Japanese HeroQuest: Card Translations

[Daedalus]

Yes, it is wise to leave the game playable at the cost of verisimilitude. Was your colleague surprised that you had a translation project to discuss--involving an old game, no less?

[HispaZargon]

Yeah, of course he was really surprised, but he is a big fan of videogames and asian culture in general, so he colaborated quickly answering my questions

[Daedalus]

Grimdead was translated as Grindead to me in Tokyo. Has
your colleague seen his name? Maybe he can lay this to rest.

[Kurgan]

GRINdead...

Now I picture him with a joker smile... and he talks like the Joker in the Avalon Hill HQ companion app... the plot thickens!

[HispaZargon]

Grimdead was translated as Grindead to me in Tokyo. Has
your colleague seen his name? Maybe he can lay this to rest.

I will ask... but remember that the original Japanese map in the back cover of the rulebook had clearly written "Grimdead" in our alphabet.

[Kurgan]

Good point HZ. So Tokyo interpreter was wrong (perhaps due to eyesight misread "M" as "N")? Or could it be read as "M" but pronounced like "N"?

Takara is located in Tokyo, but was the interpreter a local to that city? Regional dialect difference?

[Daedalus]

Grimdead was translated as Grindead to me in Tokyo. Has
your colleague seen his name? Maybe he can lay this to rest.

I will ask... but remember that the original Japanese map in the back cover of the rulebook had clearly written "Grimdead" in our alphabet.

As I recall,, I had shown the Japanese characters to the woman, who I assume was from Tokyo. I had her repeat the name to be sure she was pronouncing the name with an "n", not "m".

Yes, the map has Grimdead, but I'd say that translation was adapted by an individual who thought "grim" was the best evil-sounding English approximation available as a sound-alike. "Grin", the more accurate-sounding word, could also have an evil connotation if one knows the context. Kurgan's Joker reference works that way. I had thought of a skullface like Skeletor from Master's of the Universe, or a death-rictus of a corpse, with the lips pulled tightly back and the teeth fully exposed--yikes!

My point is, the translation on the map might be judged inferior to the more literally translated Grindead of the inner Questbook if one considers the mapmaker and the Questbook author are two seperate individuals with different translation sensibilities. It is possible that the author of the Questbook never understood that Grimdead was only an approximation changed from his literal translation. The mapmaker could have erroneously claimed better English skill, the author didn't understand English well enough to recognize the flavor change, or maybe the map was tagged on later in the development by those, who along with the mapmaker, didn't recognize the error in translation judgement.

We can only speculate, but if your friend can confirm Grindead, I at least feel it was likely meant to convey the direct meaning of grin+dead in English, as that is simplest and works without further nuance. Otherwise, I think it a strange coincidence indeed that the primary source, the Quest Book text, translates directly into a cool, scary English meaning.

Why ignore something that was apparently intended? Is it better to accept what was officially released in the map, or should the original name be respected that seems to have been lost in translation? In the end, you will decide as the creator of this English translation--which is best.

One thing I wonder is if Grindead has a similarly scary meaning in Japanese, or if it was only phonetically created to achieve an intimidating meaning in English. Can your colleague clarify that?

[Chwat]

can you post the japanese text here? containing Grin or Grim

[HispaZargon]

Ok Daedalus, I got the point and your doubt. I will ask it and see. If we finally see the name should be Grindead I will also update the books in line with that, of course.

My intention with this project was always making the most accurate translation as posible but always preserving the original Japanese charm too, so we should check this in detail, yes.

[Chwat]

闇の魔王グリンデッド (King devil of the Dark) Grindead! my Wife used N, she went on to say L/R are the same to her, she is a native japanese speaker.

闇の魔王 King devil of the Dark.
グリンデッド Grindead she wrote it so I could prononce it as follows Gurindeddo.
Personally I would think of him as a Chaos crazed Evil Wizard that laughs with a strange evil smile.