ABSTRACT
In his study on Nintendo games, Altice (2015: 3) asserts that ‘translation takes place between circuits, codes, and cathode rays just as it does between human actors’. This statement sets the tone for this chapter, which examines game localization as a relatively new practice and research domain in relation to audiovisual translation (AVT). Game localization cannot be discussed without considering the technological dimension of games as digital media. As a major digital entertainment sector in the twenty-first century, the video game industry has become a competitive global business with significant revenues drawn from international markets (Chandler and Deming 2012). Behind the global expansion of the game industry lies game localization, which plays a key role in distributing digital games in markets beyond the country of origin of the product (O’Hagan and Mangiron 2013). Digital games can be considered specialized software and therefore game localization has much in common with software localization: it involves technical, cultural and linguistic adjustments to the original software. Yet, there are aspects that are unique to the former, arising from the specific characteristics of games as digital interactive entertainment. Modern games are high-tech multimedia products with a non-linear structure, comprising different types of assets (i.e. the different components of a game), including full-fledged movies (known as cut-scenes in the industry), which commonly form part of today’s mainstream console games. Furthermore, video games still occupy a contested space (Egenfeldt-Nielsen et al. 2013) in public perception, often associated with crime and violence, compared to other established art forms. All games are subject to age ratings that are country-specific and may also be subject to censorship. Game localization deals with artefacts which are not only technically complex but also culturally challenging. In addition, in contrast to utilitarian business software, games seek user engagement, which extends to users’ affective responses (Juul 2005). In particular, high-budget ‘AAA’ console games offer user entertainment tailored for specific key target markets with the localized game aiming to pass as if it was originally made for the given market. Such requirements sometimes warrant extended leeway being applied during the localization process, with the end justifying the means. But game localization, understood as a set of industrial processes applied to the digital 146medium, also involves restrictions, as discussed later in this article. In this way, the underlying technological nature and socio-cultural contexts of games give rise to both freedom and constraints, shaping a dynamic and unique translation practice.
