How to translate visual novels?

[Kurotsukii]

Hi! I'm new in the forum! Sorry if i don't speak very well, i talk Spanish. 

I'm here because i want some  information about how to translate visual novels. I search it in Internet but... help xD Somebody can explain me? About Kirikiri or others engines...

I want translate visual novels in English (not Japanese!!) to Spanish 

Thank to everybody! 

[Dergonu]

*EDIT: Oh, sorry, I see you said NOT Japanese. Well then, sorry to have to say this, but if you don't speak English very well, translating from English into Spanish might be a bit of a hard task. Translation requires knowledge of both the language you are translating to and from.

Still, best of luck. What you can do is ask someone who already TLed something for the TLed scripts I suppose. If they are okay with it, they might send them over, (though don't count on this being the case for all projects.)

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Do you mean, how to get the Japanese script files out of the game, so that you can modify them and add in your translation?

If so, you will need a hacker who can help you out with that. You can check out the data extraction thread for help on extracting, and you can look for team members if you are starting a project or add in your own skills to look for a project, here.

[Ningen]

4 hours ago, Kurotsukii said:

About Kirikiri or others engines...

For Kirikiri there is a guide here.

 

As for other engines, you basically just have to extract the script, translate it and put it back in.

For some engines there are tools out there, for the other you will have to do it yourself.

 

You should be able to extract the English Scripts just like the Japanese ones from the patched games.

However, you can also extract the Japanese script and and play both versions at the same time while translating.

It sounds retarded(which it probably is), but not translating from the source is already pretty stupid anyways.

[Okarin]

35 minutes ago, Ningen said:

It sounds retarded(which it probably is), but not translating from the source is already pretty stupid anyways.

Well, you have to take into account that in Spain most people don't understand more than really basic English. A nerd into geeky things like me could be an exception, but in the end, I speak decently because I started to learn the language at 6 (my parents made the effort to send me to private class). A lot of people navigate through English classes at secondary and high school with no real grasp of the language, and they manage to get the pass somehow. Even universities only ask for B2 level.

It's not really a bilingual country, I don't know about Latin America (but I'd guess in some countries like Argentina people care more for English). So, translating from English is not stupid for people who don't understand Japanese and don't care to learn it. And like I said there's a strong need for videogames translated into Spanish, let alone VNs.

[WinterfuryZX]

5 hours ago, Dergonu said:

but if you don't speak English very well.

You don't need to "speak" the source language, you only have to be able to read it. There's an enormous difference.

[Dergonu]

Just now, WinterfuryZX said:

You don't need to "speak" the source language, you only have to be able to read it. There's an enormous difference.

Being able to understand what you are reading is extremely important. I didn't mean he literally has to be able to pronounce English words, but as he stated himself, he isn't very good at English in general. Translating like that will be hard. How do you translate something you do not understand in the first place?

As long as you are able to understand what you are reading, there should be no problems. (Isn't this all very obvious...?)

[Kurotsukii]

I know english, but i don't know express myself xD I read a lot of novels in english, and i understand that it's better translate from the Japanese, unfortunately i don't know japanese. Most of the Spanish fansubs translates from the English patches. Only i asked which it's the process to translate (in the sense of the programming, the hack). Thank's for the info about Kirikiri and the Tools... It's complicated to me... I think I need some hacker to help me u-u

[Kurotsukii]

9 minutes ago, OutoftheBox said:

I'm not sure but I think Sharin-subs translates from Eng.-> Esp. You could probably help each other out.

I did it, but Sharin-sub rejected me 

[RedK]

I'm wondering the same thing. I want to fan-tl a novel I like a lot.

[Kurotsukii]

7 hours ago, RedK said:

I'm wondering the same thing. I want to fan-tl a novel I like a lot.

Which novel? I'm curious xD

[NeunFafnir]

You need to ask a hacker to cooperate with you. Since you don't know programming