Clephas

I can see why you would see it that way. However, to be quite frank... most people who do this are doing it on a whim or at least start out that way. In addition, groups that don't form a strong leadership from the beginning tend to dissolve in mid-project or stall for months or years at a time. While I loved working with various groups in a friendly 'no one is in charge even in name' atmosphere, things tended to collapse the second someone who formed the core of the group dropped out. Exceptions are those where the group has taken on a life of its own over several 'generations' of members like m.3.3.w. (fansub group specializing in relatively minor series that would otherwise go unsubbed), but for every group like that one there are a dozen or more that collapsed early on or after a single burst of activity, when a core member burned out. I'm aware that I'm a cynic, but I also care about those who get involved with a given project. No one wants their efforts to be wasted, and all too often, that is exactly what happens with this kind of thing. It's immensely frustrating to find you can't help while things sort of fall apart around you. Worst part is, I'm aware that I am not suited as a leader. I find the tasks of organizing others and making long conversations on what needs to be done at any given moment to be tedious enough to drive me to suicide, and I hate nothing more than repeating myself. Worse is that I found myself in a leadership position early on in my translation career (when I formed a fansub group of my own) and had to give it over to someone else when I realized I didn't have the right type of personality to manage it without driving everybody else insane or burning out from holding my frustration in. Imagine translating an entire series of anime, then seeing that translation sit around doing nothing for a year, simply because nobody is running things and you don't have the right skills to manage a team. An immensely humbling situation, to say the least. Making it worse is that translators - including me - have an excessively high opinion of themselves once they have a few projects under their belt. Thus, frustration actually wears the average new - but somewhat experienced - translator down more than a newbie or someone who has been around long enough to get over themselves, relax and take things as they come. I simply don't like seeing people repeating the same mistakes over and over without someone who has seen it previously making an effort to inform them of the pitfalls. My model is primarily designed to reduce the stress on individual members to the minimum, while giving them the freedom to go at their own pace without disrupting the project as a whole. Ideally, this reduces the vague sense of guilt a translator or editor feels when they realize real life is going to force them to give up their translation work while at the same time giving the enthusiastic the leeway they need to push things forward at their own pace. The leader's job in coordinating isn't so much to order people around as to ensure people aren't duplicating one another's work and keep them aware of the fact that the others are working, thus making certain they don't feel isolated, even if they aren't necessarily communicating directly with the rest of the team.

My main reason for saying a leader shouldn't be in one of the other positions is fairly simple... the main reason most projects fail is mental and emotional exhaustion due to overwork, aside from getting the disease otherwise known as 'real life'. Translating, editing, and translation-checking are all positions that eat up time and energy, leaving little extra for other pursuits such as convincing other people to keep going in the face of their own exhaustion. To be blunt, translation and editing fry the brain. Someone with a fried brain isn't up to the clear thinking necessary to keep up with coordinating a project. Not only that, increasing stress factors unnecessarily makes it that more likely that the individual in question will experience 'burn out'. This is all the worse for the project if the individual in question is a translator or a tlc, both of which are hard to recruit in the first place. Editors as leaders is slightly less problematic, but the same problems pop up, if at a later date. Hackers are out of the question as leaders, not because they can't do it but because most hackers are moonlighting numerous projects already, and adding to their burdens unnecessarily is not exactly an intelligent choice. Last of all, it is quite possible to be enthusiastic for a project even if you haven't played the game in question. Testimonials and reviews by those that have played the games, as well as the lust of those who don't know Japanese for more VNs in the genres they prefer lead to a degree of enthusiasm that frequently surpasses those who - like me - have no need for English patches.

