Loekalization Blog
Japanese/Chinese/Korean/English/Dutch game localization
Category: localization
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282,117 Words, 705 Pages, Daily Deadlines: Translating F1 25 at 300 km/h
Imagine the pressure. You’re handed a 300,000-word behemoth. The next installment of the world’s most intense motorsport simulator, with a global fanbase ready to rip you apart over the wrong word for “kerbstone.” And then you’re told: “Make it flawless. Make it sing in Dutch. Oh, and deliver daily—sometimes 4,000 words a day—without a single…
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“日本語で遊べるのが嬉しい”— How We Loekalized a Money Laundering Sim So Well It Got Quoted on Game*Spark
What do you get when you combine dirty money, literal washing machines, and one of the most unexpectedly satisfying game loops since PowerWash Simulator? You get Cash Cleaner Simulator — a title that turns the phrase “money laundering” into a sudsy, UV-lit, oddly therapeutic experience. Developed by Mind Control Games and published by Forklift Interactive,…
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Making Monsters Speak: Inside the Localization of Bloomtown
Imagine this: a small American town in the 1960s, all pastel colors and warm summer days. Kids riding bikes past vintage diners, neighbors chatting on their porches, an old bookstore filled with dusty conspiracy theories. It’s the kind of place where you’d expect to spend an idyllic childhood. But just beneath the surface, there’s something……
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Indie Dev Finds Out The Hard Way: ChatGPT Sucks As A Translator
In the world of Japanese localization dreams of a global indie hit were swiftly derailed by the terrifying specter of bad translations. If you thought ghosts were the scariest thing in Subway Exorcist Girl, you haven’t seen what happens when AI decides to take on a language as nuanced as Japanese. Spoiler alert: the ghosts…
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From Kimono to Cowboy Hat: The Cultural Makeover of Animal Crossing
This is a charming tale of how Animal Crossing, a game bursting with quiet Japanese cultural quirks, underwent a radical makeover to woo the international audience. This isn’t just a story of localization; it’s a saga of cultural reupholstering so thorough, you’d think the original game was sent to a spa in Kyoto and came…
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How a ‘Gamble’ Turned Into a 700% Win: The Japanese Love Affair with Our Adventurer Guild
I smell the sweet, bewildering charm of the Japanese gaming market—a land where even the most niche indie SRPGs can find themselves transformed into “神ゲー” (divine game). Enter Our Adventurer Guild, a game that began as a heartfelt tribute by a lone German developer, GreenGuy, to his late friend, and ended up conquering the hearts…
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Localization: Damned If You Do And Damned If You Don’t
Alright, grab your popcorn, because this tale is a perfect blend of drama, irony, and gamers proving once again that nothing gets them angrier than a studio doing something they didn’t expect. So, what happened? CD Projekt Red (CDPR), the Polish studio behind The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077, decided to throw a curveball during The…
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China Demands Respect: How Localization Missteps Can Sink Your Game
The localization controversy surrounding BZZZT: Buzzbot! didn’t begin as a drama—it started as a triumph. Created almost entirely by industry veteran Karel Matejka, the retro-styled platformer debuted in November 2023 to glowing reviews. Players praised its beautiful pixel art and challenging gameplay, catapulting it to the coveted “Overwhelmingly Positive” status on Steam. For a brief,…
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