Danila Evstifeev, Russian Editor

1. Tell us a bit about who you are, your background, and how you came to work on translating Forgotton Anne?

I’m Danila Evstifeev, translator and interpreter by choice and calling. Translated my first game when I was 16, and I've been doing stuff like that for almost 10 years by now! I translate Russian comics by BUBBLE Comics into English (such as Exlibrium, Demonslayer, Friar, Realmwalkers, Meteora), and just recently I also joined forces with Alexander et al to help localize Hollow Knight!

2. There is a lot of text to translate in Forgotton Anne. How did you approach the task?

Like a dedicated fan who resigned himself to the project and actually happens to know what he’s doing! I have an actual degree in Linguistics, and every day I train and practice and learn and seek more context material that might become useful for the next project. “You’re insane, you’re too obsessed with this thing!” some would say – and they would be kiiinda right.

3. What are some of the specific challenges you faced bringing Forgotton Anne into your native language?

For this particular project I had to sift through technical manuals and magazines (especially about trains, hydraulics and pneumatics!), stories I read as a child, books on Russian grammar and style… It’s a job of constantly – CONSTANTLY – second-guessing yourself and your story perception over several iterations of proofreading, all for the elusive miracle of transforming gold into gold. I hope we did a good job with that.

4. Were there any word or terms that proved particularly awkward or humorous to translate?

In Russian, the word “арка” means “an arch” – no more and no less, with no other hidden meanings. Imagine poor little Anne walking around with a stone arch on her wrist, like Samurai Jack learning how to jump good! The meaningful names of various characters are a different kettle of fish, but Alex did a pretty good job on them.

5. What do you think about Forgotton Anne and translating/editing it?

A very sweet and poignant interactive story that leaves you yearning for more. For various reasons it reminds me of a lot of books I read in my childhood: Lullaby for the Brother by Vladislav Krapivin, The Banks of Sacramento by Jack London, La Freccia Azzurra [The Blue Arrow] by Gianni Rodari (which also features trains and little forgotlings looking for a home of their own!) – and a lot more.

6. Any message you want to enclose to players in your language?

Надеюсь, вам понравится игра и наш перевод! Мы сами влюбились в Forgotton Anne и надеемся, что благодаря нашему труду вы сможете прочувствовать эту историю до мельчайших деталей. Дороги открыты!