Author Topic: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released  (Read 1558 times)

Supper

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Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« on: April 20, 2020, 06:15:35 AM »


So this one is probably more for the Sailor Moon fans than the PC-Engine fans, but since PCECD translations aren't exactly an everyday occurrence, I figured I might as well post it here...

I'm new around here, so hi, I'm Supper and I occasionally do game translation hacks. In collaboration with TheMajinZenki, cccmar, and Xanathis, I've just released a complete English translation patch of Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon for the PC-Engine Super CD-ROMĀ² system. It translates all in-game text to English, including subtitles for voice-only scenes, vocal songs, and even the error message for having the wrong System Card version.

You can download the patch from ROMhacking.net (link), or from my own web site (link). Check the readme for patching instructions.

Credits:
  • Translation -- TheMajinZenki
  • Hacking -- Supper
  • Editing and Testing -- cccmar
  • Lyrics Translation -- William A. Braell (via Sailormusic.net)
  • Testing -- Xanathis
Special thanks to Aerialrave for kicking off this project with a well-timed message back in 2018, without which none of this would have ever happened.

This game seems to be pretty obscure even within the Sailor Moon fandom, so some explanation is probably in order...



Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon (Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon) is a PCECD visual novel/adventure game based on the Sailor Moon franchise, which I hope needs no explanation. Don't get it confused with "Sailor Moon Collection", an unrelated minigame collection; contrary to what many web sites would have you believe, they're completely different games. This one has an original plot set between arcs of the anime, and deals with the probably-not-canonical resurrection of the Dark Kingdom. All five of the original Sailor Senshi are playable, each with their own story that overlaps with the others', and the dialogue is voiced by the cast of the original show.

The game bills itself as an "adventure-style digital comic", with the story illustrated through numerous individually-drawn "panels" rather than the cheaper and more typical visual novel technique of layering generic character sprites over different backgrounds. While the results are a bit mixed -- there's some noticeable stylistic clash where different images were clearly drawn by different artists -- it's not a bad game, especially if you're a fan of the series. And the music is nice, especially the vocal opening and ending themes (which were written specifically for this game).

The patch comes in two editions: the standard release, and one geared more toward hardcore Sailor Moon fans that includes Japanese honorifics and some Japanese terminology like "Senshi" and "Shitennou". Use whichever one you prefer.

As a bonus feature, I also added a gallery to the game that shows off the massive collection of unused/unfinished graphics, voice clips, and scenes that I found on the disc while making this. You can access it using a cheat code -- check the readme.



This is the first translation hack I've done for the PCECD and I've only been able to test on emulators, so I still have my fingers crossed that this will work properly on real hardware. Let me know if you run into any problems playing it on a real PCE. If all else fails, it should definitely run on Mednafen and Ootake.

Hope you enjoy!

Johnpv

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #1 on: April 20, 2020, 02:16:57 PM »
It's awesome to see another fan translation.  Not a game for me, but still very cool to see new translations!

Necromancer

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #2 on: April 20, 2020, 07:33:56 PM »
Welcome aboard!

Holy smokes, what a nice surprise!  I'm always down to play a digi-comic, and even more so when someone's put such awesome effort into patching it.   :pcgs:
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Gredler

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #3 on: April 20, 2020, 09:30:23 PM »
 :boom:

Fantastic! Thank you so much for your hard work on this, and sharing that with us. Very cool and even more Ppreciated.

Cheers!

xelement5x

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #4 on: April 21, 2020, 06:16:41 PM »
This is so cool!  I am supper impressed with not only dual translation/localization but also a hacked menu to look at the extra bits! 

This is AWESOME!
Gredler: spread her legs and push her down to make her more lively<br>***<br>majors: You used to be the great man, this icon we all looked up to and now your just a pico collecting 'tard...oh, how the mighty have fallen...<br>***<br>_joshuaTurbo: Sex, Lies, Rape and Arkhan. A TurboGrafx love story

Punch

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #5 on: April 21, 2020, 06:29:38 PM »
Do Shiawase Usagi Sailor Z next.  :lol:

the unfinished gallery menu is a nice touch, ever considered including that stuff on tcrf.net?

Necromancer

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #6 on: April 21, 2020, 08:10:43 PM »
Quote from: xelement5x
This is so cool!  I am supper impressed with not only dual translation/localization but also a hacked menu to look at the extra bits! 

This is AWESOME!

I see what you did there.   :mrgreen:

Quote from: Punch
Do Shiawase Usagi Sailor Z next.  :lol:

Yes please!   :thumbsup:
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Supper

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #7 on: April 24, 2020, 04:57:09 AM »
Thanks, everybody. I know this kind of game isn't for everyone, but it's definitely not a bad one as the genre goes, so it's good to hear some people are enjoying it.

We don't have any certain plans for future PCE projects, but it's definitely a possibility. ...Though after a cursory investigation, I think I can say with certainty that we're not doing anything with Shiawase Usagi, ever >:(

Do Shiawase Usagi Sailor Z next.  :lol:

the unfinished gallery menu is a nice touch, ever considered including that stuff on tcrf.net?

Heh, I actually made a comment in the readme that making this in-game gallery took less time than trying to upload and format everything for TCRF would have. I used to frequent TCRF some years back (the time I spent there is probably the only reason I bothered putting together the gallery for this game at all), but I got kind of tired with it as time went on. It was partly my interests shifting, and partly because I felt like anything I made just disappeared into the ever-growing void of one-line "I opened this ROM in a hex editor and there was a build date at the top" articles. I do applaud the few who have the patience and dedication to put together well-written, well-researched articles for it, though.

Trenton_net

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #8 on: April 25, 2020, 02:13:57 AM »
Wow, this is a nice surprise! Thanks! Seems like a unique game to try out, if only at least for one full play though. Speaking of translations, I wonder what other interesting titles are good candidates for it? Outside of Snatcher or Dead of the Brain, maybe Princess Maker 2?

_joshuaTurbo

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #9 on: May 06, 2020, 10:05:38 PM »
Amazing!  I have plans to burn myself a copy in the coming weekend and will report back how it works on real hardware. I run a Super CD addon with a Supergrafx, and a Turbo Duo. I'm sure it'll play perfectly!

Thanks!!

Gypsy

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #10 on: May 08, 2020, 08:28:15 PM »
It truly is a great time for fan translations. I just downloaded the Sakura Wars patch the other day, I'll have to check this out eventually.

xelement5x

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #11 on: May 08, 2020, 10:46:18 PM »
It truly is a great time for fan translations. I just downloaded the Sakura Wars patch the other day, I'll have to check this out eventually.

Talking about the Saturn one?  If you're having issue patching shoot me a PM.
Gredler: spread her legs and push her down to make her more lively<br>***<br>majors: You used to be the great man, this icon we all looked up to and now your just a pico collecting 'tard...oh, how the mighty have fallen...<br>***<br>_joshuaTurbo: Sex, Lies, Rape and Arkhan. A TurboGrafx love story

Gypsy

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #12 on: May 09, 2020, 11:25:57 AM »
It truly is a great time for fan translations. I just downloaded the Sakura Wars patch the other day, I'll have to check this out eventually.

Talking about the Saturn one?  If you're having issue patching shoot me a PM.

No problems thankfully, first one worked on my Saturn.

HuDuo

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #13 on: November 15, 2020, 02:55:58 PM »
I gotta find this game now, thanks so much for translating this one!

Necromancer

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Re: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon translation released
« Reply #14 on: February 03, 2021, 12:45:59 AM »
Bump for a kick ass translation patch that I finally got around to playing through.  Bravo, supper, and thanks for the hard work!
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