It is an era of digitalization. Digitalization has increased the use of the internet. Generation X and Generation Y grew up in the age of information technology and they are prone to use the internet in everyday life. Millennial use the internet on their mobiles. The increase in the use of the internet on mobile phones has increased the number of apps used in the smartphone. No doubt game localization is a cumbersome job and it doesn’t have to reap results rapidly but still, game localization is indispensable. To be a part of digitalization, game localization is very important. Game localization has to follow different localization stages. Let’s see different localization stages.
Localization not required.
A game is in its original language can be used in all the regions.
Portfolio Localization.
In portfolio localization, all the manuals are translated in the local language first and then the game is translated later.
Limited Localization
In this type of localization words of the game is translated only. The audio is not localized to save money from employing the people for translating all the audios in the game. Subtitles are used to reimburse it.
Absolute localization
In this type of localization, the entire game is translated into the native language. This type of localization is very expensive and is considered by the giant mobile game companies.
Importance of game localization
Research showed that the biggest market of mobile game localization doesn’t speak English. 50% of the companies which are on the top 10 downloads in the digitalized world don’t speak English. The largest market of game apps doesn’t speak English.
Featured apps are created on the iOS store when the application is localized.
To have a competitive advantage in this digital world, app localization is very important.
The future of digitalization and globalization lies in localization.
After looking at the importance of Game Localization let’s check the right language for Localization.
The top 10 languages for gamer localization other than English are
French
Spanish
Japanese
German
Italian
Russian
Sensing the tiring feelings about localization of the mobile game app. You need not worry. Let’s have a look at the important steps for the developer for an outstanding translation of the app.
Initial requirements and preparations
- The interface of the app should be user-friendly so that the app which is used the first time is easily understood.
- The application of the app should be precise and accurate.
- The formatting of App should make it fit in the mobile.
- Preparation should be done beforehand to avoid bad scenarios.
The decision of the language
Successful apps are those apps that are reachable to a wider audience so the developer needs to decide which language to use for localization. Apps can be localized in the languages which are mentioned above.
There are some problems in making decisions regarding language for localization of the app.
- Are you able to reach the wider gaming audience by localizing your game to a specific language?
- Is the language which you selected for localization is profitable?
- Can you have a competitive edge using localization?
- Many logical tools are available to overcome these problems that any developer can face while translating the mobile game app.
Hiring a Professional Translation company for Game localization
Game localization can be done by using different methods. You can hire a Professional Translation company or a competent game translator. It is not important to hire the same translator which is handling other translation projects. Many professionals are competent in-game translation. These translators are local speakers of the area and attracting them for your game translation is the best decision. The translator needs to get used to the path of the game before starting the translation of the game.
Designating the Project Manager
Once the translation team is formed, the next process is to designate a project manager. The project manager acts as a communicator between the client and the translator so designating the project manager is very important.
Caption or Audio
Two ways of translating the games can be followed by selecting the audio files of the game. Many clients give importance to audio and choose the pleasant music or audio for the game while others don’t want to spend money on the audio so they use caption or subtitles while doing localization. This process is fast than recording the audio in the local language
Yielding Time
Translation takes time and cannot be done rapidly. The developer of the game needs to be available for the translator’s queries. At first, the translator will find difficulty in understanding the game and finds it a cumbersome task. A rational time should be given to the translator on a day to day basis. It is essential to note how many words translator can translate daily. It will help both the game maker and the translator to know about the estimated time which will be taken in the process of translation of the entire game.
Disassociation of Text from the Source Code
The text which appears on the game needs to be translated separately. It is a very pivotal task that needs to be done very safely. Hard coding the text in the source code should be avoided. After that, you need to create a glossary list, which plays an important role in the localization of the game app. Context also holds importance in-game translation so it is important to give the full context of the game to the translator to avert any misunderstanding of the word.
Final Verdict
For hiring a Professional Translation company once need to make a very rational decision. If you are a small developer and you don’t have much money for the translation of video games than you just need to translate games in one language and check the results. If you don’t get your games translated than you will miss 75% of the market worldwide. Google and Android are of the view that if you localize your game, it will increase your installs. Localization of games will make your global audience at ease so what are you waiting for just hire a Professional Game Localizer
