Localization of computer games and their adaptation for Russian players is a very difficult task. After all, it requires not only excellent knowledge of a foreign language, but also an understanding of the specifics of the game itself. Therefore, such specialists and companies will always be in demand.

Players, as a rule, "meet" already finished projects, translated and adapted. But what happens at the localization stage? We turned with questions to the All Correct Games company, which specializes in translating games from foreign languages ​​into Russian, and vice versa. Translation of games is a rather laborious work, because the success of the game depends to a large extent on how successfully the term is chosen. Experts from All Correct Games share their secrets on how a game is localized in Russia...

In this interview, you will learn what a specialist translator who localizes games needs to know, what tools and programs are used in the work of a translator, whether it is worth interacting with gaming communities, how interaction with game developers and publishers works, and much more. You will also be interested in interviews about independent developers.

Sequence of steps for localization. What are the main difficulties in localizing a multi-user project?

There are two main difficulties in localizing multi-user projects: scope and timing. As a rule, games in the MMORPG genre contain a large amount of text - from several tens to hundreds of thousands of words. Localization deadlines, although usually a few months, are often very tight, with more translators and editors involved, which means we need a lot of time to review before submitting the material. Another problem is limits. Sometimes, when translating from Chinese into Russian, we have to fit a 37-character text into an unfortunate 9, for example, the fragment "Improving the artillery of British ships" will have to turn into "GB armor +". This happens if the possibility of localizing the game is not taken into account when creating it. Dear developers, if you are reading this right now, please don't do this.

Who is on the translation team? Do you seek the help of outside experts, consultants, players who are already familiar with the game. Do you consult with gaming communities, guilds, clans when choosing the best translation?

We have an extensive database of freelance translators, from which we select a team for each project. The experience of the performers is very important! Our MMORPG games are translated by the people who play them, and we all - from the project manager to the editor - would love to get to know your game before it gets translated, so builds are very welcome. In addition, sometimes they are simply vital, for example, when it is not clear how to translate a particular game term or what vocabulary is preferable to use in a dialogue. Without context, localization will not be complete, so if the developers are unable to provide us with a build, we ask that you provide us with the maximum amount of reference materials (screenshots, character descriptions, etc.) When localizing a game with a clear historical bias, for example, about World War II war, we try to resort to the help of experts specializing in a particular period. Sometimes this is absolutely necessary in order to avoid semantic errors. For example, we recently translated such an MMORPG and managed to find and eliminate several inconsistencies, which we are very proud of.

When localizing a game with a historical bias, All Correct Games turns to experts

What technological solutions simplify localization. Are you using, say, Abbyy SmartCAT or similar products.

Of course! All translations are done by us in memoQ - our favorite tool. This translation environment allows you to divide a project between several translators and editors, who can also work on it at the same time. The undoubted advantages of using memoQ are the ability to store a translation memory database, create a glossary, and also do a lot of different checks. Therefore, the probability that an error will creep into the translated texts - from different translations of the term to an extra space - tends to zero.

Are there criteria for assessing the quality of a translation. Can you give specific examples of successful translations. Can you pick them up right away?

The criteria for evaluating the quality of a translation are quite obvious: the absence of semantic, grammatical, spelling, punctuation and other errors, as well as the observance of uniformity in the translation of terms. The last point is critical, because in the same game you may be offered to pay for purchases with diamonds, crystals, diamonds, although these are all gems. The text should be clear and short enough to comply with the aforementioned limits. Another important point is the transfer of the intentions of the original text, its specificity and style. This also includes an adequate translation of the play on words, which we always strive to preserve. It is quite obvious that style issues in game texts play a more important role than, say, in technical texts, and this must be taken into account when translating.

MemoQ is the main translation tool in All Correct Games. It allows you to share a project between several translators and editors.

Interaction with the development team at various stages of localization. How does this process take place?

