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Article In: Translation Spaces: Online-First Articles

“DISTRAINT for research” (D4R)

A resource in game translation studies and beyond

ORCiD logo with link | University of Lodz, Poland
 | Independent video game developer
 | University of Lodz, Poland
 | University of Lodz, Poland
This content is being prepared for publication; it may be subject to changes.
Abstract
This paper presents D4R: an openly available and adaptable online resource based on “DISTRAINT: Deluxe Edition”, which can be applied to streamline designing and running user-oriented studies (and more). D4R can be customised to fit your research or didactic needs. It is run in the browser via linking a URL to the main game file on a hosting server. The software has more robust applications, but it was originally designed for examining how in-game linguistic parameters interface the user–game dynamics. We describe D4R’s constituents and how they need to be set up. The process of collaborating with the creator of D4R and DISTRAINT is also detailed — demonstrating the productivity of joint industry-academia endeavours. Having reviewed studies that similarly employ games as stimuli in research and training, we discuss prospects for implementing D4R. The game files use common formats and are available through a designated data repository for “(D4R) DISTRAINT For Research”.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
    • 1.1Rationale — how D4R can assist user-centric research
  • 2.Advancing reception research in video game translation
    • 2.1Previous studies related to this topic
  • 3.What is D4R and how does it work?
    • 3.1Tenets of D4R
    • 3.2What D4R presents to users
  • 4.A case of academia-industry collaboration
    • 4.1Adapting and porting the game for research purposes
    • 4.2D4R final build — setup and good practices
  • 5.Discussion
    • 5.1Further research using D4R
      • 5.2.1Investigating translation choices using D4R
      • 5.2.2Investigating reception, perception, and cognition via D4R
      • 5.2.3Investigating the identities of translation users through D4R
      • 5.2.4Current limitations of the D4R build (2026)
  • 6.Conclusions
  • Data availability
  • Declaration of conflicting interest
  • Acknowledgements
  • Note
  • Author queries
  • References
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