Don't be su sure about that. In RTS games like <i>Starcraft</i>, most units and buildings get an appropriate transcription, too. Sure, you cannot translate names that are no actual words, but at least you can assimilate them to the corresponding language, if possible. Now, the Gorge, for example, whose name is more a monicker than an actual scientific term, would probably be called something like "Gierschlund" in German (although, I guess, most players would prefer a more serious name like "Schlinger").
It only really works for when you change your family language completely, languages using a similar alphabet are better off keeping the names the same from the original language. For things such as Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic etc. that's the only time you'd want to fully translate names across and possibly even change them.
PlasmaJoin Date: 2003-04-26Member: 15855Members, Constellation, Squad Five Blue
I am not bilingual, but I think its worth noticing that over on the latest Steam survey <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey" target="_blank">http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey</a> that primarily English speaking accounts (?) only take up 64% of the customer base!
There is also an effort at <a href="http://translation.steampowered.com/home1st.php" target="_blank">http://translation.steampowered.com/home1st.php</a> where community members are translating Steam client's text as well as Steam games; so it may be possible that UWE can put NS2 up for translation too and just have it done by the Steam community, which is pretty cool.
And there is a lot of effort in becoming a bilingual game. Technical problems aside (like writing the right text depending on the language chosen in-game), there are other cosmetic issues to consider.
For example, the English word for 'Attack' on a commander HUD may look nice, but another language's 'Stop' when written may be three times the character length, and now you can't easily show that text on the marine HUD.
Steam isn't the be all and end all of games but it is a big majority that is true. It's clear from their own readings Russian (as I said)and to my own surprise German is up there too. Although again this is primary language and not secondary language, so it's possible a large chunk of those could also understand and be playing games in English anyway, so it is a bit vague to that extent.
One thing worth noting is even with the heavy vetting of the internet in China, albeit people primarily speaking Chinese outside of China or those that are able to access proxies, overall both Chinese languages accrue a combined 1.16% on that list; which is a larger proportion than quite a few other Euro countries. Again though, this is vague as we don't actually know the location of said primary speakers or their ability to read/write/understand England or another language.
<!--quoteo(post=1832506:date=Feb 16 2011, 01:28 AM:name=Plasma)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Plasma @ Feb 16 2011, 01:28 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1832506"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->For example, the English word for 'Attack' on a commander HUD may look nice, but another language's 'Stop' when written may be three times the character length, and now you can't easily show that text on the marine HUD.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
That's what symbols are for. In most RTS games, the "Attack" and "Stop" orders are represented by by a crosshair and a stop sign respectively, with mouseover showing a caption that explains the icons in words. Saves a lot of time and trouble.
<!--quoteo(post=1832504:date=Feb 16 2011, 01:16 AM:name=TAPETRVE)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (TAPETRVE @ Feb 16 2011, 01:16 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1832504"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Don't be su sure about that. In RTS games like <i>Starcraft</i>, most units and buildings get an appropriate transcription, too. Sure, you cannot translate names that are no actual words, but at least you can assimilate them to the corresponding language, if possible. Now, the Gorge, for example, whose name is more a monicker than an actual scientific term, would probably be called something like "Gierschlund" in German (although, I guess, most players would prefer a more serious name like "Schlinger").<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Well, you just provided two good examples why it's a bad idea. ;p
Starcraft (and some other games) can do it, because they have an established IP that's been localized for many years. They also have a broader audience that includes the more casual gamers, who only play games in their native language, don't visit foreign language websites, don't play with people from other countries etc. These people are not the target audience of NS2.
NS2 gamers are less casual and more internationally orientated. The community is smaller. You're more likely to run into a "foreigner" on a given server. More than one in fact.
Communication is very important in this game. Important terms like classes, locations etc. should therefor be the same in every localization. A gorge is a gorge, a hive is a hive and a command station is a command station. Information that is important to make the game accessible should be translated. But everything that's vital for precise communication should keep its English name.
PlasmaJoin Date: 2003-04-26Member: 15855Members, Constellation, Squad Five Blue
<!--quoteo(post=1832511:date=Feb 16 2011, 11:57 AM:name=TAPETRVE)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (TAPETRVE @ Feb 16 2011, 11:57 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1832511"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->That's what symbols are for. In most RTS games, the "Attack" and "Stop" orders are represented by by a crosshair and a stop sign respectively, with mouseover showing a caption that explains the icons in words. Saves a lot of time and trouble.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> The same applies for menu items, voice commands, etc, you get the idea.
