Excuse me what debate between fan and official translation ?
There is no debate.

'I think people who mindlessly chase down that ideal are holding themselves back from being good translators. [...] That whole mindset—that Japanese has ‘correct’ translations into English and that localizers are people who mangle those perfect answers—is misguided'

This guy is right. That's all there is to it.
I'm not even kidding here. Anyone who has attempted translation courses at some point would know that it's true.

This is basically the root I'm going, hacked 3DS, import copy straight from Nintendo of Japan and fan sub patch. Now as for accuracy of the translation, no you cannot achieve 100%, but doesn't stop you achieve 95% or 98% accuracy, when the alternative is that you settle for some think that scrapes in at the low 80s. plus removed content and assets.
For me at least there's only one choice, and it's certainly not supporting the localized version.

But Nintendo DOESN'T have a tendency to cut/alter plot points that much, if at all, nor character personalities. They didn't do that with Fates.

They have changed clothes in games, removed a side feature that doesn't affect anything, and they changed a slight element of a support that plays out the same anyway.

A few things may get slightly altered, but never to a degree where it affects the story or changes it. Not that I recall. Just people overreacting and deciding fan translators are more right because reasons.

EDIT: As for like, throwing in memes and stuff, like, get over it. They aren't affecting the story or gameplay.

keep playing Nintendo games for the story, brehs.

NX region free making us buy 100% original Japanese games that are unaltered. Then later the team works with English translators to bring DLC English to us for $5-20 based on how heavy the text data are. Both sides will win & we gamers get no censoring in the games. If XenoBlade X can give another Language from update we got awhile back then it can be done.

Apparently, this happened within Fire Emblem's localization: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jA6A-ySMHYI

I just know that as a writer (or at least someone who thinks he's a writer), this hurt my soul:

Like why would you feel okay about the robotic text on the right, when it can be made into the infinitely better text on the left and keep the same meaning?

I've been playing through the Corpse Party games recently, and because one of the games never made it west, I had to watch a translated Let's Play on YouTube. The translation was serviceable, but wooden, to the point where I thought "I wish I could take this script and use it as a basis to come up with my own fan translation, maybe even a patch." I then realized I would have no idea how to accomplish the latter, so I disregarded the thought, but still.

It seems like this Team IF cares more about their own personal dogma than about improving the product. Purism is a cognitive bias, not a valid argument.

And we PLEASE stop using that same damn image every time the topic of Fates comes up? It's a SRPG, no matter what Tumblr says.

Two things. One, Nintendo understands their target audience much, much more deeply than Team IF is giving them credit for. Two, what Team IF thinks is Nintendo's target audience is but a miniscule portion of its actual target audience.

First: The top rated Comment is stupid. Who is upvoting such stuff?

Second: Yes, it's impossible to achieve a 100% literal translation from the Japanese into another language. But you can stay as true as possible when you adapt a Script. I guess, this is a typical US thing, altering the Original Script, put in Slangs, Meme References and altering Characters. Many of the Translations from Nintendo of Europe are staying far more true to the Original Script. The British Versions often shows many differences compared to the Treehouse stuff. So I'm really looking forward to the German Translation which will be a complete different Translation from the get go. Yes, that's my native language.

No one is is asking for a literal Translation, but the Treehouse BS is as far away from the Japanese Script as it is possible. But just take a look which persons are working for Treehouse.

But since Fates made the best Launch in the Franchise, there isn't a reason for Treehouse to change something.

The way I see it, yes, it is true that you must somewhat localize your text. I had translated many texts from the Project M website to French and a few in-jokes were based off word play. I had to think up of another joke while trying to keep most of the meaning there.

There is however some degree of fidelity that needs to be met. For instances, take the pokémon anime. Calling onigiri doughnuts was completely ridiculous. One way to localize it could have been to simply say "rice ball". This example seems tiny, but as someone who knew what an onigiri was, it felt silly and off.

A verbatim translation never sounds or reads good. However, in many cases, translations remove plot points. In Awakening for example, there was a Henry support where he proposed something that seemed cruel at first but the intent was actually noble. The whole conversation was changed and that story, we never saw. In Awakening again, Morgan's Japanese name was Mark. It was a clear reference to the tactician in Blazin Sword. They may even be connected. That reference was lost on the western market. In Fates, we have strange name edits, like Subaki instead of Tsubaki. The former is not even a real name.

I think that yes, a game must be adapted to the market it tries to appeal to, but it should also try to emulate the meaning behind the writing as closely as possible. Of course, text structure may have to be changed.

I... I can't believe people are actively speaking for this kind of "localization". Yes, I put t hat in quotes because personally, I think "butchering" is the way more appropriate term in this case. I never even knew about the support convo thing being turned into a freaking bunch of three dots back and forth. Like "ha ha, they're ninjas, of course they don't have to say anything, it makes sense amirite?". Christ.

Making a product "better for other countries" is highly subjective matter, staying true to the source material isn't. Changing and removing things because of "cultural differences" in this day and age is freaking laughable. The translation can be as wooden as possible for all I care, as long as I don't feel like I'm missing something when playing a localized version of a game. It is possible to stay true to the source material while making a good translation, but that is clearly not the road the modern Treehouse likes to travel. And I'm extremely disappointed by that.

I really, really hope all the delay Fates is getting with its EU release is because Europe's own translation team is doing their job, as in translating the game properly.

I just cringe so hard at so many weebs who have been hating on Nintendo for all the hard work they have put into this game.