The narrative use of archaic language poses specific challenges to translation, because it comes bundled with a wide range of preconceptions and reader associations. Such referential knowledge is one aspect of what Hans Robert Jauss's reception theory terms the “Horizon of Expectations.” That is to say, “[t]he shared ‘mental set’ or framework within which those of a particular generation in a culture understand, interpret, and evaluate a text or an artwork. This includes textual knowledge of conventions and expectations (e.g., regarding genre and style), and social knowledge (e.g., of moral codes).” Media such as video games, films, and comics can further complicate the challenges of translation, given that non-linguistic visual elements form core storytelling components.

My aim in this chapter is to identify a baseline disconnect between the linguistic and cultural situations of English and Japanese. How should “the medieval” be depicted and linguistically represented in a language setting like Modern Japanese, where archaism is not associated with a Eurocentric historical construct of the Middle Ages? Conversely, what implications are there for the translation and localization of neomedieval Japanese texts into English? To answer these questions, I will weigh three stylistic elements that feature as part of the character dialogue in the video game Chrono Trigger – archaism, distancing formal register, and agrammatical primitivism. I will make a case that pseudo-archaic “Ye Olde English” has an expected, nostalgic role for many English-reading players, whereas corresponding archaism is non-applicable and even dissonant in the Japanese neomedieval setting. Further, I will demonstrate this feature to be in contrast with those of agrammatical primitivism and distancing formal register, two elements that are able to achieve similar effects in both source and target language.

Chrono Trigger was originally published in 1995 on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System/Super Famicom, and the game has remained popular and critically acclaimed from the time of its release until the present, frequently being included on many popular “Best of” and “Greatest of All Time” lists. The primary writer for Chrono Trigger was Masato Kato, and the game's celebrated development team included also Akira Toriyama (Dragon Ball), Yuji Horii (Dragon Quest), Hironobu Sakaguchi (Final Fantasy), as well as music composers Noriko Matsueda, Yasunori Mitsuda, and Nobuo Uematsu.