An Iwakura Productions Fan Translation Hello, cj iwakura here. I love Shikigami no Shiro, a lot. After many years(!!) of procrastinating, I want people to enjoy this as much as I do. This still isn't 100%, but with the official release, it's close enough to at least warrant a proper release. All the voices are dubbed with the exception of Shoujo and Fumiko, as we couldn't find a suitable voice actress. If you or someone you want to know are interested in volunteering, PLEASE let me know. If this happens, I'll distribute the new files via an update. If you want more deets, read on. For the TL;DR ?replace the /cdimage files into the /cdimage folder of Castle Shikigami EX and the /wav files into the /wav folder. The EXE is optional. DO NOT REPLACE IT. Just place it in the same master folder and run it if you want. It translates the menus and system text(“Are you sure you want to quit?and so on). If you don't want dub voices, don't move the /wav files. These should work with the default version or version 1.01. These will NOT work with the G-NET(arcade) version to my knowledge. That said, here's some background information. Contents 1. History 2. Translation Notes 3. Spoken Dialogue (Translated) 4. Gallery (Translated) 5. Credits 1. History/Background Shikigami no Shiro was originally an arcade top-down shooter, of the curtain fire/danmaku variety. It was ported to the PS2, PC, and Xbox, and 'localized' for the PS2 as 'Mobile Light Force 2'. All the dialogue was removed. This fan translation is of the PC version, with all the original dialogue intact. All the endings and story related dialogue are translated. This is still somewhat incomplete, and so, here is what is NOT translated: -The tutorial text -The end credits -The gallery -Errata like 'do you want to quit? Y/N' messages Regarding the dub, Fumiko and Shoujo are not dubbed. If you absolutely want to play in JP, just don't change the /wav files. Beyond that, you should be golden. 2. Translation Notes As you might have guessed, this took a damn long time. Not bad, considering I didn't even imagine this being POSSIBLE. What started out as a silly idea at romhacking.net has turned into what is literally a dream come true. I truly adore this series, so from start to finish, this has been an absolute labor of love. Originally, I found a script by scavenging Japanese BBSes. This was originally for the HG101 article I wrote, because I had no fricking clue what SnS1 was about. I improvised at the time for the article, because there really was no English resource material to go by for the first game, aside from some people being evil, and some good people having to go stop them. Then when the project got underway, some volunteers helped translate the script. Then the hard part: figuring out how to get the script and then put it back into the game. Ask anyone at any of the many boards I went to for help: Alfa System coded the script in a truly alien format. Script? Text format? Ha ha, no. Alfa System like to store their text in image format. Yeesh. So we extracted it, I edited it, and then it got hacked back into the game. Simple, right? Well, let's just say it's a damn good thing Shikigami only had roughly 80-90 lines of dialogue. Very little liberties were taken from the original script. Mostly for clarity and to make the script flow better as needed. That said, you will not figure this story out in one go. Play all the stories, and MAYBE you can piece this madness together. Maybe. Good luck. Also, there's an introductory text scroll that shows some backstory after leaving the EX menu. Do make sure to watch it. And now some bonuses. If you prefer to leave the dialogue in Japanese, transcripts follow below. I've also included some brief character bios. 3. Spoken Dialogue Kohtaro Kuga Kohtaro is a detective with the H&K Detective Agency, assigned to the case by the Metropolitan Police. His special attack uses a spiritual familiar named Zasae who accompanies him everywhere, whether he likes it or not. After leveling up: Now it gets fun! After using a bomb: Let's get wild! Taking damage A: Ouch! Taking damage B: That does it! Game Over A: You old fools... can't kill me... Game Over B: I won't die here! Sayo Yuuki A Shinto shrine maiden with designs on Kohtaro. Sayo appears to be investigating the murders at the request of another. She attacks with spiritual wards. After leveling up: Spirits, give me strength! After using a bomb: Evil spirits be gone! Taking damage: No! Game Over: I can't... die like this... Gennojo Hyuga A werewolf/detective, who assumes the form of an ancient wolf god when enraged. He's also Kohtaro's partner from the H&K Detective Agency. After leveling up: *whistle* After using