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Donkey Kong 64
Donkey Kong 64 (1999)
subdirectory_arrow_right DK: King of Swing (Game)
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Attachment Donkey Kong 64 features a unnamed bat enemy found within certain stages such as Fungi Forest, Creepy Castle and Crystal Caves. This enemy would reappear in future games such as DK: King of Swing but under a seemingly new name: Flipflap.

It turns out that this particular name was already used for this enemy back in the Japanese localization of Donkey Kong 64. In the bestiary within the official Japanese DK64 guidebook, they are named フリップフラップ (Furippufurappu), which of course translates to Flipflap in English.
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Etymology, General, Manual, Regional Difference
person Dinoman96 calendar_month January 15, 2024
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Banjo-Kazooie
Banjo-Kazooie (1998)
subdirectory_arrow_right Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Game), Banjo-Tooie (Game)
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Etymology, Filename, Moveset, Regional Difference, Sprite/Graphical Animation, Website
person Dinoman96 calendar_month January 13, 2024
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Official Japanese Nintendo website page for Banjo-Kazooie controls:
https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nbkj/action/page03.html

The Cutting Room Floor article:
https://tcrf.net/Banjo-Kazooie#Animation_Filenames
Master Detective Archives: Rain Code
Master Detective Archives: Rain Code (2023)
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When creating Kanai Ward, Kazutaka Kodaka originally considered giving it an original language, but dropped the idea when he realized it would be too "fantastical". Instead, he incorporated multiple languages (such as Russian, Hindi, Japanese and English, as well as other multi-nationalistic elements) on the signboards around town. This inspired him to make the various character names multinational as well, assigning names in a way that the characters would fit them. At the same time, however, Kodaka avoided using typical names for the cast, instead opting for more unusual names such as "Hellsmile" and "Nightmare": words that are commonly heard, but not as names given to somebody. He specifically went for names that were unique but easy to remember.

In regards to the character Makoto Kagutsuchi, who has a normal sounding name despite his unique design, Kodaka stated:

"Kagutsuchi and the Amaterasu Corporation's names are gods' names from Japanese mythology. I looked it up and found Kagutsuchi is the "fire god". Kagutsuchi and Amaterasu are names regular Japanese people won't have. The way you may feel strange about the names such as Hellsmile and Nightmare, I think Japanese players may also feel uncomfortable hearing names like Amaterasu and Kagutsuchi."
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Development, Early Idea, Etymology, General, Real Life
person chocolatejr9 calendar_month January 8, 2024
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Star Fox 64
Star Fox 64 (1997)
subdirectory_arrow_right Star Fox 64 3D (Game)
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Attachment Many Star Fox 64 players have referred to the Venom army general piloting the mecha boss encountered in the Easy Route Corneria path as "Granga", presumably because of the Star Fox 64 Nintendo Power Official Strategy Guide referring to him as such.

In reality, or at least going by the official Japanese Star Fox 64 guidebook and also Star Fox 64 3D, the name "Granga" actually refers to the aforementioned mecha itself. Like most of Andross' lieutenants (with the exception of Caiman), the pilot himself seemingly never had a proper name.
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Backstory/Lore, Etymology, Mistake
person Dinoman96 calendar_month December 28, 2023
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Star Fox 64 Nintendo Power Official Strategy Guide referring to the pilot of Granga as "Granga" himself:
https://archive.org/details/Starfox64NintendoPowerOfficialStrategyGuide/page/n33/mode/2up

User's English translation of official Japanese Star Fox 64 guidebook:
https://www.reddit.com/r/starfox/comments/y8cwc9/finally_got_around_to_doing_translations/

Encountering Granga, dubbed as "Urban-Assault Weapon", in Star Fox 64 3D:
https://youtu.be/Dz5Sni0j0tw?t=239
Star Fox Adventures
Star Fox Adventures (2002)
subdirectory_arrow_right Dinosaur Planet (Game)
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Attachment Star Fox Adventures contains a peculiar character named the WarpStone, a living stone creature that has the ability to warp users to the top of Ice Mountain and also Krazoa Palace, where Fox will need to deposit all of the six Krazoa Spirits he acquired through partaking through the Krazoa's trials in order to save Krystal, who is imprisoned at the top of the Palace. Underneath the WarpStone also lays the Game Well Maze, where Fox can deposit any of the Cheat Tokens he's collected from Scarab Wells hidden in the map throughout his Adventures to unlock extra features and also cryptic messages.

