Legends of Localization: 3rd book announced, will be about Super Mario Bros.

If you’re interested in localisation, and especially video game localisation, you’ve definitely heard about Legend of Localization. Written by Clyde Mandelin (also known as Tomato), they’re books that take a detailed look at the localisation of classics. The first one, which is about the original The Legend of Zelda game, received critical acclaim. A second book, about EarthBound, is also in the works.

And this week, even before the second one was even released, a third Legends of Localization book was announced. This one will be for… the original Super Mario Bros. game, on the NES (definitely one of the most famous video games of all times, and one that definitely changed the industry as a whole).

Legends of Localization – Book 3: Super Mario Bros. will take a look at the role game localization played in the international success of the game. After all, it laid the foundations for the entire Super Mario series, which are still used more than 30 years after its release. The book will also take a look at the various (re-)releases, variations, spin-offs, merchandise, movies, etc..

What’s pretty interesting about Super Mario Bros. is that the Japanese version of the game already included English text. To spice things up a bit, the author chose to look not just at the English release, but also at the many releases in various countries (to see how they differ from the original).

To be more precise, the book will examine the “different character names and terms used in each country”, and even the bootleg Super Mario Bros. cartridges (along with their bootleg consoles) in countries where Super Mario Bros. was never released.

Unfortunately, we don’t know when Legends of Localization – Book 3: Super Mario Bros will be released.

Source: Fangamer