Translating Famicom Exlusive Titles (Just the Titles) to English

[stinky sweaty balls]

I recently checked out some Famicom exclusive games. I was curious about the Japanese titles (just the titles, not all the in-game text), and wondered what they would translate to in English. I do not know Japanese myself, so I searched around online. Famicom World is a good resource. I checked the Famicom/Disk System Game List, and many of the Japanese titles have been translated into English. Quite a few still have no English translation though. I searched around some more, but could find no definitive database that contains all the Famicom exclusive Japanese titles translated into English. I ended up translating them all myself with different Japanese to English translators online, but the results were not very good.

I think this could be a good project for people who are proficient in both Japanese and English. There are many Famicom exclusive titles that have not been translated into English anywhere. It would be good to have all the accurate translations in one place. Is anyone interested in this? Where else would be a good place to ask? Thank you.

[P]

I'm unaware of what titles are untranslated. Do you have a list?

[stinky sweaty balls]

I'm unaware of what titles are untranslated. Do you have a list?

Thanks for being interested. I will look at my info and put one together for you soon.

[stinky sweaty balls]

Here are some of the titles without English translations. I will post more if anyone would like to translate them. Thank you.

Numbers:
01 神宮館'８９電脳九星占い ('89 Dennou Kyuusei Uranai)
02 19 - Neunzehn
03 1999: Hore, Mitakotoka! Seikimatsu
04 4-nin Uchi Mahjong (４人打ち麻雀)

A:
01 A Ressha de Ikou (A列車で行こう)
02 Aa Yakyuu Jinsei Icchokusen (嗚呼！野球人生一直線)
03 Adian no Tsue
04 Ai Sensei no O-Shi-E-Te: Watashi no Hoshi
05 Ai Senshi Nicole
06 Aigiina no Yogen: From the Legend of Balubalouk
(アイギーナの予言 バルバルークの伝説より)
07 Akagawa Jirou no Yuurei Ressha (赤川次郎の幽霊列車)
08 Akara Senki Raijin aka Akuu Senki Raijin
09 Akuma-kun: Makai no Wana (悪魔くん　魔界の罠)
10 America Oudan Ultra Quiz: Shijou Saidai no Tatakai (アメリカ横断ウルトラクイズ)
11 Ankoku Shinwa: Yamato Takeru Densetsu (暗黒神話 ヤマトタケル伝説)
12 Ao no Senritsu
13 Aoki Ookami to Shiroki Mejika: Genchou Hishi (蒼き狼と白き牝鹿元朝秘史)
14 Appletown Monogatari: Little Computer People
15 Arumana no Kiseki
16 Asmik-kun Land
17 Aspic: Majaou no Noroi
18 Atlantis no Nazo (アトランチスの謎)
19 Attack Animal Gakuen (アタックアニマル学園)

[adori_12]

Some of these titles have already been translated somewhere (although they're mostly known by their original Japanese name), I personally translated some simple titles, but I can't help with the complex ones:

01'89 Dennou Kyuusei Uranai = Cyber Horoscope Fortune '89
02 19-Neunzehn = 19-Nineteen
03 1999: Hore, Mitakotoka! Seikimatsu = Look, Do you see that?! It's the End of the Century
04 4-nin Uchi Mahjong = Four Player Strike Mahjong

01 A Ressha de Ikou = Let's Take The A-Train
03 Adian no Tsue = Adian's Cane
05 Ai Senshi Nicole = Love Warrior Nicole
06 Aigiina no Yogen: From the Legend of Balubalouk = Aighina's Prophecy: From the Legend of Balubalouk
12 Ao no Senritsu = Titanic Mystery: Shiver of Blue
14 Appletown Monogatari: Little Computer People = Appletown Adventure: Little Computer People
15 Arumana no Kiseki = The Miracle of Almana
16 Asmik-kun Land (Nothing to translate, Asmik's mascot was named Asmik-kun in Japan, known as Boomer in America)
18 Atlantis no Nazo = The Mystery of Atlantis
19 Attack Animal Gakuen = Attack Animal Academy

[P]

Many of those have translations out there but they are sometimes weird, wrong or cut off in the middle for some reason, and every homepage out there covering the game often just mindlessly copies the name used on other sites, making the name butchered everywhere.

This is my attempt at translating them. There might be mistakes, but I think I got most of them right.
Some names can be written in multiple ways and it might be hard to know what's intended sometimes. I just pick the one used by other translations, or the official one if there is one.
Some translations I just arbitrarily picked a word that should be correct but might be different from other translations out there. They are not necessarily wrong just because they might be different.

Here they are:

'８９電脳九星占い ('89 Dennou Kyuusei Uranai)
Cyberbrain Kyuusei Fortune Telling
This one is kind of hard to translate, and might be wrong. Kyuusei is a 9-sign zodiac used in onmyoudou astrology in Japan. 神宮館 (Jinguukan) is just the company name that slipped in, and I don't think it's part of the title.


19 - Neunzehn
Neunzehn is German for nineteen.
It also written in katakana as ヌイーゼン (nuiizen) but it's not accurately describing the German pronunciation (as is often the case).


