• Light/Dark
  • Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
  • We have made minor adjustments to how the search bar works on ResetEra. You can read about the changes here.

Sucker Punch claims they're fans of Samurai cinema, yet it seems they have never watched a subtitled movie in their entire lives

jett

jett

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
44,655
Another day, another game with poor subtitles.

IWObw9Q.png


Why are you giving me these small-ass subtitles, and worse even relegated to the "black bars", making them harder to read than they should? No, subtitles should be easy to read while simultaneously being able to look at the action comfortably.

This is what subtitles usually look like in blu-rays.

v8KTH63.jpg



This is an appropriate, comfortable size and position to read from afar. Now games rarely have subtitles this big, but I tell you what it's better than the shit in GoT. I'm more than fed up.

And do me a favor and spare me your excuses, such as "those subtitles actually look plenty big to me!" or "it would be distracting if they weren't bumped all the way to the bottom of the screen" or "I don't use subtitles anyways, who cares."
 
Last edited:
Mendrox

Mendrox

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
9,439
How about just giving the option to resize. Easy win for all (picture below would be too big for me nowadays for example, above ones are just correct for me and totally fine even without glasses)


Options is all we need and everyone will be fine.
 

Deleted member 8468

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 26, 2017
9,109
Well this is super unfortunate. Why does every single game dev seem to think we all sit directly in front of our TVs?

Guess I'll be playing this in English weather I like it or not.
 
TheInfinityGauntlet

TheInfinityGauntlet

Member
Nov 3, 2017
4,393
I agree more options the better but to call it an excuse because it's fine for someone who isn't you meanwhile your opinion matters is dumb as hell
 
Finale Fireworker

Finale Fireworker

Love each other or die trying.
Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,711
United States
Is there any explanation for why subtitles are so terrible in so many video games? The fact they're always so small really drives me nuts. This is something that hasn't gotten better this entire generation.

I had high hopes they would be good in this game due to the effort put in to Kurosawa Mode.
 
Launchpad

Launchpad

Member
Oct 26, 2017
5,157
Yeah those are bad. I assume literally all dev work is just done on monitors a few inches away from you because these would be unreadable on a TV 5+ feet away.
 
Messofanego

Messofanego

Member
Oct 25, 2017
26,158
UK
That's tiny! They should really fix that and have accessibility options, also ability to change colour of subtitles. This is basic stuff.
 
Izanagi89

Izanagi89

Member
Oct 27, 2017
14,588
Do we know if there's a font size option? But I'm with you though. I cannot deal with this. I was so happy when TLOU had the option to scale the font and I NEED it to be an industry standard. I'm afraid to play Cyberpunk
 
mattyhochs

mattyhochs

Member
May 9, 2018
161
Given the new appreciation for accessibility options in games, I'm surprised we haven't seen more options to customize how subtitles are presented. More than just size: location, color, font, etc.
 
dunkzilla

dunkzilla

alt account
Banned
Dec 13, 2018
4,762
They looked fine in Karak's review. Look smaller here. Is there options to change them or is it gameplay vs cutscene subtitles.


Dumb thread name though.
 

i like big butts

Member
Oct 28, 2017
4,970
Yeah, subtitle resizing is an obvious solution. But realistically who the fuck is playtesting these games and going "this tiny ass text is totally fine" because I want the eyesight of whoever is responsible for video game subtitles.
 
vestan

vestan

#REFANTAZIO SWEEP
Member
Dec 28, 2017
24,629
People might clown you OP but I 100% agree. This seems pretty disappointing especially hot of the trails of TLOU2 which put a heavy emphasis on accessibility in general. Hoping we can actually increase the size.
 
Einchy

Einchy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
42,659
Subtitles are game dev's biggest challenge.

My favorite is when a character starts talking and they give me a damn paragraph. Like, have y'all ever even seen a subtitle?
 
Wanace

Wanace

Member
Oct 29, 2017
1,014
UX Designers are imperative these days and that doesn't only go for subtitles. The number of games on Switch for example that are squint-inducing in handheld mode because of tiny font is ridiculous.

Seems most developers go for style over end-user comfort and clarity in these kinds of things.
 
Fisty

Fisty

Member
Oct 25, 2017
20,220
Look out Sucker Punch, Jett is fed up!

Seems like something they can easily adjust or add options for in a patch. I much prefer subtitles in the black bars, personally
 
*Splinter

*Splinter

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,087
jett said:
Another day, another game with poor subtitles.

IWObw9Q.png


Why are you giving me these small-ass subtitles, and worse even relegated to the "black bars", making them harder to read than they should? No, you fucking people, subtitles should be easy to read while simultaneously being able to look at the action comfortably.

This is what subtitles usually look like in blu-rays.

v8KTH63.jpg



This is an appropriate, comfortable size and position to read from afar. Now games rarely have subtitles this big, but I tell you what it's better than the shit in GoT. I'm more than fed up.

And do me a favor and spare me your excuses, such as "those subtitles actually look plenty big to me!" or "it would be distracting if they weren't bumped all the way to the bottom of the screen" or "I don't use subtitles anyways, who cares."
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Surely the reason subs aren't usually on the black bars is because those black bars aren't always there, depending on your screen. Whereas the game always has bars, and text is easier to read against a blank background.

I mean they're definitely small but the move down to the black bar seems sensible to me.
 
