helped participate in an unofficial fan-led project to translate OFA from the original japanese into english. i was specifically was in charge of translating the base game and additional DLC campaign route scripts for one of 13 characters, Yayoi Takatsuki.
was also tasked with translating and typesetting graphics and other in-game UI elements, including but not limited to menu assets and in-game tutorial guides. collaborated with other contributors to help decide on general flavor text.
using a basic text replacement google chrome extension as a base to work off of, i wanted to see how feasible it was to create my own translation patch to share with other english-speaking fans of the now-defunct The iDOLM@STER: SideM mobage. (2014-2023, rip)
i attempted to build out the patch in phases. since coding isn’t exactly my strong suit, i was practically testing in prod. (but if it was unreleased to begin with, does that matter anyway?)
it was easier to start with shorter strings of text: item titles and descriptions, character profiles, text-based gameplay mechanic buttons. anything that was static. one of the issues that i foresaw to start was the fact that a live-service game meant new content to translate every week or so. though, i was getting ahead of myself at that point. i wanted to get the basics down first.
i started getting into image typesetting for some of the banners and buttons. rebuilding backgrounds and patterns had been a treat to work on, but being unable to figure out how to make image replacement work took the wind out of my sails somewhat. additionally, a lot of story content was dispersed between animated manga panels and visual novel-like cutscenes with built-in text. all of this eventually culminated in holding off on developing the project indefinitely until the game’s end-of-service discontinuation. alas.