Interaction with the development team is extremely important to us, but very often there is a situation where we cannot communicate directly. If there is an intermediary, for example, a localization manager from the developer company, we always hope that our questions and clarifications will arrive on time and will not slow down the localization process, but it happens that we wait for answers for several days or even weeks. In an ideal world, of course, we would like the developer to be in touch for some time during the day and not leave our questions unattended. Skype chats between developers and a team of translators and editors work very well, but it is not always possible to organize them due to various restrictions.

Does your company accept voice acting of the translation. Do you have to go through the games yourself with your own translation?

Yes, we provide voice acting for games that we translate, sometimes we also receive separate orders for voice acting of already translated material.

The question of whether to pass the games that we translate is simply not before us. We always try to do it, firstly, because we love to play, and secondly, because we can once again make sure that our work is done well. What could be nicer? Thirdly, we can also find some controversial moments in the game that can be translated in different ways, and evaluate how successful this or that translation solution was, and draw specific conclusions.

In addition, we tell all our clients about the importance of conducting localization testing after the translation of the game and offer our services in this area. After all, various types of shortcomings may appear in the game: overlapping texts with graphic elements, cropped texts, sometimes the translation may simply be absent or incorrectly “pulled up” from the lockit. Localization testing allows you to see and fix these and other localization shortcomings.

Online games (unlike offline ones) are constantly evolving - the interface is changing, new game modes, new tasks appear. You have to constantly keep the project going. Do you assign a specific group of people to a project? How are game updates localized and tested?

We have a dedicated team of translators and editors working on all projects. Even the project manager changes extremely rarely, only in the case of a person’s absence from the workplace due to vacation, illness, etc. Accordingly, when an update on the project comes to us, we involve the same people who worked on the translation of the main content. Of course, it is impossible to avoid such situations when someone from the team falls ill or leaves somewhere. In this case, we involve other trusted performers in the project, but since we are running the project in memoQ, where term bases and translation memories are stored and updated, you don’t have to worry about maintaining uniformity.

Finally, a business card for the company.

All Correct Games is a division of the All Correct Group company engaged in translation, voice acting, localization testing and localization of games.

All Correct Games works with the majority of Russian developers and publishers, as well as with the largest international game publishers. The company has been involved in the localization of over 350 games and testing of over 100 games. All Correct Games works in more than 23 language pairs, cooperates with 6 partner voiceover studios, tests on iOS, Android and PC platforms with the involvement of native speakers or Russian-speaking testers with high language competence.

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It's probably not a secret for anyone that before starting work on a new project, it is necessary to write down, together with the client, the requirements for the translated text in the terms of reference. It may sound boring, but even game texts go through this procedure, without which it is impossible to ensure high quality localization.

At this stage, we will learn about the language of translation (for example, Mexican or European Spanish), what punctuation marks and symbols are supported in the game: herringbone or straight quotes; a dash (en dash or em dash) or a hyphen, referring to the player (to "you" or "you"), and much more.

But if everything is extremely clear in these paragraphs (they just need to be followed), then there are moments that can cause doubts and questions: whether to translate the names of locations, what to do with texts on graphic elements, to transliterate or translate completely different realities encountered in the game, how to deal with wordplay and so on.

We decided to create a document in which we spelled out all the controversial points that arise in the process of translation between the developer and the localizer, where we also provided arguments and illustrative examples that would allow us to speak in detail about any changes in the text.

Typically, such documents are compiled and provided by developers for localizers, but we, frankly, went the other way. We have collected all our desire to build mutual understanding with customers and directed it in the right direction. This is how our first collection of recommendations General Localization Guideline appeared, on which our team worked hard for about a year. In the future, we plan to implement it on all our game projects for various companies.

What is this document?

So, we have covered the following “acute”, in our opinion, moments:

• completeness of localization (translation of proper names, names of interface elements, translation of game terms, word play, connection of completeness of localization with scoring);
• the influence of untranslated and transliterated words on the understanding of the text;
• level of English language proficiency in Russia;
• terms of reference for project localization and uniformity of the translated text;
• translation of existing realities;
• translation of texts on the graphic elements of the game.