This is the model I proposed: Project Leader: Is a member not involved with any other step of the process. Primary jobs are recruitment, staying abreast of the gist of his members rl situations (just generalities), making decisions about what parts to assign what people, finding own replacement. Must have at least basic organizational skills and good communication skills (in other words, be able to talk to your fellow members without being annoying and keep them motivated). Preferred number is one, as projects with more than one leader are committees, and nothing gets done in a committee. Raw translator- Basic job is simple, to translate basic Japanese into essentially corresponding English (or whatever other language they are translating to). Requires solid grammar (a weak vocab can be made up for with access to a dictionary but weak grammar is fatal to translation efforts). Preferred number (varies on game) but at least three. Five or six if you have a project the size of Grisaia or larger. Editor- Transform the inevitably flawed translated text to real english that doesn't sound awkward inside a person's head as they read. If you can manage this while retaining the meaning of what the translator put down, you've done your job. Preferred number is two, but there should be roughly two for every three translators. Translation Checker- Fix any translation mistakes without ruining the editor's work (including those caused by the editor's work). Requires translation skills in excess of those possessed by raw translators, must have english skills at least on par with editor. Ideally, same number as editors, but in practical terms the necessary skill-set for an effective translation checker is so rare that most projects will have to settle for one or two. Hacker- Required personnel to extract text files, organize them, then use them to create a translated patch. Preferred number is one... obviously. Basic process is hacker(extraction)>translator>editor>translation checker>hacker (patch). Ideally someone should do a few test runs of the patched game to make sure it isn't bugged beyond salvation. Never put editor after tlc, the results are... unfortunate.

Balancing fantranslation with the demands of real life is not always possible, a fact that had never occurred to me before the beginning of summer. Before this, whenever I got involved with a translation, I was able to make time to do my part. However, due to the conditions I'm currently working under, it is not practically possible for me to fantranslate. This is not a particularly unique experience, from what I've seen. Lots of those involved with fantranslations eventually have to make the choice between real life and their work as fantranslators. The model I put up for working a fantranslation, where the project is designed to render any single individual as a replaceable part, was my logical recognition of this reality. The unfortunate part is that I didn't realize that real life could come up behind me with a lead pipe so quickly. I'm glad that it seems the others are continuing the project without me, but as always I can't help but feel guilty that I don't have the time or means to help at present. After all, I am the one that proposed the project in the first place. At the same time, the most vital member for maintaining a project - the project leader - went absent almost from the beginning, a fact that left me somewhat at a loss, since replacing a project leader is supposed to be that leader's job (by picking a replacement before or as he has to distance himself from the project). Unlike a translator, an editor, or even a tlc, a project leader requires someone with decent organizational skills who is willing to NOT get hands-on with the project itself. In other words, his job isn't to be a quality control freak but to keep the members motivated and keep recruiting new people in to help with the project, even if there doesn't seem to be an immediate need for them at a given moment. In addition, his job is to assign parts for each member - what scripts for an individual tl or editor is to work on and the like. Currently Rus is working that role in a sort of de-facto state, but considering that he has a rl job and is moonlighting with several projects under his normal role as a hacker, having him in that role departs greatly from the original purpose of having a dedicated project leader with no other role but being the project leader. In other words, people should take the current state of the project as a lesson about how vital it is to be able to replace any single member, no matter what his skill-set is. Fantranslator work lifespans are not generally long, and it isn't unusual for one to last less than six months before real life or general frustration makes him quit. For that reason, a warning to those who take on the role of project leader - you are key to the running of the project but you should be able to replace yourself and make the effort to do so. If you don't have the motivation to continue in your role, find someone who can. The continuance of the project itself should be more important than any single individual member. PS: I'll probably have some translation time around the middle of August, but that doesn't lessen the importance of the object lesson of my experiences. You never know what life will throw at you, so don't assume you'll be able to continue until the very end.

