Save Money, Time and Nerves: Four Secrets to Successful Localization
By: Allcorrect Blog
Tags: Game Design, Localization, Game Development, Translation

Sooner or later, many developers come to the realization that they will have to reach new markets if they want to boost their profits. If you’ve just started considering this, then our article will help you avoid many problems and pitfalls that arise along this difficult journey. And if you’re not sure yet whether trying to conquer new horizons is worth it, we recommend checking out our study of the return on investment for localization.

Secret # 1. Preparation is Your Best Friend

The secret to success lies in the fact that localization quality rests primarily on the shoulders of the developers, not the localizers. That’s right. Sounds outrageous, but it’s true. It’s not as simple as handing all the in-game text over for translation, then adding it to the game to rake in the piles of cash coming from this new market. First and foremost, you must prepare thoroughly, which take several steps: localization workflow planning, completing localization engineering, and creating effective communication channels between the development and localization teams.

Secret # 2. The Plan is Everything

Let’s start with planning the workflow. It’s no news to hear that the result of any activity largely depends on proper planning, and localization is no exception. It is necessary to factor in many important points from start to finish, such as making the project charter, planning out your time (not only for localization, but for the prep work too), appointing responsible parties and calculating the risks. Remember that risks come in all manner of shapes and sizes, from technical issues to overlooking cultural context. For example, if you need a Chinese translation, under no circumstance can you plan a project start date for February, since China has a long holiday season during this month. Finding contractors native speakers will be quite difficult, and if you happen to locate someone, they’ll come at significant cost.

Secret # 3. How to Keep the Text from Getting Lost?

The next step is to perform the localization engineering. In other words, you must resolve the project’s technical issues: select the plugins for exporting/importing the text, databases and fonts. Plugins must ensure that the text (stored in a organized database) is replaced with the right translation. Font also plays an important role. It determines the line lengths and translation limits, but must still look nice in aesthetic sense and be easy to read. Many problems that stem from points can be identified through what is referred to as pseudo-localization. For this, you use any machine translation program (even Google Translate will do) to translate the entire text into the target language, then try uploading the results into a build of the game. This will help you ascertain whether the target language is supported and if the text fits in the interface. Then you can make decisions as needed to extend the text areas, set line limits, order a new font and so on.

Important: No one except the developer should notice the quality of the source text. So, the engineering must include additional proofreads of the original, with a special focus on consistent use of terminology, which will help avoid issues when translating into other languages. For example, there have been instances where the original text referred to “boosters”, “bonuses” and “enhancers”, which were all the same type of item in the game itself. If you don’t have the in-house resources to take on this task, it is advisable to give it to the localizer, who will considerably simplify the translation process and ensure you receive a quality text.

Secret # 4. Do you copy? Over.

The last step is to create effective channels for exchanging information. It is so important to shorten the number of links in the communication chain between the developer and localization teams. In addition to the usual tools like Google Sheets and group chats in Skype or Telegram, a good solution may be to give the localizers access to translate the text directly inside the code. We call this seamless localization. This can be done using co-development services, like Bitbucket. This option will be of particular interest to small indie studios, as it will bypass problems that arise with configuring text exports and imports from the game engine or application, with the bonus of being an additional reference for the translation. The golden rule of localization: you can never have too much context. If you can include a screenshot or image with a line, then it needs to be there. Also, don’t forget to give feedback and ask questions that come up during the process. This lets the teams nip potential problems in the bud, which will improve the final product.

All Your Base Are Belong to Us

An incredibly rare example of when a game becomes popular after a bad localization (Zero Wing)

In summary, we would like to answer the main question: What was the point of all this? It’s simple. If you follow all the tips listed above, you’ll make life easier for your localizers, which lets them produce a better translation that will appeal to your players. And happy players are a key indicator of a project’s success. Of course, a poor localization may work in your favor and promote the game, but this is the oh-so-rare exception to the rule.

Author: Valentine Pronin, Editor at Allcorrect Group

E-mail: vpronin@allcorrectgames.com