<!--quoteo(post=1832524:date=Feb 16 2011, 03:03 AM:name=NurEinMensch)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (NurEinMensch @ Feb 16 2011, 03:03 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1832524"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Communication is very important in this game. Important terms like classes, locations etc. should therefor be the same in every localization. A gorge is a gorge, a hive is a hive and a command station is a command station. Information that is important to make the game accessible should be translated. But everything that's vital for precise communication should keep its English name.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Good point. Well, there are more than enough Germans that speak English like a pro - I consider myself one of them - and they would most probably play the game in its original English version, anyway. I see the translation issue more associated with the LAN-only crowd, who mostly prefer to communicate in their native tongue. They'll certainly have no problems with Hives and Gorges, but I think they'd take a Kommandozentrum over a command center and a Flammenwerfer over a flamethrower any day. Well, in the end you could say, it's their own bloody problem, especially as there's a thing called "manual", that explains everything nice and clearly (that is, if you really need an explanation of what an effin flamethrower is good for), but you get the point :-D .
I just think it might be a problem if you teach them a certain terminology, and then when they actually play online they run into completely different words.
There will be confusion, anyway :D . While us Germans have adopted a lot of English words, not only related to gaming, we also often tend to create our own pseudo-anglicisms for reasons of comfort, that would be met with puzzlement from outside. Just take the word "ego-shooter". Everybody out there says "first person shooter", only Germany needs its own special treatment.
Well, it <u>does</u> have its advantages; it rolls off the tongue more easily than "first person shooter" and there's no confusion with "frames per second" :-D .
If people want to do some translating there's always the NS2 wiki which needs work <a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/wiki/index.php/Main_Page" target="_blank">http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/wiki/index.php/Main_Page</a>
Has any game ever been translated to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esperanto" target="_blank">esperanto</a> ? That would be kick-ass. Tai vaihtoehtoisesti suomeksi.
<!--quoteo(post=1832541:date=Feb 16 2011, 05:30 AM:name=TAPETRVE)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (TAPETRVE @ Feb 16 2011, 05:30 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1832541"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Just take the word "ego-shooter".<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I heard this first time couple of months ago when some german exchange student used it and I indeed was puzzled.
<!--quoteo(post=1832506:date=Feb 15 2011, 07:28 PM:name=Plasma)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Plasma @ Feb 15 2011, 07:28 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1832506"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->I am not bilingual, but I think its worth noticing that over on the latest Steam survey <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey" target="_blank">http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey</a> that primarily English speaking accounts (?) only take up 64% of the customer base!<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> This would make it appear that the only languages worth making a priority are Russian and German, maybe French as well.
<!--quoteo(post=1832589:date=Feb 16 2011, 01:52 PM:name=peregrinus)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (peregrinus @ Feb 16 2011, 01:52 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1832589"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->If people want to do some translating there's always the NS2 wiki which needs work <a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/wiki/index.php/Main_Page" target="_blank">http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/wiki/index.php/Main_Page</a><!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
...and that's where I'm currently at. The German wiki has some articles that are doggerel at best :D .
<!--quoteo(post=1832611:date=Feb 16 2011, 05:12 PM:name=Sops)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Sops @ Feb 16 2011, 05:12 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1832611"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->This would make it appear that the only languages worth making a priority are Russian and German, maybe French as well.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> especially russian. I have some russian steam-friends who i played lots of hours of l4d with and it seems to me that they are very likely to play games that are at least available in russian. Many of them still use the english versions of (for example) l4d but the sheer availability of the game in their language probably made them try it (it's probably the effect of the spread of word). German is another story. Germans who can't understand english probably won't understand or like the game either
<!--quoteo(post=1832624:date=Feb 16 2011, 06:39 PM:name=Zeno)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Zeno @ Feb 16 2011, 06:39 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1832624"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->German is another story. Germans who can't understand english probably won't understand or like the game either<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> I have to object. As I said, haveing english in school is not enough to be able to understand and speak english properly. In fact, I know many gamers, who can't speak a single word in english and still like to play multiplayer games.
<!--coloro:#696969--><span style="color:#696969"><!--/coloro--> Speaking of pseudo-anglicisms.. Always funny if some german asks for the handy number of the chef ;) (<i>Translation: handy = mobile phone, chef = boss</i> )<!--colorc--></span><!--/colorc-->
The worst cases of garbled English are provided by our dear national railway company. The toilet doorlocks on trains are labeled with "free" instead of "vacant". Does that mean they don't charge you for taking a dump, as long as you leave the door unlocked?
All a matter of context. Same goes for "main station" vs. "Central station". Both is right, but you'd use "main station" as a technical term rather than as a proper teponym.
