Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan

Etrian Odyssey IV is the fourth game in a series of rather difficult dungeon crawler RPGs, and the first to be released for the 3DS. It's also the first to feature a new "casual" difficulty mode, an extended overworld to travel through, and the first to replace the iconic, orange F.O.E. balls with proper 3D models.

Note: This game uses Shift-JIS encoding for all its text, which includes the usage of full-width latin characters (ex. Ｄｕｍｍｙ) even in the English version. For the sake of readability, these have been converted to regular ASCII characters for this article.

Unused Text#

General#

Various message files in the game contain the strings "ダミー" (Dummy), "Dummy", or variations thereof (i.e. suffixed with a number) in various places, such as the files containing common battle and dungeon strings, files with text for certain facilities, among others. Additionally, various files contain message entries that presumably once pointed to proper strings, but have since been nulled out.

Leftovers#

To do: Check SQ2 text to ensure it's identical, the 3 text all checks out under diff.

Several files in the game contain text that is either left over, or that has apparently been taken (for testing or as a placeholder), from a previous game in the series. These have not been translated for the English version of Etrian Odyssey IV and were left in Japanese. Additionally, they still use the text control code format from the previous games, which uses the prefix 0x80 instead of 0xF8.

Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard#

TestData\Test\test_sel.mbm and TestData\Test\test_yesno.mbm contain text apparently taken from Etrian Odyssey II to test user selections in event scripts.

Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City#

The common battle strings in Battle\battlemessage.mbm still contain text referring to, for example, certain bosses from the previous game. Also, Item\seaitemequipexplain.mbm, Item\seaitemexplain.mbm and Item\seaitemtext.mbm contain descriptions of items and equipment related to seafaring, while TestData\Test\dungeon.mbm contains common messages used in the labyrinth, and TestData\Test\DUN_01F.mbm contains text for that game's labyrinth floor B1F.

Opening#

Along with various text related to starting a new game, deleting old data, etc., the file InterfaceFile\Opening.mbm also contains the opening story text as strings, instead of the graphics from the folder Mori4stex\Event\Opening, which are actually used:

As divine verdure fertilizes;
The malign verdure corrupts.

What is left is a holy husk.

Hollow ones cling to faith;
Fanged ones honor power;
Foolish sages protect a lie.

But the Medium's song remains,
Guiding you to Yggdrasil.

You hold the wings to soar
In this tempestuous saga.

Winds of beginning, blow now...

Enemies#

The files Monster\Table\enemynametable.tbl and Dictionary\dictionaryenemyexp.mbm respectively hold every enemy's name and description. Several of them have been dummied out and now just read "NONE" for the name and "Dummy Description here." for the description. Their numbers are 0x00, 0x14, 0x2A, 0x49, 0x4E, 0x52, 0x84 to 0xA9, 0xB9, 0xBF to 0xC1, 0xC6 to 0xC7, and 0xDC to 0xFF.

Usable Items#

To do: Eventually tear into the format like with the equipment below.

The descriptions for many items, such as monster drops, healing items, etc., are found within Item\useitemexpbattle.mbm. Aside from various "Dummy" entries, and entries consisting of the item type and a number or variations thereof (ex. "Other378", "Material Buffer19 Additional Slot" or many duplicates of "Rare Item Reserve"), there are a few copies of the following string:

Probably doesn't exist
Let Nich know if it does

This likely refers to former Atlus USA employee Nich Maragos, the Project Lead and one of the Editors working on the game's English localization. This string can be found with the IDs 468 to 471, 473 and 474.

Quests#

Event\quest_name.mbm and Event\quest_explain.mbm contain the name and description for each quest in the game. Similar to the enemies mentioned above, several of these strings are unused, since their quests have either been dummied out or turned into QR quests, while one of them is specifically listed as a debug quest that should not occur in the final game.

Event\Quest\QUE_039.mbm is the message file for one of the quests given by the innkeeper Dalla. The last five messages in this file are marked as "temporary text", with one of them indicating that maybe one of the translators at Atlus USA wasn't too fond of the accent given to Wynne in the localization.

Temporary Text.
I cannot wait!

Temporary Text.
Don't fail it.

Temporary Text.
I cannot wait!

Temporary Text.
Aw, da [Guild Name] crew!
Don't I gots da worst accent?

Temporary Text.
I cannot wait!

The message files for two QR quests, Event\QR\QR_004.mbm and Event\QR\QR_011.mbm, contain some untranslated messages regarding debugging functions.

Additionally, QR_004.mbm also contains the following message three times:

Guild Card Characters#

The file InterfaceFile\GuildCardText.mbm contains two untranslated strings which imply that the game once supported Play Coins, like several other games on the 3DS. Registering characters received alongside another player's Guild Card, either via StreetPass or QR code, was intended to cost 20 Play Coins per character.

Another related string, which has been translated into English, can be found in the file InterfaceFile\FacilityAirportText.mbm:

Use 20 Game Coins to register this
character to your guild?

Of note is how the English text still refers to "Game Coins", as opposed to their equivalent English term, "Play Coins".

Test and Debug Text#

Test Quest#

TestData\Test\QUE_000.mbm appears to hold the text for a simple testing quest of some sort. It is notable that this file is numbered 000, while the quest files that are actually used, in the folder Event\Quest, are numbered starting at 001.

This file still uses the previous games' control code style, as described above.

Party Debug Menu#

Inside Debug\debug_party_help.mbm is text that appears to have been used by a party debug menu, which likely would have replaced the player's party with one of several premade ones. The party data itself seems to still exists in Debug\debug_party.tbl.

