The translation world has legends of its own, but not all legends involve greatness. Legends can also deliver pain, confusion, and laughter, as bad video game translations often demonstrate.
In this section of Legends of Localization, we’ll look at some of the funniest and most famous bad video game translations into English. Some will involve genuine English mistakes, some are often-quoted typos, some are famous for sounding silly, and others are notorious for their unfortunate wording.
Games with Famous Bad Translations into English
Let's take a look at the best of the worst English game translations of all time!
Games with Famous Bad Translations into Japanese
English-speaking gamers have "All Your Base", but what do Japanese gamers have?
Alice in the Heart’s English Translation
This is one of the finest unknown gems of bad video game translation.
Ayakashi Koi Gikyoku’s English Translation
The game got an update patch - is the translation any better or worse? Let's find out.
Battle Rangers’ English Translation
This arcade classic features amazing examples of bad 1980s video game translation.
Breath of Fire II’s English Translation
Breath of Fire II's translation is so bad it's almost miraculous.
Download (PC Engine)’s Crude English Text
This Japanese game has a surprising amount of interesting and colorful English.
The Ending to Ghostbusters (NES)… But in Japanese
This game's notoriously bad translation is somehow an improvement over the original. Here's why.
Gunbarich’s English Translation
This popular Japanese arcade game finally hit the Nintendo Switch, along with an awkward English translation.
Gundam Daichi ni Tatsu! (PC-88)’s Inherent English Script
This obscure Japanese computer game is entirely in English - and it's charmingly bad.
Hana no Star Kaidō’s Inherent English Text
This weird old game was only released in Japan, yet it features lots of memorably bad English writing.
Iris School of Wizardry’s English Translation
This poorly translated Nintendo Switch game was given a new translation. Here are some before-and-after comparisons!
Kitty Love’s English Translation
Nintendo's eShop is filling up with poorly translated Japanese games. Here's a look at another notorious one.
Refreshing Sideways Puzzle Ghost Hammer’s English Translation
Are you ready to drink the roast nail stains of a princess?
Selfy Collection’s English Translation
Bizarre fashion meets bizarre translation in this Nintendo Switch game!
SLASH HERO’s English Translation
This Japanese mobile game is a treasure trove of machine-translated nonsense.
Summer Sweetheart’s English Translation
What happens when a Chinese game is translated into Japanese and then again into English?
Twinkle Star Sprites’ English Translation
This Neo Geo classic is a great example of a lesser known, "slow burn" bad translation in action.
Vroom in the Night Sky’s English Translation
Let's follow this game's poor translation as it gets "fixed" over time!