Translators for Nintendo games that work for third-party companies gradually complain about the lack of recognition.
Unfortunately, these gifted translators are regularly left out of the actual credits seen in the games, even if they translated some of Nintendo’s most beloved titles.
Moreover, with the bulk of these workers having put in their best efforts for months, such an approach often tends to leave them unsatisfied and feeling unappreciated.
Nintendo Game Translators Feel Underappreciated Due to Lack of Credits
Translators Express Their Frustration
Reported on Game Developer some of the respondents who wished to remain anonymous highlighted their discontent with this situation.
In response, one of the translators supported the opinion of the majority: “I have gotten used to not being credited as part of the job, but that does not mean I deem it as correct. ”
This translator explained the issue in terms of transparency saying, “It is rather hard to believe that such companies can give no reasonable explanation for where external translators (or developers) are, yet are completely removed from the credits. ”
Impact on Careers and Industry
Lack of credits will affect the ability of translators in a very negative way. Since their name is not displayed next to the show they translated, they lack marketable pieces on their resumes and thus are locked out of jobs.
They cannot have it verified by employers whom they possibly want to work for, leading to important professional barriers. Moreover, it is highly relevant for non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) as well to draw attention to the problem.
Some agencies demand NDAs in translators and despite translators translating work and forwarding them to their clients, they cannot speak or advertise projects to anyone for up to 10 years.
It is not only a problem affecting individual translators directly but also a factor that distorts the view of customers and society on the localization industry.
So, when translators are not mentioned anywhere in the credits, it gives the impression of a team that is not involved in the localization of a particular game.
There are times that Nintendo games credit localizers posing as a few instead of a pool of translators numbering in the dozens.
This results in the denial of credence to such claims and thus the formation of a perception that less effort is put into such projects than is the reality.
Agencies and Clients: A Blame Game
Interestingly, this seems to be the agencies’ fault as well as the clients’. There are complaints by some translators that agencies and clients switch the blame around through the playing of a ‘blame game’.
Self-employed translators quote that while there are window-dressing on accountability, the reality when it comes to remuneration, payment, fee and other similar legalities, the transparency goes out of the window.
A translator said the following words, describing a business approach: “Everything goes into the dark when speaking of money and contracts. ”
Such opacity helps Nissan and similar clients keep choosing strategies that hurt translators while agencies have little to say in the matter.
A Wider Industry Problem
It is, however, important not to overload the staff even if localization and QA workers are often not credited as much as, let’s say, artists.
Likewise, similar problems have been a perpetual problem for the industry. In some of the most blatant cases, they are entirely cutting localization teams out of the credits list; Sega recently released Forspoken.
Such activist groups as @CreditsLoc on the social network also do not remain indifferent and post information on the lack of credits in AAA games.
It is widely known Sony just fails at crediting because yes. It’s not that widely known that Nintendo does the same with its external contractor.
Leaving the agencies they work with aside, this is something Nintendo allows and does and has been doing for years. https://t.co/ji5AVh4Wbm
— Tam |She/ella| #TranslatorsInTheCredits (@Tamslator) July 12, 2024
Moving Towards Fair Recognition
Thus, raising awareness of these issues may help in establishing a future in which all the employees engaged in creating a game deserve appreciation.
This change would also pay fairer wages to the translators who are involved in the process and give a clearer indication of the amount of work that goes into the localization of games.
The performance of the video games by Nintendo translators should also be applauded. Proper credits would indicate their contributions and thus improve their employability and recognize the true extent of localization activities within the video game sector.
About the Author(108 Articles Published)
Jeeva Shanmugam is a highly skilled content writer with expertise in writing articles, blogs, and other forms of content on various Esports-related topics.
