Video game translation tools

A few days ago, the Okomeds translators, who specialise in medical and healthcare translations, took on a rather different translation project than usual. This time we didn't have to translate medical reports, clinical trial protocols, or software for medical devices, but something much more fun: a number of educational video games that help children learn how to take care of their health by eating. This is not the first audiovisual project taken, but it may be the most innovative, extensive, and demanding one in recent years, and an excellent example of how use of video games is increasingly appreciated in the medical industry as an excellent way to provide support.

So today, we would like to share with the gamers among you some of the resources which we use in healthcare video game translation projects. These tools can also be used by other kinds of translator, so if you would like to share our post, feel free.

Excel https://office.live.com/start/Excel.aspx?omkt=es-ES

Yes, you read that right: one of the most widespread programs in the world can serve as a video game translation tool. Obviously, this is not the best software that we can recommend, but it is good, both for beginners, and for those days when, for whatever reason, you just don't have any other translation solutions available. One of the main benefits of this software is that these days you don't even need to buy it : you can use Excel only, completely for free.

Felix http://felix-cat.com/

The name of one the most famous cats in the world is also the name of one of the most comprehensive translation solutions in the market. In the view, this tool considerably improves the possibilities offered by Excel as it is an extremely comprehensive TMM - translation memory manager -, which, as its slogan puts it, is "made by translators for translators". However, as with everything in life, there are drawbacks to Felix: a significant learning curve, a medium-high cost, the working language... All these factors should be taken into account.

Localize. http://es.l10n.kde.org/herramientas/lokalize.php

Localize is one of the classic localisation tools in the software and video game translation industry. The oldest translators speak very highly about this open-code project developed by KDE. Its main feature according to Okomeds? How easy it makes it to work as a team, something crucial when working on a complex, delicate translation project as is usually the case in medical translation.

Aegisub. http://www.aegisub.org/

Working with subtitles is an everyday task in an audiovisual or video game translation project, but luckily there are several tools in the market that make this work easier. The translators recommend trying Aegisub, for example. This is a multi-platform solution that makes it possible to insert subtitles in the image or change and correct those that are already inserted. Two great benefits of this software: it's free, and it works exactly in the same way as a text editor. That is: it saves time and money in your video game translation projects.

Game Extractor and Game Translator. http://www.watto.org/index.html

The last items are a classic duo in the video game translation industry created by Watto Studios: Game Extractor and Game Translator.  Game Extractor is, as stated by its name, a powerful tool to extract all those hidden files in PC, PlayStation, and Xbox video games. Its companion software, Game Translator, makes it possible for translators to easily edit, manage, and translate all the visible and invisible texts in the application. Recommends these two powerful tools if you want to start to work in the fascinating world of video game translation.