a bomb: This is my true power! Taking damage: Is this pain? Game Over A: So, I can finally die... Game Over B: It wasn't... a bad life... Fumiko Odette Van Stein A half-German half-Japanese witch. The rise of the Nazi Empire forced her family's movement to Japan, where she's resided ever since. Fumiko is also quite wealthy, and is usually accompanied by her butler, Munchausen. Munchausen's aerial bombings are the form of her special attack. He usually has a different costume with each appearance. After leveling up A: The moon is full... After leveling up B: The night is coming. After using a bomb A: You little brats! After using a bomb B: Fall before me! Taking damage A: Monsters like you won't stop me! Taking damage B: Bastards...! Game Over A: Thus ends my contract... Game Over B: I've failed my mission... Kim Dae-Jeong A Confucian Taoist from Korea who also teaches Tae Kwon Do to children in his spare time. One of his students was murdered by the killers, forcing his hand. His guitar case conceals a sword, which is used in his special attack. After leveling up A: Mansae! [Korean for banzai] After leveling up B: The heavens aid me... After using a bomb: Disappear! Taking damage: *gasp* Game Over A: Ai... go... [Korean for damn] Game Over B: I won't be able to show my face to my brothers... Tagami A sexless being who wanders at will. Tagami first appeared in Alfa's PS1 lightgun shooter, Elemental Gearbolt. Tagami uses weak homing shots, and a special attack consisting of short-range solar flares. Tagami never speaks. Bosses (If you're sensitive about spoilers, consider yourselves warned.) Miyoko (Stage 1) A child actor murdered by the Yakuza, she became a homicidal ogre hell-bent on revenge. Before battle: Why are you stopping me? Attack A: I'll kill you! Attack B: I'll kill you all! Taking damage: Everyone tries to hurt me! Defeated A: Ahhhhhhhh! Defeated B: Nooooooo! Fujishima (Stage 2) A self-defense officer who attempted to summon a God to Tokyo. A specter who values the defense of his country above all else, fighting with a sea of flame. Before battle: It's time for this nation to die. Attack A: Can you dodge them, I wonder? Attack B: How about this? Taking damage: Not bad. Defeated A: I will protect Japan even after death! Defeated B: I have no regrets! Hiroshi (Stage 3) A man whose family's murderer got away with a seven year sentence. This drove Hiroshi into a blind rage, and he killed the criminal upon his release. Soon after, he became an ogre unsatisfied with merely the blood of his family's killer... Before Battle: Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Attack A: Feel my wife's pain! Attack B: Feel my daughter's hatred! Taking damage: A little pain won't stop me Defeated A: I couldn't even avenge them...? Defeated B: So evil triumphs after all? Baumann (Stage 4) A ghost of a famous actor, known for portraying historical roles. He was known as the 'Blue-Eyed Samurai'. Before Battle: Shall we begin my final performance? Attack A: Dodging won't win you the battle! Attack B: You must use your heart to evade my power! After his shoulder is destroyed: Good! Defeated A: Now I can return to my wife... Defeated B: Wonderful. The curtain closes... Shoujo (Stage 5) A mysterious arachnid woman with no name. She seems to have a master goal in mind... but what is it? Why did she need so many innocents to die? Whatever the cause, she must be stopped. Attack A: Not bad. Attack B: Let's have some more fun. Attack C: What a lovely dance. Defeated: It's time to stop playing around. 4. Gallery These are all unlocked upon beating the game. May want to wait until you've earned it, but not like I can stop you. We'll get this in-game eventually, but it'll take some time. All comments are from character designer Miku Sonoda. 1: Arcade Cabinet Illustration (Sayo Yuuki) This was an illustration for the arcade cabinet. For me, this is the definitive picture of Sayo. (Sonoda) 2: Kohtaro Kuga Of the individual character illustrations, this is the most flashy. It was this picture, Kuga surrounded by burning charms, that made me always associate him with fire in my mind. (Sonoda) 3: Sayo Yuuki The basis for this picture comes from some concept art of Sayo. At that point, her hair wasn't quite so wild yet. (Sonoda) 4. Gennojo Hyuga This also comes from some pre-production concept art. Anyway, I was careful to preserve our initial image of him. (Sonoda) 5: Fumiko Odette Van Stein Since her shikigami-equivalent is a satellite laser, I decided to draw a magical circle with her instead. Drawn like this, she really looks like a witch. (Sonoda) 6: Kim Dae-Jeong Of all the character illustrations, this is the one I struggled the most with. I had no