Run Classic Game ROM Translations
Fansubbing for video games is not only possible but very popular.
In addition to level hacking ( [Hack #71] ), there’s an entirely separate subculture devoted to ROM language hacking, generally from Japanese to English, but also sometimes from English to other common languages (Spanish, Finnish . . . Okay, also to some not-so-common languages!). There are several major reasons for this activity, but people do it mainly to play Japanese console games that will never, ever have an English-language version. These translations allow people who don’t know Japanese the chance to try out a playable version of the game.
Once you know how to patch your ROMs ( [Hack #71] ) to apply these translations, where can you find them?
ROM Translation Legality
Be aware that translation hacking of any ROM apart from a clearly freeware title is fraught with legal peril. IPS files are perfectly legal to distribute, but the copyrighted ROMs are not, whether or not you’ve modified them. Applying an IPS patch to a ROM doesn’t release it into the public domain.
Even if you’ve tracked down and bought the Japanese-only version of a certain Super Nintendo title you want to try translation hacks on, the laws of your jurisdiction may prohibit or at least frown on such an activity. Nintendo interprets these laws more strictly.
However, translation patches are often released separately from the actual ROM, in add-on files, which means that translation patches bypass the thorny ...
Get Gaming Hacks now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.
