After we'd repoted about Nintendo suggesting a new Zelda U Villain from a translation on the Official Japaese Nintendo, we asked for a more detailed translation from any reader who could. Knowing that the translation software we used to convert it wasn't going to be a perfect representation of it's original message, we wanted a more accurate version of it.


The original Japanese text was:

本ソフトは、『ゼルダの伝説』シリーズのWii U版新作です。境界なく、どこまでも広がる『ゼルダ』の世界で、リンクが新たな謎、新たな強敵に 挑みます。



With the original translation being:


This software is the Wii U version of the new "Legend of Zelda" series. Without boundary, in a world where even spread of "Zelda", the link will challenge a new mystery, a new formidable enemy.


Later Benjamin Zabala contacted us and said this:


This is my translation..not 100% nonbroken English but still on the dot:


This software is a Wii U Edition new legend of Zelda series. Faced with mysteries in the world of Zelda spread indefinitely without boundaries, a new link, a new nemesis.



Now we've had a more detailed translation with lots of additional explanation to flesh out the reasons for this interpritation. Janet Aila emailed us with lots of detailed info. She said she was a big Zelda fan who has been learnig Japanese for over a decade, here is her translation:



"This is The Legend of Zelda game series edition for the Wii U.



Explore and go anywhere in the new Zelda world without boundaries and challenge new and tougher enemies as a new, mysterious Link."



This was followed by lots of info, some explaining Japanese language specifics, to further exemplify this interpritation and some personal opinions about the significance of the phrasing.



She said about the earlier translations of the name "Zelda"



"It seems someone thinks the name "Zelda" has spread everywhere.



If you look at the order of wording here, you get boundless, anywhere, spreading out, Zelda's name and World. Take that all together to make sense out of it and you can get "Without boundaries, go anywhere in 'Zelda's' vast world."



It doesn't make sense to me if you look at it as a new sentence after the first one.

No boundaries, anywhere, spread out, Zelda etc.



Read it from right to left, you'll get something entirely different. It looked to have taken the term "spread" literally.



I know it seems a lot like Zelda's name spreads everywhere but it actually refers to getting around in Zelda's world. Japanese emphasize words a lot, I am certain it means getting around in Zelda's world without boundaries, otherwise why would it mention without barriers in the beginning of the sentence? That tells me you can explore or even go around in the Zelda world without limits or at least that's what it suggests to me.



Also look at Aonuma's obsession with letting us know you can get around Hyrule, that is obvious it means that and is a mistranslation."



The next section could be good for the sake of clarification but not for the hopes that the original translation lead me to think this was the first news of a main villain. She continued:



"I read more about the translation you got from Google Translate, it seems the enemies part may actually refer to newly designed baddies for the game itself. If there was a new main enemy or boss, I doubt they'd reveal it here.



Due to plurality not existing in Japanese, it can be either or, which means new enemies to face off/challenge, not the other way around. There is no new boss as far as I can tell from the Japanese text, just the obvious new enemies designed for the game itself.



Aonuma and his team tend to be tight-lipped about this sort of stuff? The only interesting tid-bit is Link being mysterious and new, it likely means this Link is a new one."



So it seems this interpritation doesn't support the theory of them suggesting a new villain but it is an interesting insight. I find the note "Due to plurality not existing in Japanese" particularly interesting. So, what do you think? Sound off in the comments.