Axe of the Blood God Episode 29: Legend of Legacy, Final Fantasy XII and RPG Localization

What a good localization can mean for an RPG. Plus: Kat and USgamer contributor John Learned discuss Legend of Legacy and the new Witcher 3 expansion.

Column by Kat Bailey, Editor in Chief

Updated on 19 October 2015

Axe of the Blood God is our weekly RPG podcast hosted by Kat Bailey. You can find the show notes for previous episodes here.

In this week's episode of Axe of the Blood God (download link here), I'm joined by contributor John Learned to discuss his recent interview with the localization team behind Final Fantasy XII. And for good measure, we cover The Legend of Legacy and The Witcher 3: Hearts of Stone as well.

Localizing an RPG is a tricky undertaking. It's an enormous task requiring hundreds of hours to complete, and it means more than just writing good dialogue. There are a million little decisions to make, from what accents you apply to characters to what a given item should be called. A great localization can elevate an RPG (Persona 4), and a bad localization can sink it. John has plenty to say on the subject, and he offers a lot of background on how the interview ultimately came together, as well as his own thoughts on Final Fantasy XII. Give it a listen!

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Show Description

USgamer contributor John Learned joins Kat to discuss what he learned about the localization of Final Fantasy XII in his recent interview, with some added discussion about Legend of Legacy and the new Witcher 3 expansion.

Music from Axe of the Blood God is courtesy of Lena Chappelle, who has also contributed the themes to Active Time Babble and Roleplayers' Realm. I also use music from the RPG Music Pack over at rpgmaker.net. Check it out!

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Kat Bailey

Editor in Chief

Kat Bailey is a former freelance writer and contributor to publications including 1UP, IGN, GameSpot, GamesRadar, and EGM. Her fondest memories as a journalist are at GamePro, where she hosted RolePlayer's Realm and had legal access to the term "Protip." She is USgamer's resident mecha enthusiast, Pokemon Master, and Minnesota Vikings nut (skol).

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