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<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><title>all your base are belong to us</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="../../jargon.css" type="text/css"/><meta name="generator" content="DocBook XSL Stylesheets V1.61.0"/><link rel="home" href="../index.html" title="The Jargon File"/><link rel="up" href="../A.html" title="A"/><link rel="previous" href="All-hardware-sucks--all-software-sucks-.html" title="All hardware sucks, all software sucks."/><link rel="next" href="alpha-geek.html" title="alpha geek"/></head><body><div class="navheader"><table width="100%" summary="Navigation header"><tr><th colspan="3" align="center">all your base are belong to us</th></tr><tr><td width="20%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="All-hardware-sucks--all-software-sucks-.html">Prev</a> </td><th width="60%" align="center">A</th><td width="20%" align="right"> <a accesskey="n" href="alpha-geek.html">Next</a></td></tr></table><hr/></div><dt><a id="all-your-base-are-belong-to-us"/><dt xmlns="" id="all-your-base-are-belong-to-us"><b>all your base are belong to us</b></dt></dt><dd><p> A declaration of victory or superiority. The phrase stems from a
1991 adaptation of Toaplan's &#8220;<span class="quote">Zero Wing</span>&#8221; shoot-'em-up arcade
game for the Sega Genesis game console. A brief introduction was added to
the opening screen, and it has what many consider to be the worst
Japanese-to-English translation in video game history. The introduction
shows the bridge of a starship in chaos as a Borg-like figure named CATS
materializes and says, &#8220;<span class="quote">How are you gentlemen!! All your base are
belong to us.</span>&#8221; [sic] In 2001, this amusing mistranslation spread
virally through the Internet, bringing with it a slew of JPEGs and a movie
of hacked photographs, each showing a street sign, store front, package
label, etc. hacked to read &#8220;<span class="quote">All your base are belong to us</span>&#8221; or
one of the other many supremely dopey lines from the game (such as
&#8220;<span class="quote">Somebody set up usthe bomb!!!</span>&#8221; or &#8220;<span class="quote">What
happen?</span>&#8221;). When these phrases are used properly, the overall effect
is both screamingly funny and somewhat chilling, reminiscent of the B movie
&#8220;<span class="quote">They Live</span>&#8221;.</p><p>The original has been generalized to &#8220;<span class="quote">All your X are belong to
us</span>&#8221;, where X is filled in to connote a sinister takeover of some
sort. Thus, &#8220;<span class="quote">When Joe signed up for his new job at Yoyodyne, he had
to sign a draconian NDA. It basically said: All your code are belong to
us.</span>&#8221; Has many of the connotations of &#8220;<span class="quote">Resistance is futile;
you will be assimilated</span>&#8221; (see
<a href="../B/Borg.html"><i class="glossterm">Borg</i></a>). Considered silly, and most likely to be used
by the type of person that finds <a href="../J/Jeff-K-.html"><i class="glossterm">Jeff K.</i></a>
hilarious.</p></dd><div class="navfooter"><hr/><table width="100%" summary="Navigation footer"><tr><td width="40%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="All-hardware-sucks--all-software-sucks-.html">Prev</a> </td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="u" href="../A.html">Up</a></td><td width="40%" align="right"> <a accesskey="n" href="alpha-geek.html">Next</a></td></tr><tr><td width="40%" align="left" valign="top">All hardware sucks, all software sucks. </td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="h" href="../index.html">Home</a></td><td width="40%" align="right" valign="top"> alpha geek</td></tr></table></div></body></html>