That really is nothing compared to either my backlog or the ones I've played so far... especially considering how little free time I've had since the middle of May.

lol, just to be clear, translation-checkers have to be even or BETTER than the raw translators. There isn't any point in having someone less skilled go over a translation looking for mistakes. If your Japanese skills are inadequate, I'd advise you to go for editor if you have college-level english skills (can write a comprehensible essay with no or few grammatical mistakes that doesn't sound awkward) Edit: I don't mean to sound elitist, but TLC is not a job that can be done by someone less skilled than the original translator. It is much better for the raw tl to be done by a less skilled translator and the polishing - after editing - be done by a more skilled translator. TLC is less demanding of a translator's time, but in exchange it is also a job that can afford fewer mistakes than raw translation as the product is linguistically 'finished' after the tlc's job is done. At the same time, ideally a TLC should be good enough to 'train' other tls by taking down notes on why a particular translation is inaccurate or inappropriate within the context. This accelerates the rise in quality of translation in general by teaching new translators where they are going wrong and encouraging them to think critically about how Japanese might be transformed into English. Also, ideally a TLC should be able to function as a high-level editor, as one of the basic requirements of their work is to fix tl mistakes created by editing without ruining the quality of the editors' work by making lines sound awkward. It is for these reasons that I consider TLC to be the most difficult position to fill. When it comes down to it, what is required of a raw translator is basic grammar in Japanese, a dictionary of nouns and verbs (to aid in vocabulary comprehension), and the patience and willpower to slog through the trenches of a translation. What is required of an editor is an accurate comprehension of English grammar and the ability to edit lines so they don't sound awkward. When considering whether you can fill one of these positions, you should consider whether you fulfill these very minimal conditions. I'll repeat this because it is important: Grammar is more important when translating then having a large vocabulary of individual words.

Also, it isn't that good as Minori games go. I'm not fond of Minori games in the first place, but meh.

It was one of the ones I considered starting a project for, but I crossed it out for a number of reasons. 1) Difficulty level: This game's linguistic difficulty is amongst the highest of any game I've ever played that doesn't use archaic Japanese. 2) Narrow Appeal: This game is niche within a niche. It appeals to a very small crowd of people that like psychotic, murderous characters who think of that as being normal and a world that doesn't reject that way of thinking. This game shows off Akatsuki Works' Nietzschian philosophy and general cynicism far more blatantly than their other games. There are others but those are the big ones from a translator's point of view. Highly difficult and has narrow appeal (not to mention that the game itself is very long) and thus it is a bit too much of a hurdle for most translators.

This game is one of my favorites, for the sheer abnormality of the characters. The characters have a different perspective on life that is oddly mixed with a normal perspective, making it all the more fascinating to read.

If you don't mind ones that are only in Japanese, I can name thirty or forty truly epic games, but I'll start with ones that are just generally good: Harumade Kururu (this game starts like a harem nukige and turns into a serious mindfuck), Evolimit (any action game by propeller really), Ruitomo, Comyu, Dies Irae (for its unrepentant melodrama), Hapymaher, Grisaia (the first one), Haruka ni Aogi Uruwashi no, Jingai Makyou, Komorebi no Nostalgia, Otome ga Tsumugu Koi no Canvas, Sousei Kitan Aerial, Tiny Dungeon series, Draculius, Tsuisou no Augment, Vermillion - Bind of Blood. I could go on further, but I won't.

The side-routes are irrelevant and meaningless in G-Senjou. Just play the Haru route and ignore the other girls.

Sorry about that. I'm in a situation where I can only be connected to the internet while not working, due to contractual issues involving nondisclosure agreements. Making it worse is that I'm working the equivalent of 70 hours a week right now and am usually so completely exhausted when I'm done that reconnecting to the internet - since I have to literally remove my network card from my pc every time I start work - is just too much trouble unless I have seven or eight hours free. Not to mention I now have a lovely piece of legal spyware on my computer telling my employers if I connect to the net, and if I remove it I am in breach of contract, a situation that is quite unpleasant in general. Edit: This is my first day off since May 5th, and I've been sleeping more or less throughout the day, waking only to drink water and to recover from extended internet withdrawal. The only times I was even able to play games over the last month or so was when I ate and the last half hour or so before I went to sleep. Not being able to skim internet news nearly drove me insane...

Cross Channel is a classic for good reason, but no, I never felt an intense personal connection with Taichi, except on the level I empathize with all protagonists.

