Business

Videogame localization is the process of adapting videogame software for different cultures and languages. While it may seem unnecessary to translate the language per a particular market, the truth is that such transcriptions make a huge difference in terms of foreign sales figures. It appears that foreign nationals want to be engaged by the stories of the video games–not just by the graphics.

This is a fascinating result, as it is in many ways counterintuitive to conventional sensibilities. After all, video games are primarily visual–for instance, you dont need to understand the internal crisis motivating the protagonist of Halo to play out his conflict. However, what these sales figures suggest is precisely the opposite–when a participant feels engaged by a games storyline, he wants to play the game more.

Thinking about Videogame Localization
This lesson in translation suggests several things for companies attempting videogame localization. For one, market research in the source country may not be effective in terms of determining foreign patterns of buying. Second, while its still critical to focus on the graphic design and software code, perhaps more attention to story coding could help boost sales–both abroad and domestically.

Thirdly, since videogame fan clubs are in many ways international, it may behoove software companies to develop products which dont rely so heavily on language in their story lines. That way, it will be easier to relocalize games in the event that a particular program surges in popularity. In addition, contracting the language based storylines may force programmers to tell more interesting visual stories.