Alexander O. Smith

Alexander O. Smith, also known as Alex Smith, is the main localization specialist and translator behind many of the games of the Ivalice Alliance in the Final Fantasy series. Apart from his works in Final Fantasy XII, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, and Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, he was involved in the localization of Final Fantasy X and X-2, as well as in many other works in video gaming and manga.

Bio[]

Born in Vermont, Smith obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Asian Studies from Dartmouth College/Keio University in 1995, and a Master of Arts degree in Classical Japanese Literature from Harvard University in 1998. He began working for video game designer Square Co., Ltd. in the late 1990s, working as part of the localization team for several games, including Final Fantasy VIII, Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon 2, Front Mission 3, and Parasite Eve 2.

In 1999, he worked as the main English translator for Vagrant Story. Reviewers noted the high quality of the English script, in which Smith utilized various anachronistic English idioms and slang that distinguished the game from its straightforward Japanese counterpart. In addition to working as a translator for Square Enix, Smith has worked for Bowne Global Solutions, where he was contracted to work on several other video game localizations, including Bloody Roar 3, Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter, and Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney.

Works in the Series[]