1999 ほれ、みたことか!世紀末 (1999: Hore, Mitakotoka! Seikimatsu)
1999: Look, did you see that!? The End of the Century


４人打ち麻雀 (Yo'nin Uchi Maajan)
4-player Mahjong
Or the literal translation seen everywhere "4-player Strike Mahjong". Uchi literary means a blunt slash like done with the longside of a stick (as opposed to a thrust with the point of a stick). But I'm not sure that's the right way to go here, as it can also mean a kind of meeting (like in uchiawase).


A列車で行こう (Ee-Ressha de Ikou)
Let's Go with the A-Train


嗚呼！野球人生一直線 (Aa! Yakyuu Jinsei Icchokusen)
Ah! Baseball-life Straight Line
Icchokusen (straight line) might also be a pun on the baseball term icchoku which apparently means "lining out to first base" (as a European I'm not very familiar with baseball rules).


知能ゲームシリーズ（算数－整数編）アディアンの杖 (Chinou Geemushiriizu (Sansuu - Seisuu-hen): Adian no Tsue)
Intelligence Game Series (Arithmetics - Integer Volume): Staff of Adian


愛先生のＯ・ＳＨＩ・Ｅ・ＴＥ わたしの星 (Ai-sensei no O-SHI-E-TE: Watashi no Hoshi)
Love Doctor's T-E-A-C-H-M-E: My Star
Not sure the title has the same aluring effect in English.


愛戦士ニコル (Ai-senshi Nikoru)
Love-warrior Nicol
Senshi is warrior or fighter.


アイギーナの予言 バルバルークの伝説より (Aigiina no Yogen: Barubaruuku no Densetsu yori)
Aighina's Prophecy: From the Legend of Balubalouk


赤川次郎の幽霊列車 (Akagawa Jirou no Yuurei Ressha)
Akagawa Jirou's Ghost Train


亜空戦記ライジン (Akuu Senki Raijin)
Record of the Akuu War: Raijin
"Akuu" might refer to "akuukan" which means subspace. Raijin, although written in both romaji and katakana in the title screen and might be the name of the craft in the game or something, also means thunder god.


悪魔くん　魔界の罠 (Akuma-kun: Makai no Wana)
Akuma-kun: Demon World Trap
Akuma means demon and -kun is a honorific suffix kind of like Mr but can not be used to one of higher status than yourself, and can also be used less formally (like to a stuffed toy). I don't like to translate to "Mr Demon" in this case. Besides it's the title of the manga.


アメリカ横断ウルトラクイズ 史上最大の戦い (Amerika Oudan Urutora Kuizu: Shijousaidai no Tatakai)
Trans-America Ultra Quiz: Greatest Battle in History


暗黒神話 ヤマトタケル伝説 (Ankoku Shinwa: Yamato Takeru Densetsu)
Darkness Myth: Legend of Yamato Takeru


タイタニックミステリー 蒼の戦慄 (Taitanikku Misuterii: Ao no Senritsu)
Titanic Mystery: The Trembling of the Blue


蒼き狼と白き牝鹿・元朝秘史 (Aoki Ookami to Shiroki Mejika: Genchou Hishi)
The Blue Wolf and the White Doe: Hidden History of Yuan Dynasty
A doe in this case is a female deer. This game's localized title is apparently "Genghis Khan II: Clan of the Gray Wolf".


アップルタウン物語 Little Computer People (Appurutaun Monogatari: Little Computer People)
Appletown Story: Little Computer People


アルマナの奇跡 (Arumana no Kiseki)
Miracle of Almana


アスミッくん ランド (Asumikkun Rando)
Asmikkun Land
Alternatively written as Asmik-kun, but the -kun suffix is indicated to be merged to the name.


アスピック(ASPIC)・魔蛇王の呪い (Asupikku: Majaou no Noroi)
ASPIC: Curse of the Demon Snake King
The demon snake king seems to sometimes be romanized as "majou" or "mahebiou" but it should probably be "majaou".


アトランチスの謎 (Atoranchisu no Nazo)
The Riddle of Atlantis
The cartridge also seems to have a subtitle. With that, the full title is:
よみがえる帝国 アトランチスの謎 (Yomigaeru Teikoku: Atoranchisu no Nazo)
Resurrected Empire: The Riddle of Atlantis


アタックアニマル学園 (Atakku Animaru Gakuen)
Attack Animal Academy

[adori_12]

That's pretty cool, you explained the tricky ones as well.
I had no idea some games had subtitles that long, the fact that most of the time, those subtitles don't even make it to the title screen of the game only cements them further into obscurity.

I also see that you translated Majaou no Noroi as Curse of the Demon Snake King, but also mentioned that the romanization can be either Majou or Mahebiou. Does that make any difference in the translation? Because I've heard some Kanji can have different readings and the meaning changes as well. Sorry if it's something obvious, but the online translations don't help at all. 

[P]

I might have missed some subtitles, as I didn't do a lot of research for most games and just copied the Japanese title from places like Wikipedia, Strategy Wiki or whatever appeared first in Google. I often confirmed the title from pictures of the boxart though.

