Fan Translation Unlocks Obscure N64 RPG Zool in English

A fan translation patch for the Japanese-exclusive N64 RPG Zool – Majyū Charmer Legend is now available, making the obscure monster-tamer playable in English for the first time. The patch, available at romhack.ing, was led by hacker Zoinkity with translator whowasphone404 and namer Gabbu Hetchy.

Don’t go in expecting a Pokémon clone, though. Zoinkity’s readme warns that those hoping for evolution mechanics or a ‘catch ’em all’ incentive will be frustrated. Zool, developed by Pandora Box and published by Imagineer in 1999, follows an orphan who stumbles into a quest to become a legendary beast tamer. Its A-plot is about found family, while the B-plot is a more shonen-style charmer story, and the game splits its time between cursor-navigated towns and monster-collecting overworld battles, none of which involve evolution.

The translation was a beast in itself: around 59,000 words of text, which required custom debug tools to handle the lengthy dialogue. That kind of effort is exactly what makes this a preservation win. Another N64 obscurity gets pried open, and players who don’t read Japanese finally have a chance to see what’s there, even if it’s not the Pokéclone some might have imagined.