Bill Gates proclaimed that his biggest regret was not uplifting Microsoft to the status of what Android was. This shows us the revolutionary potential the mobile industry possesses. Mobile phones are one of the most popular devices in the world right now. It has enabled communities to interact with one another like never before. 

The technology of mobile applications has diminished the gaps between first-world and third-world countries. This interconnectivity and interdependency have been further emboldened vis-a-vis mobile video games. Mobile games have one of the biggest audiences in the global markets. And the reason it has become so popular is that not everyone speaks a universal language. Hence, the need for localization emerges, and especially Chinese App Localization Services, which enables games to be translated into multiple languages. So that people worldwide can connect and enjoy.

English may be the lingua franca of the world, but not every region has fluency in this language.  Offering multiple languages with your mobile games will allow people around the world to relate to the experience in the same way. Nonetheless, if you want your game to be played around the world, then you have to localize your mobile game application. Preferably into some of the major languages spoken around the world. 

In this article, we will review some of the best options of languages that your mobile games must be localized into. So that you can expand your gaming business;

Chinese 

China is one of the largest countries in the world both population and economy-wise. Moreover, it has also one of the biggest mobile game industries in the region. For instance, back in 2019, the mobile gaming industry in China generated around $17billion in revenue. This number is automatically a huge attraction for mobile game developers who wish to penetrate foreign markets. 

Nonetheless, as far as game localization is concerned, the Chinese language is also a very difficult language to translate your game into. You have to take into consideration a lot of factors. First and foremost, it’s imperative to understand the cultural preferences, nuances, and intricacies of the Chinese language. Secondly, from a business point of view, you have to understand the distribution channels prevalent in the Chinese market. And thirdly, from a gaming perspective, ensure what gaming genres are popular among the Chinese youth, as localizing every game would not be the right approach. These measures will guarantee a safe entry into the market. 

One more important factor that you have to take into consideration is that localization into Chinese does not mean that you just simply translate the language. You have to create brand new characters of the game while recreating the plot as well so that it sits well within the Chinese cultural parameters. Thereby, taking help from Chinese App Localization Services would be the right thing to do. 

French

Accumulating a sum of 34 million gamers, France is one of the biggest gaming markets in the world right now. Statistically, the gaming industry was able to generate a revenue of $4-5 billion back in 2017 and 2018. Moreover, the French market does not only constitute gamers but rather is a huge producer of video games as well. This makes the gaming market accessible but at the same time difficult to penetrate as well. Because French gamers are very picky about their gaming experience. And do not accept every other foreign video game. 

This poses a challenge to video game developers who wish to localize their games in the French market. The challenge pertains to an in-depth study of the french culture and gaming industry. Thereby, you will probably need the help of a professional translation agency that can enable you to come up with an effective and efficient localization strategy to penetrate the foreign market.

Talking about the demographics of gamers in the French gaming industry, you will be amazed to see that it ranges from the age of 9 to 60 years. The diversity of games played among these different groups of ages is also quite staggering. They play games mostly on pcs, whereas teenagers mostly play games on their mobile phones and gaming consoles as well. Many people assume that English games are the most popular in the French gaming market. On the contrary, this narrative is far away from the truth. In reality, they prefer video games in their own languages and the ones that have been localized for the French market only. 

German 

If you ever wonder whether localizing your mobile game application into the German language is a good idea or not, just think about the fact that there are over 45 million gamers in Germany right now. Or the ones who speak the German language. This number indicates that the potential of translating in German is a profitable endeavor. Because if you look at some of the statistics that were published back in 2018, you will get to know that the German mobile gaming market was able to generate revenues of over $6 billion. Hence, your effort to approach the German market would not be wasted.

In order to fathom the potential of the gaming industry in the German market, you can visit Gamescom, an event that takes place in Germany every year. It is one of the biggest in the world, where thousands of gaming fanatics around the world visit every year to learn about the new games that are being developed in Germany. Such events create opportunities for people to penetrate the German market and also help the local industry to create their own games. 

