What part does localisation play in the changing world of video games?

A brief history into video game localisation

Ever since the first video game was introduced to the mainstream back in the 1970s they have been a cash cow for the makers. The introduction of the popular arcade game Space Invaders to the Japanese market triggered a shortage of 100-yen coins, and within a year there where over 60,000 machines across the US alone.

Forty years on and video gaming is stronger than ever. Once associated as the disconnected pastime of teenage boys locked in their bedrooms, it is now seen as a cool, hip and trendy hobby of all ages and genders. You just have to take a look around on your commute to work and you’ll see business men glued to their phones flinging birds at questionable structures or parents retaining their children’s attention with the latest Peppa pig game.

Technology and video games

Games are much more accessible now than they ever were thanks to Smartphones, the internet and consoles that allow gamers across the world to compete in a virtual world. This is giving game companies new streams of revenue, new clients and coverage that was never available before. There was a fear that mobile gaming would kill the console gamer but that couldn’t be further from the truth. This new world of mobile gaming has introduced a whole new type of gamer and in turn a whole new market place for gaming companies to earn new revenue.

When it comes to increasing both popularity and revenue in the gaming industry localisation can be the key to unlocking new markets and users. Why only offer your new mobile game in one language when there’s 77 million smart phone users in China, 33 million in India and 83 million across Germany, Italy, Spain and France!? In total there are 1.8 billion smart phone users around the world and this number is on the up.

Games Com

Last August I attended the world famous Games Com in Cologne where all the new games, updates, characters, competitions and the fanciest of fancy dress were on show. The event was attended by 335,000 people from 88 different countries and I can’t even begin to explain the air of excitement and anticipation that was in the air.

There were queues snaking out of each company’s stand full of people just waiting to have a go on the new release of Far Cry 4, FIFA 15 or Dead Island 2, to name but only a very minuscule amount of the titles on show. And what were these people doing while waiting in the queue!? Well they were playing games on their mobile phones too!

Seeing this just proved that the console gamer is not dead and never will be. The mobile games have just given them another platform to indulge in their hobby as well as introducing new types of gamers to the market. This gives games companies much more to think about and it’s a headache that's nice to have. “How do we entertain all these new gamers?” compared to “where do we find new gamers?” Another question game developers should be asking themselves is “where in the world are our gamers based?” “Would localising the game create even more users?” As mentioned, there were people from 88 different countries at Games Com……..