Transistor

Transistor

Hollowly Brittle
Administrator
Oct 25, 2017
37,145
Washington, D.C.
TheMoon said:
They shouldn't need to be patched though. It's not like they descend this way from heaven. The subtitle discourse has also been going on for a while. AAA teams should know all of this by now.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Agreed. This is something that really needs to be addressed on release day. Between the subtitle size and the fact that Japenese VA isn't lip synced (mega sad about that one), I'll probably just end up playing it in English
 
Mendrox

Mendrox

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
9,439
i like big butts said:
Yeah, subtitle resizing is an obvious solution. But realistically who the fuck is playtesting these games and going "this tiny ass text is totally fine" because I want the eyesight of whoever is responsible for video game subtitles.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

They play on monitors where those subtitles are totally fine.

Transistor said:
Agreed. This is something that really needs to be addressed on release day. Between the subtitle size and the fact that Japenese VA isn't lip synced (mega sad about that one), I'll probably just end up playing it in English
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Oh no please lol. How can you fuck up like this Sucker Punch
 
JakeNoseIt

JakeNoseIt

Catch My Drift
Verified
Oct 27, 2017
4,535
Finale Fireworker said:
Is there any explanation for why subtitles are so terrible in so many video games? The fact they're always so small really drives me nuts. This is something that hasn't gotten better this entire generation.

I had high hopes they would be good in this game due to the effort put in to Kurosawa Mode.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

My head canon explanation is that the devs are making the game on monitors right in front of their faces, so they just don't notice that the size wouldnt work on a tv
 
Zampano

Zampano

The Fallen
Dec 3, 2017
2,237
Also apparently the lip sync is still to English if you choose Japanese language so it will look like it's dubbed (according to Easy Allies). Worst of both worlds!
 

Deleted member 8257

Oct 26, 2017
24,586
How big are the fonts and text in game menus?
 
Jumpman23

Jumpman23

Member
Nov 14, 2017
1,000
Could different resolutions be the cause? I've seen some games running at 4K where text becomes very tiny.
 
Dyle

Dyle

One Winged Slayer
The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
29,932
Boy those are some ugly subtitles. Messed up to talk about how cool the game is in Japanese and then screw up this badly on implementing it.
 
Transistor

Transistor

Hollowly Brittle
Administrator
Oct 25, 2017
37,145
Washington, D.C.
Kholdy said:
Damn, TLOU2 was marvelous, I just put big yellow subtitles and had a blast.
TLOU2 handling of subtitles should be the norm from now on.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
The Last of Us 2 has raised the bar so damn high for accessibility that I honestly believe it's going to take other developers years to catch up. Never have I seen such a wide array of accessibility options in a game.
 
808s & Villainy

808s & Villainy

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
42,700
jett said:
and worse even relegated to the "black bars", making them harder to read than they should?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

The size I get, but this is PURE nitpicking and is actually ridiculous. They put it against black because high contrasts on white subs make them easier to read, not harder. There's no argument for being over the image being better for readability than over a black background
 
entremet

entremet

You wouldn't toast a NES cartridge
Member
Oct 26, 2017
60,069
Games are tested in monitor setups and not huge TVs. This is why this keeps happening.
 
OP
OP
jett

jett

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
44,655
*Splinter said:
Surely the reason subs aren't usually on the black bars is because those black bars aren't always there, depending on your screen. Whereas the game always has bars, and text is easier to read against a blank background.

I mean they're definitely small but the move down to the black bar seems sensible to me.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I explained in my OP why this isn't actually true at all. The smaller the subtitles, and the farther they're moved to the bottom of the screen, the harder it is to keep track of the action on screen while reading the subtitles. And deciding to always have them in the "black bars" means they will have to be made small. There are reasons why there's a standard/guideline in film.

808s & Villainy said:
The size I get, but this is PURE nitpicking and is actually ridiculous. They put it against black because high contrasts on white subs make them easier to read, not harder. There's no argument for being over the image being better for readability than over a black background
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Spoken like someone that never watches subtitled content. Seems we have several of those in this thread.

No, buddy. Nitpicking would be complaining that the game has scrolling subtitles.

QIX4O2R.gif


Which looks like shit to me, but whatever.
 
Bladelaw

Bladelaw

Member
Oct 25, 2017
7,703
Launchpad said:
Yeah those are bad. I assume literally all dev work is just done on monitors a few inches away from you because these would be unreadable on a TV 5+ feet away.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
This seems like the most likely scenario. Looks like either no one had a TV test case or QA caught it and it was deemed known shippable. Either way we've been having this problem since Dead Rising on the Xbox 360.
 
The_R3medy

The_R3medy

Member
Jan 22, 2018
2,843
Wisconsin
Sure, make the subtitles larger, but why not use the black bars for the subtitles? Seems to make sense to me. I watch stuff on Netflix with subtitles, and hate how it often covers a third of the screen.
 
Betty

Betty

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
17,604
One of the first things I appreciated about TLOU2. Give us the choice of small, medium or large subtitles.
 
Hey Please

Hey Please

Avenger
Oct 31, 2017
22,824
Not America
Transistor said:
The Last of Us 2 has raised the bar so damn high for accessibility that I honestly believe it's going to take other developers years to catch up. Never have I seen such a wide array of accessibility options in a game.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

I was afraid that this might happen. Frankly, I am disappointed that there is no mandate across ALL of Sony's FP studios engaged in development of AA to AAA size titles to meet the same threshold as ND regarding accessibility options.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.