From the points above, it can be seen that we have tried to consider the topic of localization completeness from all possible angles, explore issues related to other stages of localization, and even reflect the peculiarities of the Russian gaming community.

So, if we talk about a document that briefly spells out the rules and guidelines that specialists in various fields must follow in their work, then we probably went a little further and created a serious turnkey document. Let's take a look at some of the points in this document.

Completeness of localization

We tried to support each item with the rules and standards described in authoritative reference books for translators. For example, we used the following sources:

• IGDA. Best Practices for Game Localization
• Milchin A.E., Cheltsova I.K. Directory of publisher and author. Editorial and publishing design of the publication. M.: 2014
• GOST 7.36-2006. Unpublished translation. General requirements and registration rules
• Heather Maxwell Chandler. The Game Localization Handbook. Hingham, 2005

In these sources, we found confirmation that names and surnames must necessarily be transcribed either “taking into account the prevailing in the language and history. literature of tradition”, or close to a foreign sound.

Geographical names should also remain in the target language, if there are such points on the map.

The same is the case with "speaking" names and nicknames: they must be translated, in extreme cases transliterated:

It's no secret that the game interface and game terms are also of great importance, so buttons, signs, window names, race track names - everything must be in the target language, otherwise the impression of the game may be spoiled.

Wordplay and various references to fictional works is a real creative challenge for a localizer, and it's a real achievement when you manage to convey such moments in the game in the target language. Therefore, when we see the requirement to leave everything in English (which is not so common, but still), we, frankly, get upset. In our experience, and according to the feedback of the players, such moments must be translated and transmitted. Here are some player responses to the question of what good localization is:

• "The play on words has been adapted into Russian, as well as various well-established expressions."
• "Well-chosen voices for the characters, emotional coloring and puns to the place."
• “When translators are “in the know”, translation, puns, cultural references to something (if any in games) are adequately conveyed and adapted for a Russian-speaking player. In voicing, first of all - intonation.
• "A well-translated pun or idiom that retains its meaning."

Level of knowledge of English

Another reason why we insist on the full localization of games and talk about it in a separate paragraph in the document is the level of English proficiency in Russia. We have already given the statistics of our poll "What is a good localization?" among the players (link), where they talked about the fact that most of the audience assesses their level of English proficiency as “below average”.

The same data is provided to us by one of the largest rankings in the world, EF EPI, which annually collects and publishes research on English language proficiency among citizens of various countries. Russia is in 36th place among the assessed countries, of which there are 63 in total, and has an index of 50.43, which is assessed as a low level by the standards of this methodology. In general, this level allows the player to understand simple phrases and names in the game, however, it can interfere with catching puns and understanding some complex constructions and references.

And the players themselves write about the impact of untranslated text on understanding and passing the game. What do they usually refer to as signs of poor localization?

• "Spelling and punctuation errors, loss (or replacement) of meaning in translation, cut parts of the text, untranslated text and DLC."
• "Monotonous reading of the text, strong distortion of phrases, untranslated pieces of text, dialogues of dubious quality."
• “The monotony and inexpressiveness of the voices of the actors. Untranslated text. Poor literary style.

Communication with voice acting

Voice acting is another quite obvious reason to translate everything. Players, having heard remarks in which Russian text alternates with untranslated names of locations and achievements, will at best change the voice acting language. There is a relationship between the translation and voice acting of the game, and such a voice acting option can interfere with the player, not to mention that he is unlikely to understand anything from mixing English-Russian phrases. But we also found out in due time that voice acting plays a very important role, and for most players it is a decisive factor when choosing a game.

Translation of realities

The next interesting point that we highlighted is the translation of existing realities. What about car brands, aircraft models, institution names, and many other similar names found in games? This paragraph is perhaps the only one that stands out from the general concept of the document, because in the case of foreign brands in some cases (car brands, musical works) it is allowed to leave such terms without translation.

