This chapter aims at providing an overview of the existing reception studies in the area of game localisation. After briefly describing the main characteristics of game localisation and its focus on users and their player experience (PX), the paper discusses the small number of reception studies in game localisation that have been carried out to date within the framework of Translation Studies, discussing their research objectives, methods and tools. The paper concludes by highlighting the need for further reception studies in the area of game localisation and presenting future paths for research in this area.
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Bernal-Merino, Miguel Ángel
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Chandler, Heather M.
2005The Game Localisation Handbook. Hingham, Massachusetts: Charles River Media.
Chiaro, Delia
2004 “Investigating the perception of translated Verbally Expressed Humour on Italian TV.” ESP Across Cultures 1 (1): 35–52.
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Fernández Costales, Alberto
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2016 “Analyzing Player’s Perception on the Translation of Video Games”. In Media Across Borders: Localizing TV, Film, and Video Games, by Iain Robert Smith, Andrea Esser and Miguel Ángel Bernal-Merino (eds), 183–201. London/New York: Routledge.
Fuentes Luque, Adrián
2013 “An Empirical Approach to the Reception of AV Translated Humour”. The Translator 9 (2): 293–306.
Geurts, Francine
2015What do you want to play? The desirability of video game translations from English into Dutch according to Dutch gamers and non-gamers. MA dissertation, University of Leiden. Accessed December 13, 2016. [URL]
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IGDA Localisation SIG
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Mangiron, Carme
2013 “Subtitling in Game Localisation: A Descriptive Study”. Perspectives: Studies in Translatology 21 (1): 42–56.
Mangiron, Carme
2014 “What makes a good translation? Quality in game localisation”. Paper presented at the 10th Languages and the Media Conference, Berlin, 7th November 2014.
Mangiron, Carme
2016 “Reception of game subtitles: An empirical study”. The Translator, 22 (1), 72–93.
Mangiron, Carme and O’Hagan, Minako
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Martin, G. Neil and Sullivan, Erin
2013 “Sense of Humor Across Cultures: A Comparison of British, Australian and American Respondents”. North American Journal of Psychology 15 (2): 375–384.
O’Hagan, Minako
2009 “Towards a Cross-cultural Game Design: An Explorative Study in Understanding the Player Experience of a Localised Japanese Video Game”. Jostrans: The Journal of Specialised Translation 11: 211–233. Accessed December 13, 2016. [URL].
O’Hagan, Minako
2016 “Game Localisation as Emotion Engineering: Methodological Exploration”. In Conflict and Communication: A Changing Asia in a Globalising World, by Minako O’Hagan and Qi Zhang (eds), 81–102. New York: Nova.
2010 “Audiences and translated humour: An empirical study”. In Translation, humour and the media, Delia Chiaro (ed), 121–137. London: Continuum.
Skoog, Karin E.
2013 “The Regional Differences of Languages and Their Impact on Game Localisation: Exploring Spanish Localisation across the Americas”. Gamasutra, 11 September 2013. Accessed January 7, 2017. < [URL]>
Szarkowska, Agnieszka, Izabela Krejtz, Krzysztof Krejtz, and Andrew Duchowski
2013 “Harnessing the Potential of Eye-tracking for Media Accessibility”. In Translation Studies and Eye-Tracking Analysis, by Sambor Grucza, Monika Pluzyczka, and Justina Zajac, 153–183. Bern: Peter Lang.
Suojanen, Tytti, Kaisa Koskinen and Tiina Tuominen
2022. Can video game subtitling shape player satisfaction?. Perspectives► pp. 1 ff.
Jarrah, Shatha, Saleh Al-Salman & Ahmad S Haider
2023. Video Games Localization into Arabic: Gamers' Reactions to Localizing PUBG and Free Fire. Journal of Social Computing 4:1 ► pp. 74 ff.
Khoshsaligheh, Masood & Saeed Ameri
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Mejías-Climent, Laura
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Mejías-Climent, Laura
2021. Dubbing in Video Games. In Enhancing Video Game Localization Through Dubbing, ► pp. 117 ff.
Zorrakin-Goikoetxea, Itziar
2022. Transcreación y adaptación cultural en videojuegos: proceso, producto y recepción. TRANS: Revista de Traductología 26:1 ► pp. 213 ff.
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 18 november 2023. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers.
Any errors therein should be reported to them.