By Cary Grant 
The video game companies that want to tap into the international markets must translate and localize the games. Translation helps in providing the game to avid gamers in the language that they understand. However, localization is one step further than translation. It makes the games resonate with the target market while considering regional and cultural intricacies. Without excellent video game translation and localization services, foreign companies cannot penetrate into lucrative gaming markets of the world.
Selecting the Language
The first step before going for game translation is to select the languages in which you want to translate your games. For selecting the languages, you need to consider many factors like target market size, the speakers of the language, and the potential revenue. If your preference is the market size then China is a viable option. The Chinese market is one of the largest and most lucrative markets. The sales revenue of games in China is one-fourth of the global game market.
Thus, you can reap a high rate of investment if you include Chinese translation services in your game translation and localization strategy. The other massive gaming markets in the world are Japan and the United States. Therefore, you must include Japanese, English, and Spanish for video game translation services.
Fonts and Typesetting
After selecting the language, you have to select the font of the language in which you are translating your game. For this, you have to consider the type, the target market, and the roles of the text in the video game. Every role in the game represents different purposes and the font style should be according to the context and the space present in the game interface.
If you want to go for video game translation services for the Chinese language then you should know that Chinese is a compact language. Therefore, to make the game interface look graphically good, you need to use a big font size. One important thing to keep in mind is that using a different font in every clip of the game is not realistic. If you observe it from a design perspective then this will lead to visual inconsistency. The use of appropriate language and appealing design of the game makes avid players immersed in video games.
Considering Closest Alternatives for Non-translatable Content
There are some gaming translation projects that contain specific concepts, phrases, and words that don’t find linguistic equivalence in other languages. This happens more if your content is more creative and usually occurs in games with more complicated scripts, stories, and in-game dialogue.
For the translation and localization of such games, you must take the assistance of a professional translation services . They have a team of competent translators that are proficient enough to provide close alternatives for non-translatable content.
Localizing Game Code & UIs
Translated text can expand or contract which impacts the UI layouts. Moreover, the use of icons, symbols, and colors ensures that they are relevant to every audience. If you are undertaking a Chinese video game translation and localization project then you have to struggle hard to adapt their user interface. This is because Chinese gamers like more colorful and vibrant UIs than their Western counterparts.
Moreover, you need to select the icon, design, buttons, and color palette according to the player’s preferences. To provide localized experiences to multilingual gamers, you have to adjust code to detach from the in-game language from core files. In this way, you can minimize the workload of testing and reviewing the translated and localized versions of the game. In addition to it, you can add more languages in the future.
Considering Cultural Nuances
One of the foremost challenges in game translation and localization is considering cultural differences. For instance, the use of blood, skeletons, bones, and drugs is forbidden in Chinese culture because they are considered a bad omen and bad luck. Moreover, anything that defames the government is also restricted.
The government of China banes such games. Therefore, if you want to release your game in China market then you must consider these cultural nuances. Any game content which is considered offensive can make the game developer black-listed in China.
Delivering Consistent Experiences
Translation and localization of the game provide user experiences in terms of user interfaces, symbols, and icons. Moreover, it also includes other aspects of gameplay like jokes, some characters, and story elements that are not appropriate for certain markets.
If the game requires more and more changes, then it becomes difficult to provide a consistent experience for different game players. On one side, you want to provide the best immersive experience for gamers in every market, and on the other hand, you don’t want to change the original intended message of the game. This often becomes challenging because every market is different from other.
Agile Adaptation
The gaming market is one of the flourishing markets in the world. There is fierce competition too. The game developers need to be fast to capture the market share. The agile adoption of games with translation and localization strategies can help you to monetize the games. In addition to it, it provides a pleasant gaming experience that results in customer retention.
Wrapping Up
Gaming translation and localization strategy require a passion for gaming and the assistance of professional translation and transliteration company. These translation services can handle all the challenges like font and typesetting, using the closer linguistic alternatives, localization of UI codes, considering culture nuances, and going for agile adoption to provide a consistent pleasant user experience.
For this, you must hire a professional translation agency. They gave your translation and localization project to the native translator. No matter, how tough your gaming translation and localization project is. They provide you with robust game translation and localization services with fast turnaround time and rapid speed.