Finding Xanadu: Inside a JRPG classic translation 15 years in the making

WHEW — this is a long one! When I started putting together this issue of ROM, I was seeing a lot of headlines and social media posts about stuff that, frankly, bummed me out. Surely exaggerated claims that it's joever for the Switch 2 ("Nintendo's worst nightmare!") because you can emulate it now (AI). A dozen new recomps a day (AI). A launcher for said recomps (AI). Play this or that in your browser (AI). Instead of trying to pick apart the kinda-yuck from the very-yuck, I decided to do something else this issue instead: ignore it all and write about something completely different.This week, even more than usual, is about carrying the torch for human ingenuity, steadfast effort, and collaboration. When I saw that three really noteworthy fan translations had all come out since last issue, I decided to feature them all, and speak to the people who made them without surrendering their brains. Hope you enjoy. The Big Three1. Where nobody dared to go, the love that we came to know: They…