In Dinosaur Planet, the WarpStone was originally meant to be two different characters, the SwapStone twins known as Rocky and Rubble. Hence their name, their original purpose was to let the player be able to switch back and forth between Sabre and Krystal's adventures. Sabre would utilize Rocky in an area called SwapStone Hollow, while Krystal would utilize Rubble in her equivalent, SwapStone Circle (which is also where the LightFoot Village was situated). Both characters would also retain the ability to warp their respective character to Warlock Mountain (the predecessor to SFA's Krazoa Palace) where the characters could similarly deposit the Krazoa spirits they acquired from the Krazoa shrines. Underneath the SwapStones was the only in-game store where Sabre and Krystal could purchase items, maps, etc. Curiously, their bio claims that they were created during the age of the Krazoa, by being mined from the magic rock of Warlock Mountain, and that they assisted in the creation of the Force Point Temples and the Krazoa shrines.

As Krystal's playable co-protagonist role was scrapped in SFA outside of the prologue, the SwapStones were merged into one character, the WarpStone, and SwapStone Hollow was renamed to ThornTail Hollow. SwapStone Circle would be effectively removed, but the LightFoot Village segment was heavily expanded into its own distinct area. In place of being able to swap to Krystal, Fox could be teleported back to the top of Ice Mountain where he could replay the jet bike race against the SharpClaw. While early design documents, leftover data from the E3 2002 kiosk build, and as well as an unused audio file found within the retail release of SFA indicate that the store was still planned to be located underneath the WarpStone, in the final game it was relocated to the middle of ThornTail Hollow as its own distinct establishment, the ThornTail Store, and the alformentioned Game Well Maze took its original intended spot.

Diving in to the game files, it seems Rare had also intended on letting the WarpStone teleport Fox over to additional areas such as Cape Claw, Moon Mountain Pass, and the Force Point Temples, but this was scrapped and currently, the WarpStone can only warp you to Ice Mountain and Krazoa Palace.
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Demo, Development, Early Build, Early Idea, Etymology, Unused Code, Unused Content
person Dinoman96 calendar_month December 9, 2023
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Mafia
Mafia (2002)
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Despite Mafia taking place from 1930 to 1938, Molotov cocktails appear as a useable item and are specifically called Molotov cocktails, despite that name first being coined afterwards in 1939 by Finns fighting against the Soviet Union during the Russo-Finnish Winter War.
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Etymology, General, Mistake, Real Life
person Kirby Inhales Jotaro calendar_month December 9, 2023
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Star Fox Adventures
Star Fox Adventures (2002)
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Attachment The WarpStone, despite living on a planet filled with dinosaurs, is infamously somehow incapable of warping them, hence why Tricky can't accompany Fox to Krazoa Palace.

In the Japanese version of Star Fox Adventures, the WarpStone, whose Japanese name is ワープ魔人 (Wāpu majin) or Warp Demon, offers a different explanation of why he can't warp Tricky through Japanese subtitles:

すまない 、1つ言い忘れたことがある。恐竜たちはワープをこわがるんだ! (Sorry, I forgot to mention one thing. Dinosaurs are afraid of teleporting!)

Essentially, it's not that the WarpStone can't teleport dinosaurs like Tricky, it's just that they're merely afraid of being warped.
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Backstory/Lore, Etymology, Misconception, Mistake, Regional Difference
person Dinoman96 calendar_month December 8, 2023
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Hyperdimension Neptunia
Hyperdimension Neptunia (2010)
subdirectory_arrow_right Hyperdimension Neptunia (Franchise)
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The Four CPU goddesses, and the lands they hail from in Gamindustri, are designed and named after consoles from the video game industry:

Neptune (Purple Heart) / Planeptune - The unreleased Sega Neptune. A two-in-one Sega Mega Drive and Sega 32X hybrid.

Noire (Black Heart) / Lastation - Sony's PlayStation 3. Her name is French for the color black.

Vert (Green Heart) / Leanbox - Microsoft's Xbox 360. Her name is French for the color green.