idea what to do with the guitar case! (Sonoda) 7: Miyoko The idea here was gothic lolita fashion. But I kinda backed off on that in the end. The dress' frills were a pain, but I quite liked the result. (Sonoda) 8: Ju Fujishima He's actually a member of the Self Defense Force. Not some kind of time traveller or anything. (Sonoda) 9: Hiroshi He ended up looking more like a school teacher than a salaryman. Since I made his arms all red, people told me they looked like they were part crab or shrimp or something. (Sonoda) 10: Baumann He wore a kinagashi originally. I ended up putting him in a hakama because it seemed easier to move in, but I kinda feel like he loses some of his impact this way... (Sonoda) 11: For the Web: Sayo Yuuki A traditional Japanese image... not sure if it succeeded. The flowers in the background are called hanamizuki. They took longer to draw than Sayo did. (Sonoda) 12: For the Web: Gennojo Hyuga If you've got a wolf, you need a full moon... it's a pretty cliched picture, but I thought it was perfect for Hyuga. (Sonoda) 13: For the Web: Kohtaro Kuga (w/ Sazae) The picture is clearly more focused on Sazae than Kuga. You can tell that Sazae's the one with the power. (Sonoda) 14: For the Web: Fumiko Odette Van Stein I decided to take a chance here and draw something different for Fumiko. (lit. not Fumiko-like) Oh, and I snuck in her amazing butler. He's riding a deck brush, by the way. (Sonoda) 15: For the Web: Kim Dae-jeong It's really dark... His sword is on fire, but that's not canon. (Sonoda) 16: For the Web: Fumiko & Sayo I redid our New Year card's illustration to put it up online. It's a little flashier than more New Year cards are. (Sonoda) 17: Main Promotional Illustration First, it was a pain since it was such a large picture. I asked an illustrator within the company to help me on the buildings in the background. This was a really painful experience. (Sonoda) 18: For the Web: Playable Characters I was in a real hurry, so I didn't pay any real thought to layout or anything. It's pretty embarrassing. (Sonoda) And last and never least, end credits. Shikigami no Shiro (Arcade) Planner and Game Designer NAOKI Sub-planner Takebohki Assistant Kouli Hisatomi Story and World Design Kenshin Ishagami Character Design Miku Sonoda Main Program Daisuke Takaki Stage Program Hiroshi Hasegawa Musashi Yamauchi Hideki Watanabe 3d System Chouchou Enemy Attack Patterns NAOKI Takeshi Maeda Takeshi Sakurai Effect Kazutaka Kotoku Stage Background Tomoyo Ohara Rika Kawamoto Enemy Design & Direction Takebohki Enemy Graphics Tatsuya Nagata Takebohki Rika Kawamoto Emi Akaboshi Original Background Art (Demo) Miku Sonoda Akiko Koyama Art Director Tatsuya Nagata Layout & Title Logo Design NAOKI Music & Sound Effects Yoichi Shimamura Voices (JP) Kohtaro Kuga - Yoshikazu Matsumoto Sayo Yuuki - Yosuko Isari Gennojo Hyuga - Yuuya Miyazaki Fumiko Odette Van Stein - Noriko Mizuta Kim Dae-Jeong - Daisaku Uto Miyoko - Fumi Yamazaki Fujishima - Keisuke Hori Hiroshi - Takumi Itou Baumann - Yoshikazu Matsumoto Shoujo - Chie Kinoshita President of Shikigami (debugger) Tetsuya Sazaki VP of Shikigami (debugger) Hiroshi Iwata Special Thanks TAITO Corp Game Plaza Hokuzon MODA (P) Naoki Hamada Keisuke Hori Raimuraito Theatrical Companies - Shoutenkairou, Ishi, Foolish Bones, Iarou, Eki Executive Producer & Director NAOKI Produced & Copyrighted By Alfa System Shikigami no Shiro EX (PC) Alfa System Staff Planning, Direction, IR Mode Adjusting NAOKI Sub Planner Kira Katsuya Programmers Yamamoto Koji Okada Kazuhiro Designers Nagata Tatsuya Kawamoto Rika Sound Shimamura Yoichi Debugging Yamauchi Yukinori President of Shikigami EX Sasaki Tomoya Media Quest Staff Chief Producer Nakatsubo Tomoyuki Producer Yasuda Yuko Development Producer Saito Takeshi Cooperation WATZ, Ltd. Ikeda Publishing Co., Ltd. Onken Corporation Kobi Group Special Thanks ADEX Executive Producer Moriuchi Joji Please don't sue me, guys. Iwakura Productions Translation Staff Editor & Project Lead cj_iwakura Hacker, Programmer, Coder EsperKnight Translators 9inchsamurai & Cckerberos Voice Programming Daniel Burgess Voice Cast Kohtaro Kuga - FlorenceLee92 Sayo Yuuki, Miyoko - Megami33 Gennojo Hyuga, Baumann - Lentfilms Fujishima, Hiroshi, Kim Dae Jeong - Chase Johnson Special Guest Editor Heretic Kazuma Special Thanks Alfa System Staff Aksys Games Staff XSGames (No really, someone had to get the ball rolling...) Romhacking.net Shmups.System11.org penny-arcade.com NeoGAF.com doujinstyle.com and Degica Games & Cosmo Machia for somehow doing an official release. And anyone who supports shmups, silly storylines, and games that combine the two. See you for the sequel. (Unless Degica beats us to it...)