When the classic Q*Bert character dies, he says something that sounds like an alien language:
What is he supposed to be saying, exactly?
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4 Answers
According to the Wikipedia article on Q*Bert:
[Audio engineer David] Thiel was tasked with using the synthesizer to produce English phrases for the game. However, he was unable to create coherent phrases and chose to string together random phonemes. Thiel also felt the incoherent speech was a good fit for the "@!#?@!" in Q*bert's speech balloon.
answered Mar 19, 2013 at 20:26
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Given that there's speech found elsewhere in the game (including complex multi-syllable speech like "Hello", "I'm Turned On", "Bye-Bye!") this answer makes no sense.– ValorumCommented Jan 8, 2017 at 15:13
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youtu.be/HKIbhaQfs-A to hear "hello, i'm turned on." Not exactly coherent. Commented Jan 8, 2017 at 15:24
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2@Valorum - So...you say that this being incoherent makes no sense, then post an answer saying essentially the same thing?– JohnPCommented Jun 28, 2018 at 14:22
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1@Valorum - Question - "What is Q*Bert saying?" Kyle - "Incoherent speech" Valorum "Garbled nonsense". Same answer, and neither references grawlix.– JohnPCommented Jun 28, 2018 at 14:42
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3
According to the original game manual (describing the process of installing your arcade cabinet), when Q*Bert is killed he emits
"Garbled Nonsense Speech".
Long story short, he's rudely cursing his fate.
The nonsense characters in the word balloon are known as "Grawlix", a term coined by Beetle Bailey creator Mort Walker, and are used in comics to denote sour language. The "garbled nonsense speech" is the game's own version of bleeping out the bad words. Cartoons will also use nonsense sounds to cover up the bad words, like the dolphin calls in Spongebob's "Sailor Mouth" to cover the sentence enhancers.
"One of the most unique aspects of Qbert was its implied swearing when players sent poor Qbert to his doom. What he's actually saying has never been revealed, but I'm sure anyone would curse their luck if a snake knocked them off a floating pile of blocks."
answered Jun 28, 2018 at 12:32
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Do you have a source for this? The game manual seems to disagree. Commented Jun 28, 2018 at 12:36
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1The grawlix in the word balloon are a universal symbol in comics, and the link is one of many descriptions of the term and its origin. The game manual describes it as garbled nonsense, and tactfully does not specify that it's a stand-in for bad words. It doesn't mean any SPECIFIC curse words, nor does almost any use of the symbols, unless used in association with LeetSpeak, as in "$#!+" Commented Jun 28, 2018 at 13:05
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You said in comics, sure, that does not mean it has the same intentions in Qbert. Unless you have evidence, I see no reason to believe that is the case. Commented Jun 28, 2018 at 13:11
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1"The character Qbert became known for his "swearing", an incoherent phrase of synthesized speech generated by the sound chip and a speech balloon of nonsensical characters that appear when he collides with an enemy." - Wiki entry - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qbert Commented Jun 28, 2018 at 13:40
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3Just out of curiosity, are you aware of some use of the grawlix where it DOESN"T mean implied swearing that caused you to so vehemently question the reference? Commented Jun 28, 2018 at 13:46
I think he is saying "oh crap" or "bad luck" as I have searched it up many times and it sounds like something he would say as "@!)*&@" means hello in his language.
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4Welcome to SFF! This seems to contradict the accepted answer so may not be true. However, if you have any evidence to back up your claims this would be a good answer! Therefore, I encourage you to edit them in.– TheLethalCarrot ♦Commented Jun 28, 2018 at 11:40