Copyright Disclaimer: under section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976, allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education, and research. This project is a proof-of-concept, and as such does not represent nor infringe on the creator(s) in any way.
As gaming continues to captivate audiences worldwide, game localization plays a crucial role in bridging the gap between diverse cultures and providing players with an authentic, immersive experience. Whether you’re an aspiring game developer, a passionate gamer, or simply curious about the intricate process of adapting games for global audiences, this blog maybe is your interest.
As we journey deeper into the realm of game localization, it becomes evident that the process extends beyond mere translation. The artistry of adapting a game for global audiences encompasses not only language but also visual aesthetics, typography, and overall presentation. This is where desktop publishing comes into play.
Desktop publishing, often abbreviated as DTP, refers to the comprehensive process of designing and formatting content for print or digital distribution. In the context of game localization, DTP serves as a crucial link between the translated text and its visual integration within the game’s user interface, packaging, manuals, and promotional materials. Many DTP professionals work to align the translated content with the game’s original design, ensuring a seamless and visually appealing experience for players worldwide. In the following project, you will get an idea of DTP and game localization by seeing how I localize a game poster from simplified Chinese to English.
The game poster I chose is from a game called Asura, which is a Chinese video game based on the novel “Journey to the West”. The poster consists of many different fonts and visual effects, which certainly makes the localizing process harder.
To streamline my workflow, I chose to use both Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. My plan was to use Adobe Photoshop to erase all the text and create a background frame, then I can use Adobe Illustrator to recreate the text in English and add them to the frame, for I consider Illustrator is more powerful in handling Visual tasks related to fonts.
Erasing the original text is very simple with the “content-aware fill” function within Photoshop, here is a demo of how to do it:
After I erased all the text from the original image, I exported the image and opened it in Adobe Illustrator, in which I can apply the translations with all kinds of cool visual effects.
I attached some of my screenshots while localizing the poster, in case the video corrupts…
