Because of the fluency and nuances of idiomatic expression throughout the entire game, I don't think the writers "translated" anything. It seems to me as if the different versions were likely written simultaneously in English and Polish at least. I'm guessing the writers simply shared ideas cooperatively, then the English writers did their own thing and the Polish writers did their own thing. (I would imagine that's true of
at least the English and Polish versions.)
In general, whenever a manuscript is translated, it almost always comes with certain, seemingly "empty" expressions or syntactic oddities...and I didn't detect a single one throughout the course of TW3. Even
Harry Potter contained instances of obviously altered word choice that "fell flat" (where it was clear that something had been re-written / simplified to avoid idiomatic expression that would not have read to an
American audience.) Vice versa, when something is written in the "native tongue", it contains a subtle balance and natural canter that's very difficult to simulate if certain words or expressions are being "dictated" by another piece of literature.
(If it was translated -- it was translated by a
pro the likes of which CDPR should give a raise to and promote to
Preatorian.)
iCake;n9710961 said:
As a Russian (who apparantly did it) I find that example with a run-down Novigrad district "Bits" very contradictory and funny in a particularly bad way. Yes, they say that district is called bits for a reason and it makes perfect sense, but then we have a Russian name for it "Обрезки" (leftover pieces or "bits" for that matter produced by cutting something to give it a particular shape) and It just barely makes any sense in Russian and frankly sounds like an uninspired direct translation of the word "bits." When I first saw the name of thd district I was all like "What a weird weird name. Maybe a lot of carpenters live here for some reason?"
This is a perfect example of what I mean. I believe your understanding is spot on, and the name "Bits" was meant as exactly that: an unplanned for section of the city that developed when low-class, run-off population built slums with the "leftovers" of proper city construction. The idiomatic expression in English is that the area is comprised of nothing that has worth or value...just little "bits" jumbled together. Despite the fact that it's inside the walls, it's not considered a
good representation of Novigrad.
I don't claim to know Russian at all, but it's clear that the word "Обрезки" carries a slant that is not shared between Russian and English. For example (I mentioned this in another post a while back), the very first translation of a Witcher novel I read used the term "Law of Surprise", which works fine in English, then turned around and quite literally referred to Ciri as Geralt's "Surprise Child"...which was a terribly awkward and ineffective expression in English. The use of "
surprise" in English carries an inherently positive slant, so:
"
Law" carries a moderately negative slant. While the word itself is neutral, most Americans will associate "law" with the idea of wrong-doing or potential threat of punishment. When coupled with the positively slanted "
surprise", the English expression "Law of Surprise" reads as an ironically loaded phrase that carries a decidedly dark connotation: "This is a potentially threatening action that can spring on you out of nowhere."
In contrast, "Surprise Child" is sort of
silly. The use of two positively slanted words lends the image of a cute child popping out of a cake while shouting "Yipee!" to be covered in confetti. (
Hardly what Sapkpowski was going for...) Later translations of the novel better handled the phrase by altering it to "
Unexpected Child", using a word that carries a very
neutral tone. However, it will automatically slant toward the negative in English reader's minds, as this is the term used to explain unplanned-for parenthood: "unexpected pregnancy" / "unexpected baby". It also follows the semantic and idiomatic structure of "Law of Suprise" (neutral term, auto-slanted toward the negative via cultural interpretation, followed by a positively slanted term that creates a darkly ironic connotation). "Unexpected Child" now
also creates a darkly ironic realization that the child was gained through the Law of Surprise, and that Gerlat (a
sterile Witcher) "accidentally had a baby"...
very dark humor...which should now be making the readers' skin crawl, understanding what lies in store for this innocent child. (
That's what Sapkowski intended, I'm pretty sure...)
Bla, bla, bla, I go...but these are the considerations that the writers for TW3 definitely understood. A failure to consider this level of nuance would have created many such issues between Polish and English, and I can't think of even
one. Russian, it seems may have been translated, perhaps not by a "native" Russian speaker, given the issue you raise with "The Bits".