One important thing for game localization companies is to understand the German market. German people prefer games that are fun in nature. They want an experience filled with joy and laughter. Hence some of the most popular games in Germany are the ones that are filled with an engaging storyline. Because you have to understand one thing, there are markets in which some people are passionate about the games that are played. For some, it might be a leisure activity, but for some, it is more than that. They fully immerse themselves in the games and become critical of everything involved with the games. Hence, localization companies have to be very careful if they want to translate their games into German.

Japanese  

Japan has always been a gaming hub of the world. Popular games like Tekken and Need for speed Tokyo originate from the Japanese gaming industry. If you compare its ranking, then it comes right after the Chinese and the United States gaming market. This shows that Japan has nurtured a deep love for gaming. In terms of generating revenue, the 70 million video gamers residing in Japan are able to generate around $20 billion annually. And this number is just an approximation since the revenue is increasing on a quarterly basis.

On the other hand, if you want to study the tenets of the gaming industry in Japan, you need to know about the peculiarities of the market. First of all, the Japanese have a deep interest in specified animated content. Hence, if companies want to localize their games into the Japanese market they have to inculcate animated and visually powerful content. So that it could be successful with the audience. Moreover, another positive aspect of the localization process for the Japanese market is that a large majority of the gamers in Japan are familiar with the English language. So, in the process of translating the content for software. You need not translate each and every word into the targeted language.

Japanese are aware of the characters and the context behind the dialogues.  thereby, you do not need to change the storylines for them. Moreover, the Japanese prefer both mobile applications, as well as PCs, and gaming consoles. Hence, you can localize video games for any medium and be successful in the Japanese gaming market. Moreover, the Japanese are very accepting of new games, and always love the idea of new content for video games. So, if you are deciding as to which market will maximize your chances for a successful localization, then the Japanese gaming market is the one to go for.

Conclusion 

The purpose of content translation or localization is to reach a broader audience. We live in a globalized world. Hence, interconnectivity between different states has become a norm. The consumer is more educated and informed than it was ever before. This rhetoric has increased customer purchasing power. Now a consumer has different options to go for. 

Similarly, in video games, people look for a better experience, since the internet has made it easy for everyone to go for the things that interest them. Hence, different regions call for different languages. And people love things that are in their own native tongue. So localizing games in the native language of the consumer will go a long way as far as the success and popularity of that particular video game are concerned. 

In this article, some of the best languages for video game localization are mentioned. Conclusively, it’s for you to decide which market you want to penetrate. However, one thing to mention here is that you should start small, i,e, go for one language at a time. We would advise you to go for the Chinese language, and for this purpose utilize Chinese App Localization Services.  And if you are successful in that endeavor, plan to go localizing into more languages. This approach will open new markets, opportunities to strengthen your brand image and ultimately increase profits. And that is something a video game developer should always strive for. 

Commercial activities have ameliorated due to globalization. The interconnectivity of different communities speaking various languages has driven the localization of many industries. One of the most popular disciplines has been the video game industry. The fact that it has such a wider reach enables it to be translated into native regional languages so that it can make the experience more personable and entertaining. 

Some of the most renowned video game developers take the initiative to release their latest video games concurrently around the world. And in order to do that effectively, they have to enable their localization process at a swift pace, meanwhile, keeping a high quality of the content intact. This is quite a difficult process, but if you follow a certain methodology it can significantly reduce your efforts. 

Here are some of the ways that you can follow to make the game localization faster and efficient;

An Early Startup

If developers intend to provide customers with the same experience and gaming pleasure, regardless of where the user resides, they need to start the localization process way before the actual creation of the game. Early startups enable the agencies to conduct a trial and error method. This methodology helps save time in the future by creating a path for you to follow. Once you know what to do and what not to, it secures the budget constants and enables you to remain on the path. 

Planning is Important

The localization process demands in-depth research of the culture and language of the target audience. Hence, this process should start earlier if you want to release your game simultaneously around the world. Moreover, you should have a clear plan of which regions you’re going to target. Hence, every language would need an expert linguist with a piece of sound background knowledge. Your job would be to contact them at the very beginning of the localization process so that you can finalize the prices and deadlines. 