For the repacking, I dunno. However, an extraction tool exists on Asmodean's page: http://asmodean.reverse.net/pages/exs4alf.html First rule when looking for unpacking tools... Asmodean's page, lol. I have contacted Avisch, asking him for the stuff he's already tled. However, I've yet to receive a reply.

http://vndb.org/v768 I don't know how many people know the Ikusa Megami series in general, but those who do will probably remember this game as the best one ever produced by Eushully. The battle system is pretty straight rpg fare, though the visual aspects are kind of weird. Before Kamidori, Eushully was known for combining excellent writing with playable, easy-to-use battle systems (well, they are still known for the latter), and Ikusa Megami Zero is the best of those. The Ikusa Megami setting is their longest-running setting and is a fascinating world where science has been soundly rejected in favor of magic, where demons and dragons roam, and where gods born of human faith are worshiped devotedly by legions of humans who inevitably seem to 'misunderstand' their gods' intentions and desires. Ikusa Megami Zero is the beginning of the story that ends in the earlier games Ikusa Megami and Ikusa Megami II and it tells the beginning of the journey for Serika, a young swordsman in service to the temple of the god of lightning. While I say 'the beginning' the actual story spans several thousand years and a pretty grand set of events that is fascinating to read. Now, what all this is about is that I was considering reviving the tl project for this game. While I could secretly go around recruiting people for it and begging them for help, I figured I'd go ahead and write an appeal on this site for anyone who is interested. First Translators. I need one translator for the interface and the item/weapon/armor/skill names. I'll also need as many other tls as I can get to accelerate the raw translation of the story. I'm not going to be picky. If you can translate, I'll take you in. I'll also need a minimum of three editors. This game is LONG, and it is also text-heavy. One editor will without a doubt give up and if they do so it will completely screw things for the next stage, tlc. I need at least one other tlc besides myself, preferably someone who is used to figuring out complex Japanese sentences and who possesses college-level english writing skills (so as in order to keep the results from sounding awkward). Last of all, I'll need a hacker to repack the game files and create a usable patch, as well as a number of testers to see if the game works well with the patch. I'm also looking for someone else to take over leadership of the project - someone with the patience to manage a bunch of fantls and editors with all their associated problems. To be blunt, if I want to tl, I won't have time to manage the people. So, more than anything else I want to grab someone with enthusiasm and organizational skills to manage me and anyone else who joins the project. Needed members: Interface Translator: 0/1 Translators: 2/?? Editors: 1/3 Translation-checkers: 1/2? (could always use more but I'll want at least one other) Hacker: 1/1 Project Leader: 1/1 Recruited members: Interface TL: Translators: Clephas, Basaka Editors: KaiserD Translation-checkers: Clephas Hacker: RusAnon Project Leader: Ikaruga Post here if you are interested. Make sure you have at least three hours a week to tl if you are a translator, though I won't be hurt if you do more. For the Project Leader, it is necessary that he/she not be a translator or editor, as both these roles are too time-consuming to allow for management. Once the leader volunteers, he/she will be in charge of recruiting and replacement of members (including himself) as well as making sure everyone is in communication. Ideally, if we all die, we can all be replaced and eventually produce a finished product. In other words, this will be a project that doesn't rely on the charisma of a single group of people but a project that will hopefully take on a life of its own. lol Also: Until the project is complete, lets avoid making a big deal out of it. I have no desire to get hit with a C&D and have half the people on the project drop out because we just had to advertise our efforts on a blog or other site.

Tenshi no Hane wo Fumanaide, Devils Devel Concept, Yurikago yori Tenshi Made, Comyu, Izuna Zanshinken, Evolimit, Ayakashibito, Bullet Butlers, Chronobelt, Ikusa Megami Zero, Ikusa Megami Verita, and about a hundred or so others along the same lines or that I picked up out of curiosity through my friend living in Japan... in all for around 20K in VN spending over the past five to six years...lol

I was pointing out the problems from a neutral perspective, as I have little invested in the localization industry or in fantranslations in general. Pointing out the difficulties and the reasons for the attitudes on the Japanese side is necessary for discovering ways to overcome those same problems. Failing to acknowledge those realities will only result in a higher likelihood of any effort to change their minds failing.

