top-of-the-stairway-to-maturity:
((Now, I think everyone here is aware that, while great, the localization of the Persona games, like every localization, has it’s share of differences from the original Japanese version. This is only normal; some things just don’t translate out well. Japanese, as a language, is fundamentally different from English in how it “works”. So, naturally, some things will have to be changed, like, for example, the usage of names
(For example, in the japanese version, Yosuke refers to all the girls by their last names, and commonly calls Teddie “Kuma-kichi”, while the girls more frequently call him “Kuma-kun” and stick to “Hanamura” or “Hanamura-san” for Yosuke. Also, the protagonist is generally more commonly refered to by his last than by his first name. The “-san”s and “-senpai”s are spread out differently as well.)
Other things, however, will get lost entirely. Things like the whole issue with Teddie’s name.
“Issue?” you might ask now. “What issue? His japanese name is “Kuma” which means “Bear”, right?”
Well, technically, this is correct, however, the localization is completely missing an important nuance of this. The little fact that in the japanese version, it’s everything but certain that Teddie even considered “Kuma” his “name” in the beginning of the story. If anything, it implies he didn’t.
Let me explain this more clearly.
