{"id":99058,"date":"2019-08-23T22:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-08-23T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nintendolife.com\/news\/2019\/08\/poll_how_do_you_pronounce_these_nintendo-related_words"},"modified":"2019-08-23T22:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-08-23T22:00:00","slug":"poll-how-do-you-pronounce-these-nintendo-related-words","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/2019\/08\/23\/poll-how-do-you-pronounce-these-nintendo-related-words\/","title":{"rendered":"Poll: How Do You Pronounce These Nintendo-Related Words?"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/a><\/div>\n
\"Hmm\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

As British film critic Mark Kermode often says, we should never make fun of people for mispronouncing words because – more often than not – it means they learned it through reading<\/em>. This holds true whether they were found in a book or a video game, and many of us as kids gleaned new vocabulary from instruction manuals or the TV screen itself.<\/p>\n

Voice acting these days tends to do away with confusion, but back in the day you generally had to read names off the packaging or in text boxes; reading<\/em> and saying<\/em> are two very different things, though, especially in the English language. It\u2019s the fault of video games that this writer\u2019s childhood pronunciation of \u2018chaos\u2019 more closely resembled the word \u2018trousers\u2019 for years thanks to collecting emeralds as a blue hedgehog and reading the word on the Special Stage screen.<\/p>\n

Below we\u2019ve collected together a bunch of video game vocabulary that commonly splits opinion for one reason or another. Some come from confusion over foreign names, others from regional variations, accents, abbreviations and more. Under each one you\u2019ll find a poll \u2013 feel free to cast your vote and we\u2019ll see what the Nintendo Life community consensus is on the pronunciation of these words. They’ve all become common parlance in the realm of video games, but we can\u2019t quite<\/em> agree on them.<\/p>\n

\"Non<\/a><\/figure>\n

An important note before we begin:<\/h3>\n

Most differences are simply regional. ‘Mario’, for instance, can be said with an elongated ahh<\/em> in the first syllable, like Peach does<\/a>, but could equally be pronounced murry-oh<\/em> or marry-oh<\/em> \u2013 they\u2019re all just variants according to the accent of the speaker.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, it\u2019s important to remember that usage<\/em> dictates acceptability and there\u2019s no inherently \u2018correct\u2019 way to say most of the examples below. Language is a malleable, uncontrollable thing not governed by rules in textbooks \u2013 dictionaries document, they don’t dictate. Even the intentions of the person who coined a particular word or phrase are immaterial once language has gobbled it up \u2013 just ask the man who invented the .gif!<\/p>\n

Even things that sound nonsensical and ungrammatical to some people (British ears will likely bristle on hearing \u2018I could care less!\u2019 to demonstrate a total lack of interest, for example) become legitimate alternatives over time, no matter how hard you might fight it. Any living language is constantly in flux, and those who insist on clinging unyieldingly to grammatical rules or \u2018correct\u2019 pronunciation will only stress themselves out!<\/p>\n

Okay, let’s have some fun!<\/p>\n

NES \/ SNES<\/h2>\n
\"NESS\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

This seems to depend on which side of the Atlantic you reside, with North Americans tending towards sness<\/em> and UK gamers preferring snezz<\/em>. Alternatively, some people say every single letter separately – you\u2019re wasting valuable time, people! Think of all the extra hot takes you could squeeze into you gaming conversation by knocking off three syllables.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

How do you say ‘NES’? (1,114 votes)<\/h3>\n
\n

“ness”<\/h4>\n

29%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“nezz”<\/h4>\n

14%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“enn-eee-ess”<\/h4>\n

56%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Please login<\/a> to vote in this poll.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Pok\u00e9mon<\/h2>\n
\"Pokemon\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

The accent over the \u2018e\u2019 tends to trip people up with the \u2018Pocket Monster\u2019 portmanteau. In some languages it indicates a specific pronunciation of the vowel sound, whereas in others it denotes word stress. We tend to be Poker-mon<\/em> people, but Poke-y-mon<\/em> and Pockee-mon<\/em> seem fairly popular depending on your region, with some people stressing the second syllable. The risqu\u00e9-sounding po-Kay-mon<\/em> is probably the closest to the Japanese pronunciation and sounds like an hors d’oeuvre if you say it slowly. \u201cBe a fine chap and pass me a Pok\u00e9mon, would you?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\n
\n

How do you say ‘Pok\u00e9mon’? (1,087 votes)<\/h3>\n
\n

“Poker-mon”<\/h4>\n

13%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Poke-y-mon”<\/h4>\n

35%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Pockee-mon”<\/h4>\n

12%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“po-Kay-mon”<\/h4>\n

32%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Please login<\/a> to vote in this poll.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Gaiden<\/h2>\n
\"Gaiden\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

This one stems from many a kid\u2019s unfamiliarity with Japanese back in the day. Probably most famous thanks to Ninja Gaiden<\/a><\/strong>, although Zelda fans scouring mags for information on Majora\u2019s Mask<\/a><\/strong> probably read about Zelda Gaiden<\/strong>, too, it translates as \u2018supplementary\u2019 or \u2018side story\u2019 which explains its use for numerous video game sequels and spin-offs. The Japanese pronunciation is more like guy-Den<\/em> when spoken at speed, but most westerners have been saying Gay-den<\/em> for years, much to the chagrin of the orange jumpsuit man in The Wizard<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

How do you say ‘Gaiden’? (1,086 votes)<\/h3>\n
\n

“guy-Den”<\/h4>\n

70%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Gay-den”<\/h4>\n

29%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Please login<\/a> to vote in this poll.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Ryu<\/h2>\n
\"Ryu\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

