Dalarna University's logo and link to the university's website

du.sePublications
Change search
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • chicago-author-date
  • chicago-note-bibliography
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf
Otome Game localization: A case study of the character Toma from Amnesia
Dalarna University, School of Language, Literatures and Learning.
2021 (English)Independent thesis Basic level (degree of Bachelor), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
Abstract [en]

Using the Otome game Amnesia and its localized version Amnesia: Memories as a case study, the phenomenon of Otome games was explored from a translation- and Japanese studies' perspective. This paper investigated how translation choices shape character personality, and, as such, Western views. Toma, the most popular character from the Amnesia franchise according to Japanese popularity rankings, was received differently by the Western audience. This study aimed at exploring how translation choices might be related to this difference in reception. As such, it posed the questions: In what respect could changes that occurred during the localization process have led to an alteration of Toma's personality? How could these changes explain the discrepancy between player reception in Japan and the West? Upon analyzing the scripts, a connection between the effect created by certain translation strategies and Western player reception became apparent. Effects identified included the erasure of entry points for "self-inserting" players, the creation of a distorted first impression and the infringement of the players' spaces in ways not present in the original. The connection between character personality and the creation of an "equivalent gameplay experience" was explored. It resulted in the confirmation of the hypothesis surrounding their overall inseparability in an Otome game context, with the exception of a minority of justifiable cases where personality alterations were conducted in favor of a culturally equivalent gameplay experience. The impact of pre-filled gaps in the text led to decreased opportunities for players to contribute to the creation of meaning, while the presence of mistranslations sparked feelings of confusion regarding the character's sanity. Taking the role of the translator, the player and the virtual love interest into consideration, this paper suggests an approach derived from acting as a tool for future character personality preservation in Otome game translation.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2021.
Keywords [en]
Otome game, game localization, Japanese studies, virtual love, character personality, iyashi, player reception, emotional attachment
National Category
Languages and Literature
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:du-35913OAI: oai:DiVA.org:du-35913DiVA, id: diva2:1523709
Subject / course
Japanese
Available from: 2021-01-29 Created: 2021-01-29 Last updated: 2025-10-09

Open Access in DiVA

fulltext(2262 kB)2106 downloads
File information
File name FULLTEXT01.pdfFile size 2262 kBChecksum SHA-512
5f047eb32b0987092afbf112c036d8058b3e948c5f7ae4f9cd0de31b9f57a28e500533ee36531e5c296ea3c289137bd37c9c37544e1cf388c7ebdbe4394ca715
Type fulltextMimetype application/pdf

By organisation
School of Language, Literatures and Learning
Languages and Literature

Search outside of DiVA

GoogleGoogle Scholar
Total: 2111 downloads
The number of downloads is the sum of all downloads of full texts. It may include eg previous versions that are now no longer available

urn-nbn

Altmetric score

urn-nbn
Total: 7606 hits
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • chicago-author-date
  • chicago-note-bibliography
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf