27 years after the release of the originalFinal Fantasy 7, there’s no shortage of ways to play the game. Publisher Square Enix has kept up with the game’s availability on modern platforms, from PC to consoles to mobile phones, and original copies aren’t yet prohibitively expensive for those with a PS1 or PS2 on hand. Most of the recent buzz has focused on the remake trilogy, withFF7 RemakeandFF7 Rebirthproviding thoroughly revamped waysto play through the first two-thirds of the game’s story.
With a surplus of options, deciding how to playFF7can be overwhelming, especially when it comes to a first-time experience. The remake games have their strong points, but they’re also revised takes on the story, and there’s a lot of merit in first experiencing it as originally told. English speakers, however, never did quite experienceFF7as originally told.The game’s classic English translation has a lot of very obvious problems, and although re-releases fixed some of the most glaring grammatical errors, the translation as it stands still doesn’t represent what was written in Japanese consistently well.
The Shinra Archaeology Cut Fixes FF7’s Translation
Revisiting A Famously Rough Localization
Thanks to the work of some very dedicated fans,it’s now possible to play a version ofFF7that seems much closer to the original intent. The Shinra Archaeology Cut, released on October 20 per an announcement fromShinra Archaeology Departmenton Twitter, thoroughly reworks the script to be more accurate in both content and tone. The project’s officialwebsitestates the aim of providing an experience that’s “as close as possible to that of Japanese-speakingplayers,” a lofty goal that’s been approached in an unusually thoughtful way.
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The age-old argument surrounding translations is the question of transliteration that strictly follows the original text versus localization that modifies it to fit more naturally into the target language, something that’s often presented as a binary instead of a sliding scale.Although the Shinra Archaeology Cut is dead-set on accuracy, it’s not shying away from the benefits of localizationwhere necessary. English idioms come into play when they reflect the spirit of the text, and a ResetEra post from Shinra Archaeology Project editorTheStrifeIsRifementioned a few iconic lines from the original translation being kept in some form.
The Shinra Archaeology Cut isn’t the firstFF7fan translation, but the way it balances these ideals is uniquely promising.
In cases where classicFF7dialogue made it intoFF7 RemakeorRebirthunchanged in both content and context, the Shinra Archaeology Cut opts for the new official translation, which plays a lot less fast and loose than the original did. OtherFF7projects, fromDirge of CerberustoAdvent Children, are used in smaller quantities. For the academically curious, Shinra Archaeology Project has provided full documentation of the new translation as it compares to original Japanese and English dialogue in aGoogle Sheetsfile, which also contains a lot of illuminating (and sometimes amusing) notes about the choices made.
Cut Content Offers A Deeper Look Into FF7’s Story
More Material Than Ever Before
The other big selling point of the Shinra Archaeology Cut is the option to restore a good chunk of cut content fromFF7, mostly from mining the original game files or referencing early documentation for the game. Cut content is often cut for a reason, so this probably isn’t the best way to go for a first-time playthrough, but it’s possible to use a translation-only version of the Shinra Archaeology Cut translation without these additions. Those who already knowFF7by heart, on the other hand, could get a lot out of experiencing it with some extra material.
The Google Sheets file delineates which Shinra Archaeology Cut inclusions come from cut content, with originally unused text appearing in dark blue cells.
Although some restored content comes down to minor dialogue additions, Shinra Archaeology Cut contains some reasonably substantial additions.Restorations like the famously scrapped sequence at the Honey Bee Inn should be of particular interestto fans of the game, filling in gaps that were ultimately obvious in the finished version ofFF7.It’s always been something of an erratic experience, and although sticking unused content back in doesn’t necessarily smooth that over, it offers a slightly more comprehensive look at the mess thatFF7was carved from.
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The Shinra Archaeology Cut certainly brings the game closer to its original intent, but it doesn’t necessarily remove all value from the original English translation. There’s still no better visual solution forFF7than playing an original copy on a CRT, and there’s no way to use the Shinra Archaeology Cut with a setup that straightforward.FF7is a great game in any form, which the smash success of the original Western release of the game can attest to.
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While attachment to lines like “this guy are sick” might be a product of nostalgia more than anything else,there’s a significance to the original translation’s role in defining the experience for millions of fans. Sharing in that experience and understanding why the distortedname Aeris persists todaycan be special, and the absolute worst bits of the translation do add some layer of dinky charm. Playing an original copy ofFF7on a CRT also still provides the best visual experience, and there’s no way to use the Shinra Archaeology Cut with a setup that straightforward.
FF7’s story still begs to be told in a way that isn’t a bit mangled, though, and the Shinra Archaeology Cut seems like a definitive new solution. For those interested in the mod, it can be used with the PC version of the game, and the7th Heaven mod manager forFF7makes it easy to install without much modding experience.FF7 Rebirthis still the shiniest modern presentationofFinal Fantasy 7’s story, but with major changes of its own, it can’t beat the Shinra Archaeology Cut at presenting a masterpiece on its original terms.