Eastern Europe is one of the bigger consumer of western electronics, and many of them dont speak english. Also the game is very simple and intuitive, heck I could probably translate it as long as someone else would actually change the text! I am sure there will be many volunteers to do translations when the time is right.
Comments
There is also an effort at <a href="http://translation.steampowered.com/home1st.php" target="_blank">http://translation.steampowered.com/home1st.php</a> where community members are translating Steam client's text as well as Steam games; so it may be possible that UWE can put NS2 up for translation too and just have it done by the Steam community, which is pretty cool.
And there is a lot of effort in becoming a bilingual game. Technical problems aside (like writing the right text depending on the language chosen in-game), there are other cosmetic issues to consider.
For example, the English word for 'Attack' on a commander HUD may look nice, but another language's 'Stop' when written may be three times the character length, and now you can't easily show that text on the marine HUD.
One thing worth noting is even with the heavy vetting of the internet in China, albeit people primarily speaking Chinese outside of China or those that are able to access proxies, overall both Chinese languages accrue a combined 1.16% on that list; which is a larger proportion than quite a few other Euro countries. Again though, this is vague as we don't actually know the location of said primary speakers or their ability to read/write/understand England or another language.
That's what symbols are for. In most RTS games, the "Attack" and "Stop" orders are represented by by a crosshair and a stop sign respectively, with mouseover showing a caption that explains the icons in words. Saves a lot of time and trouble.
Well, you just provided two good examples why it's a bad idea. ;p
Starcraft (and some other games) can do it, because they have an established IP that's been localized for many years. They also have a broader audience that includes the more casual gamers, who only play games in their native language, don't visit foreign language websites, don't play with people from other countries etc. These people are not the target audience of NS2.
NS2 gamers are less casual and more internationally orientated. The community is smaller. You're more likely to run into a "foreigner" on a given server. More than one in fact.
Communication is very important in this game. Important terms like classes, locations etc. should therefor be the same in every localization. A gorge is a gorge, a hive is a hive and a command station is a command station. Information that is important to make the game accessible should be translated. But everything that's vital for precise communication should keep its English name.
The same applies for menu items, voice commands, etc, you get the idea.
Good point. Well, there are more than enough Germans that speak English like a pro - I consider myself one of them - and they would most probably play the game in its original English version, anyway. I see the translation issue more associated with the LAN-only crowd, who mostly prefer to communicate in their native tongue. They'll certainly have no problems with Hives and Gorges, but I think they'd take a Kommandozentrum over a command center and a Flammenwerfer over a flamethrower any day. Well, in the end you could say, it's their own bloody problem, especially as there's a thing called "manual", that explains everything nice and clearly (that is, if you really need an explanation of what an effin flamethrower is good for), but you get the point :-D .
I like that...
--Scythe--
<a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/wiki/index.php/Main_Page" target="_blank">http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/wiki/index.php/Main_Page</a>
I heard this first time couple of months ago when some german exchange student used it and I indeed was puzzled.
This would make it appear that the only languages worth making a priority are Russian and German, maybe French as well.
<a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/wiki/index.php/Main_Page" target="_blank">http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/wiki/index.php/Main_Page</a><!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
...and that's where I'm currently at. The German wiki has some articles that are doggerel at best :D .
especially russian. I have some russian steam-friends who i played lots of hours of l4d with and it seems to me that they are very likely to play games that are at least available in russian. Many of them still use the english versions of (for example) l4d but the sheer availability of the game in their language probably made them try it (it's probably the effect of the spread of word).
German is another story. Germans who can't understand english probably won't understand or like the game either
I have to object.
As I said, haveing english in school is not enough to be able to understand and speak english properly.
In fact, I know many gamers, who can't speak a single word in english and still like to play multiplayer games.
<!--coloro:#696969--><span style="color:#696969"><!--/coloro-->
Speaking of pseudo-anglicisms..
Always funny if some german asks for the handy number of the chef ;)
(<i>Translation: handy = mobile phone, chef = boss</i> )<!--colorc--></span><!--/colorc-->
Free can be a synonym for vacant.
I'm a french native speaker, so my english is not perfect, but i understand written english.
<a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/forums/index.php?showtopic=114296" target="_blank">http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/forums/in...howtopic=114296</a>
Swedisch Translation
<a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/forums/index.php?showtopic=115449&hl=" target="_blank">http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/forums/in...=115449&hl=</a>
Spanish Translation
<a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/forums/index.php?showtopic=114829&hl=" target="_blank">http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/forums/in...=114829&hl=</a>
That is all i found.