The use of SDH subtitles in video games from an accessibility
perspective
Tomás Costal |
Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia
Video games today are highly complex audiovisual products. Their nature is not
only multisemiotic but also interactive. Their potential audience has certain
expectations and, especially in the case of digital blockbusters, final users
need the advantage of knowledge and the force of numbers. A faux
pas in design, continuity or playability will most likely be
conducive to social media outrage, and will see official apologies be released
presently. Conversely, accessibility shortcomings rarely or never have the same
impact.The present study puts forward the advantages of including Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (SDH) in
popular video games and offers an in-depth analysis of a selection of recent
multimedia titles. Drawing on the work of Bernal Merino (2015), O’Hagan
and Mangiron (2013) and Trabattoni (2014) on the special characteristics of video games, the
main elements around which they are structured and the aspects that determine
their success or failure, the author will endeavour to advance a convincing
argument in favour of the introduction of SDH subtitling conventions.
2012UNE 153010. Subtitulado para personas sordas y personas con discapacidad auditiva. Madrid: Aenor.
Agost, Rosa
1999Traducción y doblaje: palabras, voces e imágenes. Barcelona: Ariel.
Arnáiz-Uzquiza, Verónica
2015 “Long Questionnaire in Spain.” In The Reception of Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in Europe, ed. by Pablo Romero-Fresco, 95–116. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang.
Báez Montero, Inmaculada, and Ana María Fernández Soneira
2010 “Spanish Deaf People as Recipients of Close Captioning.” In Listening to Subtitles: Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, ed. by Anna Matamala, and Pilar Orero, 25–44. Bern: Peter Lang.
Bartelt-Krantz, Michaela
2011 “Game Localization Management: Balancing Linguistic Quality and Financial Efficiency.” Trans. Revista de Traductología 151: 83–88.
Bernal Merino, Miguel Ángel
2015Translation and Localisation in Video Games: Making Entertainment Software Global. New York: Routledge.
Bogost, Ian
2007Persuasive Games: The Expressive Power of Videogames. Cambridge (MA): The MIT Press.
Chandler, Heather Maxwell
2014The Game Production Handbook. 3rd ed. Sudbury (MA): Jones and Bartlett Learning.
Chandler, Heather Maxwell, and Stephanie O’Malley Deming
2012The Game Localization Handbook. 2nd ed. Burlington (MA): Jones and Bartlett Learning.
Chaume, Frederic
2012Audiovisual Translation: Dubbing. Manchester: St. Jerome.
Christou, Chris, Jenny McKearney, and Ryan Warden
2011 “Enabling the Localization of Large Role-Playing Games.” Trans. Revista de Traductología 151: 39–51.
Civera, Clara and Pilar Orero
2010 “Introducing Icons in Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing: Optimising Reception?” In Listening to Subtitles: Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, ed. by Anna Matamala, and Pilar Orero, 149–162. Bern: Peter Lang.
De Pedro Ricoy, Raquel
2007 “Internationalization vs. Localization: The Translation of Videogame Advertising.” Meta: Translators’ Journal 52 (2): 260–275.
Díaz Cintas, Jorge
2007 “Traducción Audiovisual y Accesibilidad.” In Traducción y Accesibilidad: Subtitulación para Sordos y Audiodescripción para Ciegos: Nuevas Modalidades de Traducción Audiovisual, ed. by Catalina Jiménez Hurtado, 9–23. Frankfurt: Peter Lang.
2007Audiovisual Translation: Subtitling. Manchester: St. Jerome.
Díaz Montón, Diana
2011 “La traducción amateur de videojuegos al español.” Trans. Revista de Traductología 151: 69–82.
Edwards, Kate
2011 “Culturalization: The Geopolitical and Cultural Dimension of Game Content.” Trans. Revista de Traductología 151: 19–28.
Egenfeldt-Nielsen, Simon, Jonas Heide Smith, and Susana Pajares Tosca
2008Understanding Video Games: The Essential Introduction. New York: Routledge.
Gottlieb, Henrik
2009 “Subtitling Against the Current: Danish Concepts, English Minds.” In New Trends in Audiovisual Translation, ed. by Jorge Díaz Cintas, 21–43. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Krejtz, Izabela, Agnieszka Szarkowska, and Krzysztof Krejtz
2013 “The Effect of Shot Changes on Eye Movements in Subtitling.” Journal of Eye Movement Research 6 (5): 1–12.
Méndez González, Ramón
2014 “Traducir para un nuevo entorno cultural: el sector de los videojuegos.” In Traducción e industrias culturales: Nuevas perspectivas de análisis, ed. by Xoán Montero Rodríguez, 105–120. Frankfurt: Peter Lang.
Neves, Josélia
2008 “10 Fallacies about Subtitling for the Deaf and the Hard of Hearing.” The Journal of Specialised Translation 101: 128–143.
2009 “The Codification of Nonverbal Information in Subtitled Texts.” In New Trends in Audiovisual Translation, ed. by Jorge Díaz Cintas, 58–69. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Pereira, Ana
2010 “Criteria for Elaborating Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Adults in Spain: Description of a Case Study.” In Listening to Subtitles: Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, ed. by Anna Matamala, and Pilar Orero, 87–102. Bern: Peter Lang.
Schäler, Reinhard
2008 “Linguistic Resources and Localisation.” In Topics in Language Resources for Translation and Localisation, ed. by Elia Yuste Rodrigo, 195–214. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
2007 “Parámetros de análisis en la subtitulación accesible.” In Traducción y accesibilidad. Subtitulación para sordos y audiodescripción para ciegos: nuevas modalidades de traducción audiovisual, ed. by Catalina Jiménez Hurtado, 41–55. Frankfurt: Peter Lang.
Trabattoni, Marco
2014Shenmue: Una sfida semiotica. Milan: Edizioni Unicopli.
Whitman-Linsen, Candace
1992Through the Dubbing Glass: The Synchronization of American Motion Pictures into German, French and Spanish. Frankfurt: Peter Lang.
Yuste Frías, José
2014 “Traducción y paratraducción en la localización de videojuegos.” Scientia Traductionis 151: 61–76.
Video game corpus
Alien: Isolation (Creative Assembly 2014).
Anarchy Reigns (Platinum Games 2012).
Back to the Future: The Game (Telltale Games 2010).
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 (Mercury Steam 2014).
