So… Let's have a thread because I'm in a very bad mood.

A thread about localisation.

Please note that I'm not trying to shade anyone, or diss anything in particular. Just thoughts as I'm seeing the work of many talented individuals on Night Call.

I speak two languages (I can read Spanish, but don't let me do anything expect ordering food). I grew up with parents who, for some strange reasons, made sure I studied English. They even sent me on a summer camp, halfway across the globe to make sure of that.

This is a privilege.

I can consume culture in many directions: not only French and English, not only today but in the past, in the whole world.

I'd love to be able to speak and read (and write in!) others languages. Maybe because Nabokov is a hero of mine.

Some people can't.

I mean, MOST people can't. Here are a few recent examples…

While playing Heaven's Vault, I kept thinking about how the grammar of the ancient language was easier for me to decipher because I know English. Or to simply play the game as it was not localised.

I showed a few episodes of Veep to a friend of mine, with French subtitles and I was just shocked by the translation. Not BAD, but simply… just very basic, unable to grasp the excellent jokes.

We were watching Waltz with Bachir a few weeks ago and the English subtitles managed to translate a very dark pun in Hebrew… which couldn't be found in the French subtitles.

These examples led me to believe that… a writer's duty is to make sure their writing is translated and localised properly, as much as possible considering the technical hurdles and the cost issues.

Heaven's Vault is using a super powerful text engine which makes the game simply unlocalisable (or it will require years of work and way too much money).

Veep has to be translated in a few days AND the joke must be displayed in two lines and XX characters.

I grew up watching a lot of fansubbed anime and this was… weird for some reason but also extremely enthralling and fulfilling. Not only was I enjoying a story, I was discovering a culture behind it.

(to a certain point, obv)

So yeah, I believe I need to make sure people will enjoy my stories as much as possible. Night Call will be release in 3 languages only for cost and time issues.

I made sure our jokes, puns, cultural references where explained to our localisation team.

In some cases, we added text, we modified backstories, we found other—better!—puns.

But I don't think there is a lot of thought put into these steps on… English-speaking games. I don't believe English-speaking authors really think about that. I hope I'm wrong.

Again, and I really want to stress that, this is not a *judgement*. Every project has their own issues and limits. I'm knee deep in 210K words X 3 languages and I'm dying.

(maybe I'm writing this out of spite)

I just hope that in the future, especially in a medium so flexible as video games, we are able to open our games to other languages—other reference matrices.

Some solutions before I go pour myself another bucket of coffee:

1. Think about localisation BEFORE you start writing. Find the right team for you. Research the markets you want to reach.

2. Think about localisation WHILE you write. Comment every thing. You're a coder; you're scripting language is simply less powerful than C#

3. Surround yourself with people that speak other languages (or share this with your localisation team as often as possible). Is my reference to this obscure French cartoon character will be understood? How can I get my point *across*?

4. Get yourself in other people's shoes. Make sure your text has a display speed option. Make sure you give that option BEFORE the game starts. Giving time is a way to make your game more accessible.

5. Work with professional translators. Pay them well. Use their work not only in your GAME but also OUTSIDE: stores, game boxes, flyers, etc.

(I would NEVER buy a game with a Google-translated store page, that's my rule)

6. Watch foreign movies. With subtitles. If you have a basic knowledge of a language, read at least a book a year in that language. Expand your knowledge. Easier when you're speaking a European country as we share A LOT.

7. Once in a while, if you speak another language, play a game in this language.

i.e. Ubisoft games allow you to select the language for audio, texts, and subtitles. The Witcher 3 had AMAZING Polish—a.k.a. original—voice over.

7 bis. This is for French people: once in a while, play a game in French. Get to listen to the voice actors, the translation, check the localisation team and partners. Make sure you're not living in France, but listening only to English.

8. Get some basic knowledge of other languages. It will save your bacon. How do gender works? Why are words LONGER? WHAT IS GOING ON WITH FINNISH?
Study them so you can find solutions to basic game dev problems like UI, SCALING, TEXT STRINGS…

8 bis. ACCENTS. In English, you have 26 letters. Great. Are your fonts ready for hilariously European characters like

œ

ø

ë

And I'm not even talking about the non-Latin alphabet languages because I know very little about them. There is an ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF GAMERS THAT are reading Arabic. Russian. Mandarin. Hindi.

Can you support their languages? Their alphabets?

*grasps for air*

Goddammit I'm done, I'm OK, I can go back to my files and scream in the void. Questions, feedback… you know where to find me.

Again, sorry if you feel I'm like dissing on your game. I'm not. Quite the contrary. If I care, it's because I'd love my non-English speaking friends to enjoy them as much as I could.

Sometimes when I read a book, I just stop and contemplates a sentence, a word, an idea, and I'm like…

"so grateful I'm not a translator"

I'm not tired, you are