Game localization is the process of adapting your game into multiple languages and translating a video game for a foreign market to meet the needs of players in a different geographic region. It includes translating game text, adapting art assets, testing the integration of the translated text into the game, and adopting local censorship laws.
You Should Localize For These Reasons:
1- You want to increase your sales
At this moment almost 7 billion people are living on Earth. Not everyone plays games of course. Let’s remove the oldest, the youngest, and the non-gamers, maybe we have 3 billion people left. Let’s remove half of that (we don’t want to exaggerate). If they all download your game – you will become very rich.
2- You want to increase downloads
To increase sales you need to increase downloads. To increase downloads you need to widen the market. That is achieved by localizing and this is when you reach more gamers. Going global actually is going local.
3- You want to maintain a competitive edge
The more you localize, the better your competitive advantage will be. Think about it this way: While you are localizing, other game creators are not, giving you the edge.
4- You want to let your customers know they matter.
Localization is an easy way to please your users. Walk that extra mile and have followers who endorse you as their version feels like it was made for them specifically. Today, game developers want gamers to empathize and immerse themselves in the story.
Why do game developers need a centralized localization system?
With a game localization system, you have a clear framework for the localization project and that offers many compelling advantages:
- Every action is recorded
If there is an error, you can track it down, see who was responsible, and roll it back if necessary. You can control what goes into each version of the game. You can start this process right from day one, there’s no need to wait until the end of development – this localization software is flexible and fully scalable.
- Direct to game
What once took a week of back and forth can potentially be achieved in a few minutes with a localization system.
- Nothing is ever lost
All the valuable localization data you accumulate can be accessed and reused.
- Game localization is done faster, cheaper, and better
Localization enables you to localize your game much more quickly, reducing costs and helping you to eradicate mistakes in the process. Ultimately, it allows your talent to work closely together to craft high-quality localizations that match your intentions, making your game the best possible experience for every player.
What challenges can a game localization system solve?
To truly appreciate the benefits of a game localization system, you must consider the traditional game development life cycle and the most commonly used tools for localization. Usually, game localization occurs at the very end of development in rushing batches. The most used game localization tool is probably the humble spreadsheet.
If you have any questions about Game Localization, we will be happy to continue the discussion.