Another important aspect to understand is that every video game text does not require translation. Hence, you need to funnel out the text that needs translation and the one that does not via a proper elimination process. It should be in place before you begin the localization process. In video games, you have to consider localizing the text strings. Because this is the one step that leads to most errors if not done properly. Hence, avoiding the text in the graphic files would help you save a lot of time and money. If you have the opportunity to use only one text and then place the translated text over it, it would be a lot better than formulating various and diverse styles and versions of the original icon for every language. 

Researching Target Culture 

Researching the target audience is the key step to a fast localization process. In order to effectively convey the message, you need to conduct thorough research. Analyze the cultural and language intricacies of the target audience. And the more you do it earlier, the more time you will have to obtain a deeper insight into the target audience. If the consumers don’t accept the end product, you would be wasting hundreds of thousands of dollars of your investment to localize your game into the foreign market. Hence, it’s better to be safe than sorry, and conduct thorough research on the audience. So that once you localize your game, the people are ready to enjoy it. 

Industry-Experts Can Do Wonders

Cultural experts who also possess information pertaining to video games should conduct the process of video game localization. Video game translation is a specialized and specific domain, hence needs experts who themselves are gamers. Because only gamers can fathom the tone used in video games. A non-gamer would simply replace words with translated words, whereas a gaming expert would keep the intended meaning intact. Meanwhile, concentrating on the entertainment aspect of the video game as well. Because that is the ultimate goal. You have to entertain the audience. And ensuring the translated work does that is something that you cannot ever take lightly. 

Moreover, video game localization involves the integration of the game into the belief system of the targeted audience. There might be some sensitive aspects that cannot integrate well with the local audience. Hence one needs to be careful during the process. For instance, if a video game is localized for the Arab region, like Saudia Arabia, a developer cannot create Muslim terrorists as antagonists in the game and expect it to sit well with the audience. 

Onboarding Game Translators as Quickly as Possible

By acquiring specialist game translators, you will have the opportunity to tackle potential issues beforehand. Many developers do not try to understand the importance of doing so. They try to construct the game script before hiring a translator. This increases the chances of doing the entire process all over again if your game translator feels the need for it. Hence, it is advisable to create the script along with a translator. It enables the localization process at a faster rate.

In-context Translation Makes the Difference

Onboarding translators also help to understand the context of video games. And more time spent by the translators on the context enables a faster time to localize the video games. Moreover, you can provide them with all the necessary material, such as the language dictionaries. Also, the cultural reference materials pertaining to nuances and idiomatic phrases will also help. This will help translators to understand the nitty-gritty of the languages that they will eventually translate. And when the time comes, they will be able to make the location process much faster. 

Making the process easier for the game translators is the best initiative you can adopt to enable a faster game localization process. It will not ameliorate the quality of the localization process. But it will help you reduce costs that you may encounter in future re-edits or revisions. Moreover, it would be wise to involve the video game translators in the creative development of the game. Because involving them would help you to identify in the early stages where you need to make the changes once the localization process starts. So when you initiate the translation process, you will already have the blueprint in front of you stating the exact changes needed. Hence, diminishing the time. 

Conclusion

The localization process is the activity of enabling the original text or language into the language of the target audience. It refers to a content transformation in such a way that it encapsulates the same cultural extremities that were initially intended within the presentation of the original product. 

Similarly, the video game localization process emboldens the same concept. However, it demands a different approach. In this article, we have discussed some of the easiest approaches to make video games translation more efficient, effective, and faster. 

There are certain measures that you can embed into your process. It will assist you to achieve your goal in a shorter period. First, try to initiate an early startup program, in which you conduct full-fledged research of the target audience. Then take the initiative to hire professional game translators. So that they can help you save time, and diminish the utilization of extra resources that might take place during that journey. Adapting to these changes will surely help you achieve the video game localization process much quicker.