The "majou" variant is nonsense, and probably a misspelling of "majaou". The "mahebi" variant is kind of technically valid, but sounds weird in my ears, besides I confirmed it to be wrong.
Does it change the meaning? No kanji usually only have one "core meaning" which generally doesn't change (there are a number of exceptions though).

Technical explanation:
魔 (ma) means demon, 蛇 (hebi or ja) is snake and 王 (ou) is king. Yes as you say kanji generally has many readings and in the case of 蛇 that actually includes: hebi, ja, i, da and ya. They are used depending on what word the kanji is used in, and it's usually something you need to memorize for each word (although there are some general guidelines that works in many cases). When 蛇 is used in a single-kanji word it's normally "hebi" which is also the normal modern Japanese word for "snake". But when used in a multi-kanji word, it might use a different reading.
Now the problem with the 2-kanji word demon snake 魔蛇 is that it's probably a made-up word for this game (not sure though) so it's not clear which reading it should use, especially for us non-natives as it isn't found in any dictionaries. In this case it was "maja", I confirmed it from looking at the furigana on a poster of this game (which writes the reading of kanji by using kana). Then you can just add king 王 so that it becomes a 3-kanji word "majaou" (魔蛇王).

[stinky sweaty balls]

P and adori_12, thank you very much for translating those titles to English. I am making a Google document with all the info. I will post more for you guys soon. Thanks again.

[stinky sweaty balls]

Here are the Famicom exclusive games that start with B. Thank you.
Babel no Tou
Baken Hisshou Gaku: Gate In
Bakushō! Ai no Gekijō
Bakushō! Star Monomane Shitennō
Bakushou!! Jinsei Gekijou
Bakushou!! Jinsei Gekijou 2
Bakushou!! Jinsei Gekijou 3
Bats & Terry: Makyou no Tetsujin Race
Battle Stadium: Senbatsu Pro Yakyuu
Be-Bop High School: Koukousei Gokuraku Densetsu
Best Keiba: Derby Stallion
Best Play Pro Yakyuu
Best Play Pro Yakyuu '90
Best Play Pro Yakyuu II
Best Play Pro Yakyuu Shin Data
Best Play Pro Yakyuu Special
Bikkuriman World: Gekitou Sei Senshi
Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa
Bio Senshi Dan: Increaser to no Tatakai
Bloody Warriors: Shan-Go no Gyakushuu
Bokosuka Wars

[stinky sweaty balls]

Should I supply the original Japanese characters as well? Or is the Romanized version good enough to translate? Thank you.

[adori_12]

The "majou" variant is nonsense, and probably a misspelling of "majaou". The "mahebi" variant is kind of technically valid, but sounds weird in my ears, besides I confirmed it to be wrong.
Does it change the meaning? No kanji usually only have one "core meaning" which generally doesn't change (there are a number of exceptions though).

Thanks for the explanation! I couldn't find any indication of the proper reading by myself so it's pretty nice you clarified it.

Should I supply the original Japanese characters as well? Or is the Romanized version good enough to translate? Thank you.

As for translation purposes the romanized title is enough since searching those will do the job, but if you're making a list of translated Famicom-exclusive titles it wouldn't hurt if you added the original names as well.


Here's my version of the titles, I think they are all right but feel free to make any comments:

Babel no Tou = Tower of Babel
Baken Hisshou Gaku: Gate In! = Horse Betting Certain Victory School: Gate In
Bakushou! Ai no Gekijou = Burst of Laughter! Theater of Love
Bakushou! Star Monomane Shitennou = Burst of Laughter! Imitation of the Four Heavenly Kings Star
Bakushou! Jinsei Gekijou = Burst of Laughter! Theater Life
Bakushou! Jinsei Gekijou 2 = Burst of Laughter! Theater Life 2
Bakushou! Jinsei Gekijou 3 = Burst of Laughter! Theater Life 3
Batsu & Terry: Makyou no Tetsujin Race = Batsu & Terry: Iron Man Race of Demon Border
Battle Stadium: Senbatsu Pro Yakyuu = Battle Stadium: Professional Baseball Selection
Be-Bop High School: Koukousei Gokuraku Densetsu = Be-Bop High School: Senior Paradise Legend
Best Keiba: Derby Stallion = Best Horse Race: Derby Stallion
Best Play Pro Yakyuu = Best Play Pro Baseball
Best Play Pro Yakyuu '90 = Best Play Pro Baseball '90
Best Play Pro Yakyuu II = Best Play Pro Baseball II
Best Play Pro Yakyuu Shin Data = Best Play Pro Baseball New Data
Best Play Pro Yakyuu Special = Best Play Pro Baseball Special
Bikkuriman World: Gekitou Sei Senshi = Bikkuriman World: The Fierce Warrior
Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa = Bio Miracle I'm Upa
Bio Senshi Dan: Increaser to no Tatakai = Bio Warrior Dan: Fight With The Increaser (Also romanized as Inkliezer)
Bloody Warriors: Shango no Gyakushuu = Bloody Warriors: The Counterattack of Shango
Bokosuka Wars (Stays the same.)

[stinky sweaty balls]

Thanks adori_12. I appreciate it. I will post more soon.