they thinking?
Especially with that Fairy Circle incantation. They've ruined perhaps one of the best spell incantations in the Tales series. It sounds so haunting in Japanese with the echo. Ugh. Terrible.

And can someone point out this Presea/Genis issue?

At least the delivery is still top-notch. Most of the voices sound the same, even after ten years (although Raine's delivery is a little weird, but I'd put that more on the direction since Wahlgren's incantations were fine in the GC version). Menville in particular still sounds great.

The Genis/Presea switch-up is at 1:19 during Innocent Edge. Some of the Artes after that still have the mix up, such as the Infliction ones.

And I thought the Tornado Drive and Darting Claw switches were bad.

Some of the new stuff is so underwhelming. Critical Blade and Crimson Devastation off the top of my head. I just...

The guys sound good though! Love Zelos' chuckle during Judgment.

Hien Messhoujin has lost all of its epicness. Where is Presea yelling in echo?! She sounds bored...

I haven't listened to the audio in that video since I want to hear them when I get my own copy of the game, but a lot of those arte translations are weird and defy certain naming conventions. Blazing Strike instead of Blazing Kick? Naming Zanma Getsueika "Moonlight Fury" instead of "Power Infliction" or "Fury Infliction"? Naming Ryuuko Metsugajin "Wyrm Wrath" even though its name is different from Ryuuko Metsugazan, the arte actually localized as Wyrm Wrath? Changing arte names for no reason (Holy Binds and Rock Pillar)?

I guess I shouldn't be surprised since this is Namco after all, but I would've liked better care put into the translations.

Some of these do seem really random especially since they say the names in the way we're used to its just the text that's weird. I do really like some of the VA'ing at least some I find just as laughable as everyone else is finding them....

Sounds pretty accurate to the original to me.

I just listened to the video's audio, and I have to ask:

Why do the characters' arte names differ with what the actors are saying? Zelos says "Severing Wind" despite the arte name being called Decisive Slice in Symphonia. Do they have multiple translations of each arte and get them mixed up or something? This happened in Graces and Xillia too.

Also, it's pretty interesting how many voice clips go unused in the Tales series. I wonder why that happens.

One last thing. Did they have someone else do Kratos's new lines in this game? Either that or Cam Clarke sounds WAY different.

I didn't really notice in Graces or Xillia, if I did then it was probably just me thinking they were just shouting randomness, that's pretty common really. This specific case bothers me though, because he says a well known name that's been localized before, but then they give it a super random name like Decisive Slice????

Decisive Slice was what it was originally called in Symphonia prior to Chronicles' localization. It was one of Garr's artes. It doesn't surprise me that they kept that name since they didn't change any other artes names.

Also, it's pretty interesting how many voice clips go unused in the Tales series. I wonder why that happens.

One last thing. Did they have someone else do Kratos's new lines in this game? Either that or Cam Clarke sounds WAY different.

That goes to show you how long its been since I've play Symphonia ;p whoops

@ Lloyzerdk

Cam Clarke intones Kratos differently in Vesperia/Dawn onward (He seemed closer in Radiant Mythology 1), we don't know why. I would suspect its either direction or his not getting a hold of the old voice- plus that he does not need to match it so critically when all of his post-Symphonia stints have been so short.

You would think the translation team and the sound team would run by each other at some point so they aren't contradicting each other; what was the delay between the two releases, like, five months? It's really not something to be a stick in the mud about, but it comes off as unprofessional. Glad that 90% of the annunciation is great, considering Cam Clarke and Heather Hogan are the only ones to come back to these characters in what's approaching our own ten-year mark. Shiloh Strong took it home.

While in Tara Strong's defense... her Presea never yelled, even when she should have; I agree the whole point of Presea's Mystics is to unleash the 12-year destroyer of worlds from the former-doll, but I cannot imagine going back to a character 10 years later to something you never had a precedent of doing as that character is an admirable situation, even for Tara Strong.

@ 4:03- Oh dear Lord we're all dead!

True. The only time I can recall where Presea screamed in English was when she discovered her father was dead. And man what a loud yell that was.

Shining Bind, Luminous Bind and Holy Binds? Namco please, now I feel bad for Moekaze and everyone in Aselia wiki.

Txn wrote:

Shining Bind, Luminous Bind and Holy Binds? Namco please, now I feel bad for Moekaze and everyone in Aselia wiki.

I'd imagine Moekaze will have a heart attack at this point.

In the case of Presea, I'm just gonna blame the director.

Lloyzerdk wrote:

Why do the characters' arte names differ with what the actors are saying? Zelos says "Severing Wind" despite the arte name being called Decisive Slice in Symphonia. Do they have multiple translations of each arte and get them mixed up or something? This happened in Graces and Xillia too.

I'm thinking it's because they do the translation and then the voice recording and editing for the game happen at the same time and stuff gets changed while they're editing.

Dei wrote:

Lloyzerdk wrote:

Why do the characters' arte names differ with what the actors are saying? Zelos says "Severing Wind" despite the arte name being called Decisive Slice in Symphonia. Do they have multiple translations of each arte and get them mixed up or something? This happened in Graces and Xillia too.

I'm thinking it's because they do the translation and then the voice recording and editing for the game happen at the same time and stuff gets changed while they're editing.

The phone calls must've not reached each respective teams then. lol

Hey, at least we know we won't have this issue with Zestiria/Xillia 2, and we will have a snazzy and awesum Collector's Edition for each....

I won't be surprised if it happens again though. lol

Somewhere Moekaze's head is exploding.