So, for example, the names of motorcycles in games can remain in the original language:

However, as for Russian realities, they must be left in their native language, which is logical, because these realities appeared in Russia:

As a recommendation to this point, we suggested compiling a full glossary before starting localization (or during the translation of the first texts) in order to write down and discuss such points with the developers and involve experts in the discussion, if necessary.

Translation of graphic elements

Another difficulty lies in the translation of graphic elements. The fact is that often at the development stage, various images containing textual information (for example, maps) are created in a non-editable format, and it is not possible to localize the text. There is still an option with redrawing, but if this stage is not planned in advance, it can be difficult to squeeze this task into the process.

Thus, the only recommendation that we made for the customer at this particular point was to plan for such moments in the early stages of development (creating editable graphic elements or planning a redraw with its inclusion in the game budget).

Conclusion

Someone thinks that the creation of such documents in order to convey to the customer the features of Russian localization is a waste of time. We see this as a huge potential and an opportunity to build the right relationship between the localizer and the developer during the creation of a new game.

As a result, we got a detailed document, in which we covered a wide range of issues related to the completeness of the localization of games. Of course, for the customer, we also gave many examples from specific projects we worked on, thanks to which the document did not turn into another theoretical guide. Fortunately, we were heard by the developers of the company for which the document was created.

We work with game publishers and developers. We localize mobile, desktop, console, browser, and board games into more than 70 languages.

All translations are done by professional translators who are native speakers and have experience working on games.

We provide language testing, voiceover, localization quality assessment, and proofreading services.

Localization of computer games: process

The following is the optimal games localization process:

1. You create a game localization project on a cloud platform (Crowdin , Transifex, SmartCAT, Oneskyapp) and then upload the string resource files for your game (iOS .strings, Android .xml, .po, .resx, etc. - the platforms support all commonly used formats, including Excel spreadsheets).

   If you do not want to work with an online platform yourself, just attach files to the order form. We will use our own Alconost LMS platform or other professional tools for localization;

2. Then write to us at [email protected] website or submit a preliminary order. Provide a link to your cloud platform project and a link to your game on Google Play or the App Store so that our translators will be able to install and play it so that they can familiarize themselves with it. If you have not yet officially released your game, you can grant others access to your development version for the App Store using Testflight, and you can send the current build for your Google Play app by submitting the .apk file;
3. Alconost will assign a personal localization project manager to your project. He will ask questions, request that you fill out an questionnaire form, help you make a glossary (if you don't yet have one), calculate the cost, monitor deadlines, and help you throughout the project;
4. The manager will pick a team consisting of the most suitable translators and invite them to work on your project. Every translator installs the game, becomes familiar with the gameplay, gets a feel for the game's atmosphere, and gains an understanding of what needs to be translated;
5. String resources are translated into the cloud platform. This tool allows the translator to ask a question about any string if, for example, he doesn't understand the context. The platform is also equipped with a translation memory and a glossary, which ensures that repeated terms and phrases are all translated the same way.
6. A second translator will proofread the translation for any possible errors and typos and will check the accuracy of the translation.
7. When the translation is ready, you can download the localized string resources from the platform and compile a build with the localized language versions. By using the CLI (command line interface) on the localization platform, you can automate the compilation of localized versions;
8. Translators or testers play the localized version of the game, and they check to ensure that the localized strings are displayed correctly. Errors are either corrected immediately, or they are reported directly to developers in the bug tracker.
9. To ensure rapid communication, we use dedicated channels in Slack or work directly in the developer's project management system.

continuous localization

By using online platforms, you can adopt a localization process whereby your app will be fully localized at the time of release, and all future updates will also be localized when they go live. This works in approximately the following way:

1. The programmer or game designer adds a new string to the game's resources file.
2. The updated resources file is sent to the localization platform automatically (using the API or command line utility). The translator will immediately see the new text.
3. The translator translates the new string.
4. before the next build is compiled, the updated translations are automatically taken from the platform;
5. Thus, each time the game is compiled the localizations are 100% ready, and the update process is not held up because you are waiting to receive translated resources.

Alternative game localization scenarios

In reality, the process of localizing computer games may differ from the ideal scenario.

Often the developer may want to use Excel or Google Sheets for handling string resources. A second translator/editor may be unnecessary for projects with a tight budget. Sometimes you may not want to order testing (for example, if the game has not yet been released).

At Alconost we can work with any type of order, format or process. For example, you can simply send us the string resource files (Localizable.strings, Strings.xml, .po, etc.) by e-mail, and we ourselves will upload them to the platform, translate them, and return the localized resources to you by email.

Write to us, describe your situation, and we will help you localize your game.

Localization of small games and translation of updates

If your game contains only a little text, or if you are planning to localize it on your own, have a look at Nitro - an online translation service . You can place an order with Nitro in just a few clicks, whenever it's convenient for you, without the need for a manager.

However, it is easier to submit a price quote request with your attached files, and we will calculate the cost ourselves.

Linguistic testing

We conduct localization testing as follows.

When a localized build is compiled, the localizing translator or the native language tester plays the game for the required amount of time and takes screenshots of problem areas (that have not been translated or where translated strings are too long, where there are incorrect encodings, where the text flows in the wrong direction, contextual interpretation errors, etc.).

The tester creates records for all detected errors in the developer project management system (Jira, Trello, Asana) and makes the necessary changes to the string resources either independently or in cooperation with the developer.

The cost of localization testing is calculated on the basis of the tester's hourly rate and the time needed for testing.

We are able to test games on the following platforms: iOS, Android, Windows, MacOS, Xbox, PlayStation (Ps3, Ps4), and Nintendo (3DS).

Translation memories

The translation memory is a database that stores the source language text of each segment together with its translation. The translation memory allows you to automate the translation of repeated words, phrases, and sentences.

Translation memory allows you to:

• Increase the performance of the translation team
• Ensure the use of consistent terminology throughout the entire text
• Improve the quality of translation
• Replace translators partway through the project
• Save time translating repetitions

Thus, if your game is released at the same time, for example, on iOS and Android, and string resources that are 90% matches are available for the new strings, then the matching strings will be inserted automatically and you will not have to pay for them.

glossary

A glossary is a special dictionary with definitions, translations and usage examples for terms used in a text. This dictionary can be imported into an automatic translation tool to expedite the translation process and ensure consistency of terminology across one or more texts.

A glossary makes it possible to assign several translators to a project and change translators around during the process if necessary.

If your game does not yet have a glossary, we will help you compile one.

Localization of games, audio and video content, and graphics

At Alconost, we not only create promos and video trailers for games, but we also localize video and audio content. If your project needs voiceovers in a new language, or you need to rerecord the character voices, or you need to localize a video or redraw the graphics—we know exactly how to get it done.

Tools that we use for game translation and localization

CAT Tools - programs that help automate the translation process

• MemoQ
• Memsource
• SDL Trados
• SDL Passolo
• OmegaT
• Sisulizer
• Poedit

Cloud platforms for localization:

• SmartCAT
• WebtranslateIt
• Transifex
• OneSky
• localise.com

project manager

With Alconost, your localization project will be run by a dedicated project manager, who:

• Studies your material and the specific features of the text in depth
• Agrees on the price, taking repetitions into consideration
• Chooses a team of translators and editors with the necessary specialisms;
• Controls deadlines;
• Takes care of quality, formatting and consistency of the completed translations
• Maintains the glossary and translation memory
• Organizes linguistic testing
• Prepares all the accompanying documents (agreement, invoice, PO) if necessary
• Is available practically 24/7 to answer any of your questions

Your Project Manager is your “single point of contact” with whom you can resolve all your questions regarding the project. If your project manager becomes unavailable for some reason, another manager will replace them straight away at the same address.

Appointing translators

We have approximately 300 professional native-speaker translators in our team, with a broad range of specialisms.

We always try to assign one dedicated translator to your project and work specifically with this translator on a continuous basis. This is useful if you have a large project that is periodically updated, you need to use consistent terminology, or you simply like a particular translator"s style. If the translator changes for some reason, they will hand over the glossary and translation memory to the new translator to ensure consistency of terminology and style in future updates.

Crowdin is our recommended translation management platform

Cloud-based translation platform Crowdin allows localization projects to be managed in real time. You can:

• Upload string resources in any format (.resx, .po, .strings, etc.) either manually or through the API
• Appoint translators and editors
• You can monitor the translation or editing of your project in real time
• Exchange comments with the translator or editor on any open issues
• Create glossaries
• Manage what is added to the translation memory and how it is used
• Export string resources once the translation is complete

Which languages ​​should you localize your game into first

We have analyzed the number of native speakers who are Internet users, the general volume of online sales, and Google Play revenue in particular by region. As a result, we have obtained the following top 5 languages ​​for localization:

• English – United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia
• Chinese - China (Simplified Chinese) and Taiwan (Traditional Chinese)
• Japanese-Japan
• French - France, Canada, and Belgium
• German-Germany and Belgium

More

We offer the following services in addition to the localization of mobile apps:

• A judgment on whether the name of your game is appropriate in the target language (as determined by a native speaker)
• Creating trailers for app pages on the App Store or Google Play
• Preparing a series of short videos in different languages ​​to post on advertising networks
• Hiring professional voice actors who are native speakers to provide voiceovers for your game characters

Recently, the gaming industry has become an integral part of our lives, and along with the growth of the interactive entertainment market share in our country, the importance of such a phenomenon as localization is also growing. If, for example, with films in this regard, things are more or less acceptable, then with games it's a real disaster.

But there are people who are not indifferent to the current situation. About them and will be discussed further.

Sense of beauty

Unlike a movie, which not everyone can watch in the original, in the game you can enjoy the process itself without really delving into the details of the plot. This is what publishers use, saving on new frames and depriving the opportunity to enjoy those unfortunate people who are not indifferent to the plot component.
We see Russian versions of low-quality trash on the shelves, which are bought in batches by girls and boys indifferent to the “beautiful”, but not all world-class masterpieces are worthy of translation. That is, it is not enough for a masterpiece to simply be a masterpiece, it must be popular, and its localization should not cause too many headaches.
Many do not care about this problem, partly because their tastes coincide with the interests of publishers. And on the PC, where the bulk of the consumer audience has accumulated, the situation is an order of magnitude better than on consoles. But we will not be specific and will take into account games in general, regardless of the platform.

Army of enthusiasts

For a long time there have been people, groups, and what there - entire communities that devote their free time to amateur localization. Of course, today the threshold for entering this craft has dropped so much that this multitude of enthusiasts is almost entirely composed of half-educated schoolchildren. But even in this haystack you can find your own needles - some of these figures cannot but inspire respect, sometimes outperforming even the official localizers in all respects.
Many of us literally grew up on unofficial localizations - pirated or amateur. For example, until some time I did not see any official translation at all. And, remembering those times, I can say that individual creations cannot be called anything other than masterpieces - megabytes of the translated text could be read like a book if they were bound. Can the same be said about official translations? I think only in exceptional cases.
So what is it that distinguishes the creation of an enthusiast from a product of production? The voice of reason tells me that the amateur is inferior to the professional in all respects, because he is ... an amateur. In general, in most cases this is what happens, but… if we immediately discard all the stupid self-taught and leave only promising start-ups, then an interesting fact opens up: indeed, many of the fan-made localizations are superior to commercial ones in almost all criteria.

The reasons are mostly banal and obvious - if you do something with love, then the result will be appropriate. But let's put aside subjective assumptions for a while and look at things impartially.

So who's tougher?

Further in the text, I slightly combined the concepts of "amateur", "fan" and "amateur" in order to avoid excessive tautology. Consider the advantages and disadvantages of a more or less competent fan over a professional who is indifferent to the game.

So, the advantages of an amateur translator:

But let's not forget about the disadvantages:

Third side?

Surely many people thought that I forgot about another type of localization - pirated translations. But, in this situation, I would classify them as amateur, although the word “fan” is far from being applied to every pirate.

In any case, they are in every way closer to this path than to any kind of officialism. Of course, looking at the level of organization of some well-known offices, one can challenge their status as non-professionals, but this did not come right away - everyone started somewhere. In addition, there were often cases when amateurs made translations commissioned by pirate companies. As a rule, such offices did not have a staff responsible for localization.
Another argument in favor of the amateurish nature of pirates is the profit for translation activities - it is ridiculous. Undoubtedly, there are more successful, "wealthy" pirates, but these are isolated cases.

conclusions

Both the amateur and the official approach have their weaknesses. But, despite the huge number of disadvantages of amateur translation, I find its advantages much more significant. This gives me the right to believe that in many ways amateur translations are superior to official localizations (not always, but as a fact). After all, if official localizers and publishers paid attention to those nuances that amateurs are so busy with, then such a comparison would not have to be made.
But if you think about it: how great it would be to improve the qualifications of amateurs, depriving them of the shortcomings described above, and put them into production! But, no matter how much you argue, it will remain just another utopian dream.

Please note that all this is just my view of the current situation in our country, which does not claim to be a common truth or an authoritative opinion.

For sale in a new region or country. Localization includes translating from the original language into a foreign language, changing the art of the game, creating new zipped files and help guides, recording new audio files, converting hardware, changing individual pieces of the game according to the cultural characteristics of a certain region, adding additional areas to move the cut content.

Screenshot from translated Prince of Persia game on Sega Genesis

The decision to localize is made based on economic factors, such as the potential revenue that a certain region can bring. Localization is usually handled either by the developers, or third party companies with whom a contract is drawn up, or independent companies that create an alternative localization or localization of a game that has not been presented in the region. The quality of localization may vary depending on the professionalism of localizers or the difficulties associated with the attempts of development companies to avoid premature leaks of games to the market.

The goal of localization is to create an enjoyable and convenient gaming experience for the end user that takes into account the cultural characteristics of their region, but adheres to the original concept of the game.

Story

The first experience of localizing computer games dates back to the 1980s, when the developers of the Japanese game Pac-Man transliterated the name into English - Puck Man, but when the game was released in the United States, they decided to return the original name due to fear that the word Pack can be distorted as an obscene word.

An important challenge in early localizations was to deal with the limited amount of space available to handle text strings that were longer than in the original games, as was often the case with the NES and SNES. Ted Woolsey, translator Final Fantasy VI, talked about the need to constantly shorten the text in English due to limited opportunities.

Often the budget and production time of localizations were small, as a result of which there was either confusion with the translations, or the translation text had to be rewritten. Advances in technology in the early 2000s led to the ability to expand text to be stored in ASCII format rather than in image format, as was the case before, allowing for more efficient processing and more economical use of disk space to accommodate text. The development of audio technology has led to the creation of foreign language scoring and dubbing.

Currently, there is a significant increase in the amount of text and dialogue in localization, especially in multiplayer games.

Localization process

The localization process is carried out in the following order:

Translation

To perform text translation of games with a large amount of text, first of all, a glossary of game terms is created so that there is no confusion between commonly used words and words with a local meaning. Then a visual graphic is created, overlaid with the translation text made in the font used in the original game. If the game uses the original font, a similar font is created separately for the alphabet used in localization. Depending on the visual component of the game and the features in the program code, programmers (most often in amateur studios) can make changes to the software or create separate files for ease of translation. When compiling a translation, the localizer takes into account the peculiarities of the language of the region, the traditional rules of transcription and pronunciation from other languages, the official translation of the original source of the game, if any, as well as the well-established words, phrases or terms from the game among its fans. Localization and translation can be carried out both with active interaction with the developer, and independently, depending on the desire of the developer.

When translating by localizers, the following nuances are taken into account:

The unofficial translation of games differs from the official one in less limited deadlines, more rigorous translation based on the canonical history of the game, but at the same time more technically difficult to perform due to licensing problems and the lack of an open source game for a more convenient localization process, more free translation of phrases with frequently used slang and obscene language, as well as partial or complete absence of literary style.

The most difficult thing in translation is the adaptation of puns and established expressions, the identification of cultural references and their translation with the appropriate transmission of intonation during dubbing, the selection of dubbing actors with voices similar to the voices of the original, the transfer of emotional color, the transfer of accent (an unknown regional accent in the country of localization, for example, Scottish, usually not transmitted). Typical errors in translation are spelling and punctuation errors, loss or replacement of meaning in translation, cut out parts of the text, untranslated text and additional content, monotonous reading of the text, strong distortion of phrases, untranslated pieces of text, poor quality dialogues, monotony and inexpressive voices of actors, untranslated text, weak or no literary style.

Voice acting

Before voicing the translated material, a working group is created for specializations: project manager, dubbing director, sound engineer, sound engineer, engineers and testers. The translated text fits under the original audio files. The text materials previously sent by the developer are calculated and compared with the final material. After the final dubbing of the original and the receipt of the finished material, the actors are selected. The selection takes place in two ways: live listening or search in the base of voices. Live listening most often takes place with the participation of a representative of the developer through a remote video link. The voices are selected from a database of previous projects, the actors are invited to the studio, samples are recorded based on the original and sent to the developer for approval, after which the dubbing begins. Translation and dubbing most often occur in parallel with the production of the game, so localizers are often forced to adapt to the developer if he changes something in the production process, and rewrite lines according to the changes. After the end of dubbing, the dubbed phrases are stacked under the facial expressions of the characters and the resulting audio track is mixed with the original soundtrack. The finished material is sent for testing to identify errors and defects, after which, if necessary, they are finalized and sent to the customer.

Board game localization process

In board games, the bulk of the text is contained in the reference manual, so the translation is barely cut to convey the full meaning of the tutorials. The translation of the text of the game itself, on the contrary, may undergo reduction or selection of synonyms of words of similar length in order to fit the text into a limited visual element. First, the source text is translated, then the finished text is edited, after which the layout and re-editing takes place, after which the localization is ready.

Also, when localizing a board game, it is important to organize production and, possibly, adjust the quality of the components to the income of the potential public.

Localization of games in Russia

Localizations of computer games for home computers are known, which became widespread at the turn of the 1990s in the USSR and in the post-Soviet space.

Localization of foreign computer games in Russia was carried out by computer pirates in small studios from 1995 to 2005, which worked on an illegal basis. The most famous such studio was Fargus Multimedia. Localizations made by such studios were often of poor quality. Translation could be subjected not only to the text in the game, but also the name of the game itself. The names of Chinese hardware clones of Japanese game consoles were also translated, such as NES (Dendy).

The need for localization in Russia, unlike many other countries, is caused by the fact that the level of English proficiency among Russians is very low and does not allow them to fully perceive games in the original language. The most well-known professional localizer of video games in Russia is the SoftClub company, whose share in the CIS market in 2014 was 80%.

There were also localizations of board games in the 1990s. One of the first localized games was Monopoly, which was called Manager in Russia. In 1990, the Soviet game Enchanted Country was released, based on the Polish version of the American board game Dungeons & Dragons. In the late 1990s, there were many amateur translators of board games, among them Alexander Petrunin, who was the first to translate for the Igroved board game store.

Currently, a full-fledged localization of board games is being carried out, taking into account the traditional features of the Russian language and the national characteristics of the region. Some board games are translated even based on individual works in the country of localization. Localization is carried out either by full-time translators and layout designers of the developer company, or by third-party companies in the country of localization.

Notes

1. O'Hagan and Mangiron, p. 111
2. Bernal Merino 2008
3. O'Hagan and Mangiron, p. 49
4. Kohler 2005, p. 226
5. Corliss 2007
6. O'Hagan and Mangiron, page 58