Blanc (White Heart) / Lowee - Nintendo Wii. Her name is French for the color white.
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Backstory/Lore, Character Design, Console Wars, Etymology, General, Inspiration, Real Life, Reference
person DrakeVagabond calendar_month December 4, 2023
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Mizuno Naoko interview confirming the console war inspiration and Neptune being based on the Sega Neptune:
https://kotaku.com/hyperdimension-neptunias-creator-dreams-of-a-fighting-g-5947178

General facts article detailing other references:
https://www.thegamer.com/hyperdimension-neptunia-facts/
Franchise: PaRappa the Rapper
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It has been claimed in interviews that the name "PaRappa" is a pun on "parappa", a supposed Japanese word meaning "flat" or "paper-thin", and the English word "rapper". This appears to be a slight mistranslation, as the word "parappa" does not exist within Japanese, but the word "パラパラ" (para para) seems to be a more likely origin, a Japanese term for flipping through a book, which would have flat pages. The term is also used for a Japanese form of disco dancing, which could also be seen as part of a pun, given that the series takes influence from a lot of different genres as opposed to just rap, with PaRappa the Rapper 2 having a noticeable disco influence.
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Etymology, General, Misconception, Regional Difference, Theory
person Rocko & Heffer calendar_month November 29, 2023
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Glover
Glover (1998)
subdirectory_arrow_right Blitz Games Studios (Company)
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The Garib collectibles in Glover originated as an in-joke, according to designer Rich Albon:

"The studio was doing a port for a Japanese company at around the time of Glover and they got a faxed bug report (yes, a faxed bug report!) which had one item that read, There is a problem with the Garib.' No one knew what a Garib was - there was no reference to it in the in game or in the code. So it kind of became an office meme: anything without a name became a Garib."
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Development, Etymology, In-Joke, Reference
person Rocko & Heffer calendar_month November 24, 2023
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"The Making of Glover" article from Retro Gamer (UK) No. 234, June 2022. Can be found on multiple legitimate subscription sites, such as Everand:
https://www.everand.com/article/577759444/The-Making-Of-Glover
Star Fox Command
Star Fox Command (2006)
subdirectory_arrow_right Star Fox: Assault (Game)
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Attachment Star Fox: Assault introduces a new team member for Star Wolf, Panther Caroso, who fills in the space left behind by the departures of Andrew Oikonny and Pigma Dengar. He reappears in its sequel, Star Fox Command, but with a slightly different name: Panther Caruso.

Both of these are actually mistranslations of his intended surname in Japan, which is カルロッソ (Karurosso), or Caluroso. "Caluroso" is the Spanish word for warm, hot, energetic, enthusiastic, etc., which is in line with his womanizer, Latin, and Giacomo Casanova-esque personality and archetype.
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Character Design, Etymology, Mistranslation, Regional Difference
person Dinoman96 calendar_month November 24, 2023
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User's English translation of official Japanese Star Fox: Assault guidebook:
https://www.reddit.com/r/starfox/comments/10m82rq/for_all_you_star_fox_assault_fans_some_pictures/

User's English translation of official Japanese Star Fox Command guidebook:
https://www.reddit.com/r/starfox/comments/ysr1ip/behold_translations_of_characters_stages_bosses/
Franchise: Frogger
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Frogger inspired the name of a transposon family in the fruit fly. Transposons are said to "jump" between and within genomes, which is likely why one of these genes was named after the game.
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Etymology, Inspiration, Real Life
person Rocko & Heffer calendar_month November 24, 2023
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Star Fox 64
Star Fox 64 (1997)
subdirectory_arrow_right Star Fox (Franchise)
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Attachment Barring the mistake with calling Fichina "Fortuna" in Star Fox 64, there is only one other main planet in all of the Star Fox series to have a slightly different English name from their original Japanese counterpart, that being Katina, which in Japan is called カタリナ, or Katarina.

In comparison, Katina directly translated into Japanese would be カティナ.
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Etymology, Regional Difference
person Dinoman96 calendar_month November 23, 2023
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Star Fox 64 - Katina (JP):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYcJGG7dX4Q?t=3561