Strings number 0x09 to 0x20 have been omitted from the list above, because they are all simply the string "Party XX Dummy", where XX is the respective string's number in decimal, so, for example, "Party 9 Dummy".

Unused Items#

Equipment#

To do: Comb through equipment data & put all other relevant unused items here 1

'...But what does it mean?' This game has text or audio that needs to be translated. If you are fluent with this language, please read our translation guidelines and then submit a translation! Notes: Names/descriptions where they significantly differ from the official English translation, if it exists.

'...But does it make sense?' The translations on this page need to be proofread. If you are fluent enough in this language, please make any corrections necessary! Notes: Translation checks for the existing translations.

All data related to the equipment in the game can be found inside the files starting with equipitem inside the Item directory, mainly their names and descriptions, requirements and actual data. Among these items are many that go unused in the final game. Most of them have been dummied out by overwriting their stats with zeroes and replacing their names and descriptions with placeholders, while others have survived at least in part.

Swords

Knives

Bows

Armor

Headgear

Gloves

Boots

Shields

Accessories

Unused Graphics#

Early Title Screen#

The file Mori4stex\Debug\ig_deb_title.stex contains the Japanese title logo for an earlier version of the game, which gives the title as "世界樹の迷宮４ 伝承の巫女" ("Sekaiju no Meikyuu 4: Denshou no Miko" or roughly, based on the final English title, "Etrian Odyssey 4: Legends of the Shrine Maiden") instead of the final "世界樹の迷宮Ⅳ 伝承の巨神", or "Sekaiju no Meikyuu IV: Denshou no Kyojin".

Various Early Graphics#

Aside from the early title screen logo above, Mori4stex\Debug also contains various other early graphics, such as graphics for the title menu, UI and QR code testing, and what appears to be textures for a test map of sorts.

Alternate Battle Menu#

The file Mori4stex\Battle\Data\ig_bat_menu.stex contains most of the graphics for the battle menu, including alternate versions of the menu items. This file calls the "Burst" option "Limit", while "Item" is pluralized as "Items". Mori4stex\Battle\Data\ig_bat_menu2.stex contains the menu item graphics that are actually used.

Test Graphics#

The file Mori4stex\Effect\tool\c_k01_a.stex contains a test image of the protagonist from Persona 4 (Golden). This image can be found in various Atlus titles for 3DS.

An overlay effect used for testing, found in effect_editor\mat\test.tmx. The version seen below is a restoration of what the image should look like. The original image found in the game files is broken due to an unintentional LF→CRLF/CR→CRLF conversion, not unlike this occurrence in Pokémon Crystal. The image in its broken state can be found in Atlus titles as far back as Persona 3 Portable.

Result Screen Portraits#

Four result images unused in the game can be found under Mori4stex\Result\CharaData. The first two, for the NPCs Wiglaf and Kirjonen, are not used even if you complete a battle with them as guest party members; the last two are (identical copies of) the Guildmaster's dialogue portrait edited down in the same manner as the other result screen images. Logre's result screen image also has two identical copies in this directory.

Fonts#

Three unused fonts can still be found as font\demo_font.bcfnt, font\f09_001.tmx and TestData\font\f11_001.tmx. The first font is a rather simple ASCII font, presumably once used for debugging or testing purposes, and is in the format used by the game. The latter two fonts are images coming from Persona 4 (Golden), and can also be found in other Atlus developed 3DS games.

demo_font.bcfnt	f09_001.tmx	f11_001.tmx

Save Data Presets#

To do: Maybe make less wall-of-text-like. Also more details about file 02, once the format is better understood?

The directory SavePreset holds eight different complete sets of premade save data files, numbered from 00 to 07, as well as two files for another, incomplete set of data, numbered 15. All of these saves were presumably meant for the Japanese version of the game, but do not seem to function properly in the retail build, as the game crashes the 3DS while trying to load the save data. The files date back to between January and March 2011, over a year before the game was originally released in Japan.

Most of them are on the first day in-game (Emperor 1) and have no Guild Cards. They have very few items in their inventories, but include certain unused ones like the Test Armor, have one character per class, each of which is named after the class, and have very little in terms of maps drawn. The one area, which in most saved games has the same partially drawn map, is the Old Forest Mine, while a few other areas, depending on the save, such as the Echoing Library or the Forgotten Capital, had parts of the map automatically drawn in by the game.

Save data set 02 is probably the most noteworthy of these files, as it contains what appears to be an actual playthrough of at least part of the game. This save is on day 52 (Dormouse 25) and has a Guild Card for the player's guild, giving their name as "アトラス" (Atlus), the skyship's name as "/(^o^)\", and their message as "よろしくおねがいします". For some reason, the maximum level reached is set to 0 on this Guild Card. The characters are all between levels 28 and 55, and are named based on abbreviations of their class names, such as "ソドコ" (Sodoko) for a female Landsknecht, this class being called "ソードマン" (Swordsman) in Japanese. Also of note is that the recruitable Arcanist Wufan, or "ウーファン" in Japanese, is called "ウーフェン" (Wufen) here.

The items collected are mostly what you would expect from a normal playthrough, aside from a single item called "未使用" (unused) in the inventory on-hand; similar is true for the maps, which are not completely filled in, have various notes attached, etc., although there are no maps for the Hall of Darkness and Toxic Cave, implying that these areas have not yet been reached or visited in this save.

Finally, the map data file of the incomplete data set 15 is 124kb in size, as opposed to 88kb for all other map data files.