People play the game to entertain themselves. What is the use of the game if it frustrates the gamer despite relaxing them? People like to play games that are in their native language. The gaming industry is one of the most flourishing industries in the world. Due to its importance in the young and old generations, game developers are coming up with the latest games. To make these games available for the global market, game developers should go for video game translation services. The translation of your game will pay your way to success in other countries. For this, you need to hire the best translator for the game. Here the question comes: whether you need to hire a translation agency or a freelance translator. Let’s find out.
Who should Translate your Game, a Translation Agency or a Freelance Translator?
It is confusing to decide between an agency or an individual translator. To solve this confusion, you should first check the demands of the project. If your project has 500,000 words and you want it to be finished in two months then it is better to go for a translation agency. On the other hand, if you don’t want to include middlemen then you should go for an individual freelance translator.
Hiring Freelance Translators
The benefit of hiring a freelance game translator is that you can communicate with them directly and get a personal service. Translators that are engaged with video game translation services are prone to be more engaged with the games than the translation agencies.
- The freelance translator can work in an assigned time.
- It is cheaper than an agency.
- You can easily contact them and ask any queries.
- They can likely translate so many words but they can translate the game in a single language.
- If the translator is unable to complete the project due to sickness, then the freelance translator can give it to his colleague to complete.
Hiring a Translation Agency
Several translation agencies are working around the globe. Every translation agency has its specialty. Some translation agencies are good at providing legal translation services while some are good at providing game translation services. The benefit of hiring a translation agency is
- They hire translators from around the globe after strict assessment.
- They assign game translation projects to translators that have prior knowledge in their field and who are subject matter experts in their field.
- They complete the translation project on time because they employed a large number of translators.
- They can translate your video games into several language pairs.
- They provide seamless translation services because they include quality checks and proofreading in the translation process.
- It can be more expensive than a freelancer translator.
- Quality of service depends upon the importance of the client.
Translation Teams in the Translation Agency
Translation teams consist of three or more translators of a single language. Most of their features are of individual translators that can handle a large volume of translators and often have a proofreader that is other than translators. One of the disadvantages of the translation agency is that everyone in the translation team comes up with their voice which creates inconsistency in the translation style.
Hiring Freelance Project Managers
Do you know that freelance project managers perform like a translation agency but on a smaller scale? Reliable translation agencies have a physical office and it is handled by a single guy that has a network of trusted translators. As this project manager works on his own, as a client, you need to deal with him in everything from Q&A to invoicing. As he is running a small agency, therefore, he does not have to pay more people. Moreover, he can provide you with more customized and personal services than the average translation agency. There is also a team of freelancers that sell their services to agencies, it is one guy with a team of translators.
How to Select the Translator and Translation Agency?
- While looking for a translator, you can check the testimonials of the translator or translation agency from its LinkedIn profile or website.
- You should check whether they have worked on similar games or not.
- Have they played similar games before?
- Whether their knowledge, skills, and attitudes resonate with the translation agency and are beneficial for a translation project.
Wrapping Up
When you need seamless translation for your game, you can either go for a freelancer or a translation company. In case you are looking for an economical yet reliable translation agency, Mars Translation is a perfect solution. It is among the best LSPs in the world. It has native translators with rich gaming translation experience and they always deliver in time. Thus, if you don’t want to compromise quality and need an economical solution, this is it!