Just linking to this show that Katina's Japanese name directly translated into English is indeed officially "Katarina": https://youtu.be/C1xDq1ymFv4?list=PL79797D1A47372A35&t=99
Franchise: God of War
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Kratos appears in actual Greek mythology as a Daimon or lesser god of strength. He is most notable for being the brother of Nike. Besides the coincidence of their name, this character bears no actual resemblance to the protagonist of the God of War series.
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Adaptation, Coincidence, Etymology, Inspiration, Real Life, Religion
person Kirby Inhales Jotaro calendar_month November 21, 2023
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Franchise: Mario
subdirectory_arrow_right Nintendo (Company)
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In the E3 2019 Nintendo Direct presentation, the new CEO of Nintendo of America, Doug Bowser, was introduced with a joke comparing his last name to the antagonist of the Mario series, Bowser. However, in Japanese, the character’s name is “Koopa”, so in the Japanese broadcast of the Nintendo Direct, they clarified the joke with subtitles explaining that his name is Bowser in English-language releases.
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Coincidence, Etymology, In-Joke, Regional Difference, Release Difference
person Kirby Inhales Jotaro calendar_month November 21, 2023
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Popgoes Arcade
Popgoes Arcade (2022)
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According to series creator Kane Carter in a pair of Game Jolt polls, not only is Popgoes the Weasel a reference to the nursery rhyme of the same name, Manora the Mouse's name is a reference to the phrase "are you a man or a mouse?".
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Etymology, General, Reference
person chocolatejr9 calendar_month November 21, 2023
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Star Fox Command
Star Fox Command (2006)
subdirectory_arrow_right Star Fox: Assault (Game)
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Attachment During Star Fox: Assault's Fortuna mission, Andrew Oikonny, who is now leading a rebellion against Corneria using the remnants of Andross' army, pilots a flagship that transforms into a mode based on his deceased uncle (Falco even dismisses it as a "Andross wanna-be") complete with a floating head with disembodied hands. The official Japanese Star Fox: Assault guidebook reveals its name to be デスバブーン (Desubabūn), or Death Baboon.

Despite being seemingly destroyed by an Aparoid, Oikonny would reappear in Star Fox Command, working for the Anglar Army (who are revealed to be creations of his uncle), this time in another vessel shaped and named after an animal that's name also starts with "Death", the Death Crab.
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Backstory/Lore, Etymology
person Dinoman96 calendar_month November 19, 2023
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User's English translation of official Japanese Star Fox: Assault guidebook:
https://www.reddit.com/r/starfox/comments/10m82rq/for_all_you_star_fox_assault_fans_some_pictures/

Star Fox: Assault - Oikonny's Flagship boss:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJM5TIhcTiY

Star Fox Command - Oikonny appearance:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpnNgz2A2Bo
Star Fox: Assault
Star Fox: Assault (2005)
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Attachment Star Fox: Assault establishes the Sargasso region as the Star Wolf team's base of operations. Its name is virtually untouched from the Japanese version, サルガッソー (Sarugassō), but there exists an added pun in the latter, in that it begins with サル (Saru), the Japanese word for Monkey. This adds up, as Wolf's criminal empire here is shown to be made up of monkeys, presumably remnants from Andross' army.
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Backstory/Lore, Etymology, Regional Difference
person Dinoman96 calendar_month November 18, 2023
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Star Fox: Assault
Star Fox: Assault (2005)
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Attachment Star Fox Assault's official Japanese guidebook reveals the name of General Pepper's Aparoid infected flagship, which is the boss of the Corneria mission, to be エアフォース・バウ (Eafōsu bau), which translates to "Air Force Bow" in English.

The name is actually a reference to Air Force One, the official air traffic control designated call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States, similar to how General Pepper is the leader of Corneria. "Bow" is a reference to the onomatopoeia for a dog's bark, "bow wow".
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Backstory/Lore, Etymology, Real Life, Reference, Regional Difference
person Dinoman96 calendar_month November 17, 2023
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Star Fox 64
Star Fox 64 (1997)
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Attachment The combat robots known as the Shogun Troopers in Star Fox 64's Sector Y stage are called サルジャー (Sarujā) in the Japanese version of the game. This can be translated as "Sarger".

It appears this name is meant to be a pun and mashup of サル (Saru) and ソルジャー (Sorujā), the Japanese words for Monkey and Soldier respectively.
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Etymology, General, Real Life, Regional Difference
person Dinoman96 calendar_month November 18, 2023
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User's English translation of official Japanese Star Fox 64 guidebook:
https://www.reddit.com/r/starfox/comments/y8cwc9/finally_got_around_to_doing_translations/

Atwiki page on the Sarger enemies:
https://w.atwiki.jp/nitendo/pages/9680.html

bab.la dictionary entry for Sorujā:
https://en.bab.la/dictionary/english-japanese/soldier
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