One thing that must be said is that inertia has made most VN fans in the US into pirates, and it is hard to change a habit once established (make that impossible for many). Considering the oddly traditionalist nature of the Japanese eroge industry (because Japanese business culture in general is traditionalist) there is little emotional or cultural incentive for companies over there to choose nontraditional methods of licensing. Making it worse is the general apathy for the super super niche market for VNs in the US that most express and the issues with sexual content that first exploded with Rapelay. Most Japanese countries are terrified that content they send over here will earn censure and vitriol from prudish Americans and so they can't help but be wary of offers from Americans in general.

Like a lot of early story-focused games (and even a lot of modern ones) it isn't possible to get a complete picture of the entire story without going through all the heroines. In particular, in Akiha's story things go unexplained that come out in Kohaku's and Hisui's stories. So, yes it is worth it.

I plan to preorder the remake through my source when it becomes available... curious to see if Takajun will do a revival and translate it after it comes out...

http://www.mediafire.com/view/?9d03ir36i0phdbx One more, one I came up with the other day. *Clephas yawns* Time to get back to work.

http://www.mediafire.com/view/?8v568qin8fnjp6a What I've written so far, if someone wants to continue it...haha

Register on this thread if you're interested in participation on a project and have the available time and commitment. Alternatively, you could look for a project yourself in this thread here: https://forums.fuwanovel.net/index.php?/topic/7108-list-of-projects-currently-recruiting/ Format 1) Handle (the one you use or plan to use): 2) Positions you can fill: 3) Types of projects (VNs) preferred: 4) Availability (edit this one as you get involved in projects): 5) (VNs most interested in producing an ftl for: 6) Motivation for joining in on ftl: 7) Conditions* (any additional conditions, under which you will or won't work): *Please mention whether you are fine with working on Yuri, Yaoi and Otome games. It is recommended you don't say 'anything' on your 'preferred VNs' section. You should always pick games that fit your interests or were good enough to keep your interest even after it has tortured you for several hundred hours. It's one thing to take anything when you are making money, it is quite another to do so when you are a volunteer. Example (by Clephas): This thread has various rules to ensure the highest accuracy and usability: -Do not register here if you believe you will be unavailable soon after. Commitment is necessary for projects. -Please make sure to click "Show 'edit by' line" when editing you post, or at least, add a date for when it was last updated if you can help it. -This thread will be heavily moderated to assure only posts which fulfill all the conditions will remain. -If you fail to follow the format you will be PM'ed and we will inquire about what you missed. You will then edit your post with the missing information or will have it edited by a board mod. -People who still remain on this thread will all be PM'ed by a board mod in order to ask whether they are still as readily available as they were when they registered. This will happen irregularly (but probably not more than 3 times a year).

This is from an aborted attempt to write a VN I started a while back - as in three years ago... (lost the artist, programmer to rl) I already have part of this written (and the brainstorming was mostly an afterthought, as I started writing it and basically did the brainstorming to give purpose to what I'd written). Since I wrote the brainstorming for my personal use and reference when I went back later, it isn't really suitable to reading by anyone else... but meh. *Clephas makes a face* I'd forgotten that my old brainstorming process for fiction was even more out there than my current one. It would be easier just to post a sample scene, but brainstorming was the request. Edit: I was writing this before I realized how fickle enthusiasm could be. Well, I already knew from being a fansubber just how easily people could abandon a project, but I hadn't realized that would apply to paying work as well... *at the time, Clephas had put forth several grand worth of his own money to pay the artist and programmer, but they both jumped ship on him* Fortunately, I'd only set the money aside, not actually paid them.

I was more focused on the fact that the side-routes and their heroines were completely irrelevant. I liked the game more after I went back and treated it as a kinetic novel and loathed it when I tried to act as if the heroines actually had their own routes rather than fakes that are meant as a sop to those who want to see h-scenes with them.