Whether you\u2019re referring to the Street Fighter<\/a><\/strong>, Ninja Gaiden star Mr. Hayabusa or the forklift driving kid from Shenmue<\/strong> (actually, he’s Ryo, but it’s close!), chances are if you’re reading this you started off saying his name wrong. Rye-oo<\/em> seemed natural at the time and it can be tough to shake something you internalise in your formative years, even if you know it\u2019s closer to ree-Oo<\/em>. Check out Clyde Mandelin’s Legend of Localization post<\/a> for an in-depth look at the correct Japanese pronunciation.<\/p>\n

Poor old Ryu. Ken doesn\u2019t have to put up with this crap! Mind you, some of us had trouble with Guile and Dhalsim, too.<\/p>\n

\n
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How do you say ‘Ryu’? (1,072 votes)<\/h3>\n
\n

“Rye-oo”<\/h4>\n

29%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“ree-Oo”<\/h4>\n

67%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Please login<\/a> to vote in this poll.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Yoshi<\/h2>\n
\"Yoshi\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

Yoshi<\/em>\u2019s your bro, see<\/em>? That is unless you rhyme the green dinosaur\u2019s name with \u2018bossy\u2019. Personally, we like to keep things formal and use his full title of ‘T. Yoshisaur Munchakoopas Esq.’ to avoid embarrassment. As you can tell, people love<\/em> getting stuck with us at parties.<\/p>\n

\n
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How do you say ‘Yoshi’? (1,090 votes)<\/h3>\n
\n

“Yo-shee”<\/h4>\n

74%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Yosh-ee”<\/h4>\n

26%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Other<\/h4>\n

 <\/span> 0%<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Please login<\/a> to vote in this poll.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

(Mario) Bros.<\/h2>\n
\"MarioBros\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

Unless you\u2019re trying<\/em> to be difficult, there are three options here: bross<\/em>, as in the brother-band responsible for the 1988 hit single When Will I Be Famous<\/a><\/strong>; broze<\/em>, as in one dude-bro, two dude-bros<\/em>; or simply the word \u2018brothers\u2019. The really interesting thing is if you say it differently when you substitute \u2018Mario\u2019 for \u2018Smash\u2019\u2026<\/p>\n

\n
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How do you say (Mario) ‘Bros.’? (1,090 votes)<\/h3>\n
\n

“bross”<\/h4>\n

19%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“broze”<\/h4>\n

48%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“brothers”<\/h4>\n

32%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Please login<\/a> to vote in this poll.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Melee<\/h2>\n
\"Smash\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

For such a simple word, there\u2019s an awful lot of possible variations with this one. You might say it \u00adMee-lay<\/em>, or possibly muh-Lay<\/em>. Alternatively, May-lay<\/em> is popular. That should be the end of it, although you might hear mee-lee<\/em> (rhymes with \u2018wheelie\u2019) or melly<\/em> (rhymes with \u2018smelly\u2019). We know we said there were no \u2018wrong\u2019 answers at the top of the page. We lied. Please<\/em> don\u2019t say Smash Bros. Melly<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n
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How do you say ‘Melee’? (1,066 votes)<\/h3>\n
\n

“Mee-lay”<\/h4>\n

7%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“muh-Lay”<\/h4>\n

2%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“May-lay”<\/h4>\n

62%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“mee-lee”<\/h4>\n

17%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“melly”<\/h4>\n

6%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Please login<\/a> to vote in this poll.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

TATE<\/h2>\n
\"Tate\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

Hold up, how is this ‘Nintendo-related’? Well, with Switch becoming something of a shmup fan’s paradise<\/a>, we couldn’t very well leave this old chestnut out, could we? Shooter fans will be tired of clarifying this one (along with ‘Darius<\/a><\/strong>‘, we’re sure). Sometimes capitalised, ‘tate’ is essentially Japanese for \u2018vertical\u2019 and arguably pronounced tah-tay<\/em>, but most English speakers would assume it rhymes with \u2018hate\u2019. This is one of those examples where even though we know the ‘proper’ pronunciation, saying it correctly would get us a ribbing from our mates down the pub. “Oh, shall we visit the T<\/em>ah-tay<\/em> gallery later?!”. Perhaps we need a better class of acquaintance.<\/p>\n

\n
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How do you say ‘Tate’? (901 votes)<\/h3>\n
\n

“tah-tay”<\/h4>\n

22%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“tayte”<\/h4>\n

75%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Please login<\/a> to vote in this poll.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

And one more thing… Reggie Fils-Aim\u00e9!<\/h2>\n
\"One<\/a><\/figure>\n

No need for a poll with this one, really – it’s definitely<\/em> ‘Phil’s Aim’. Seriously, though, we assume people butchering his surname was what led him to plain old ‘Reggie’.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

How do you say ‘Reggie Fils-Aim\u00e9’? (1,023 votes)<\/h3>\n
\n

“fees-em-May”<\/h4>\n

36%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“feeza-Mee”<\/h4>\n

12%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Phil’s Aim”<\/h4>\n

9%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Reggie<\/h4>\n

22%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Reginald<\/h4>\n

1%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The Regginator<\/h4>\n

17%<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Please login<\/a> to vote in this poll.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

There are many others, of course – fans of Ys<\/strong><\/a> spend more time telling non-fans how to say it than they do playing the game. Feel free to let us know the words that have caused you problems in the past (including ‘hors d’oeuvre’ , if you like). The beautiful thing about the written word is you don’t have to say it!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As British film critic Mark Kermode often says, we should never make fun of people for mispronouncing words because – more often than not – it means they learned it through reading. This holds true whether they were found in a book or a video game, and many of us as kids gleaned new vocabulary […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-99058","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-nintendo-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99058","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99058"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99058\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99058"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99058"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99058"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}