Translating Pack & Match 3D
Being a Dutch translator is never boring: the variety of projects is virtually endless. This week was quite the treat!
Pack & Match 3D, a wonderful little game, is now available in Dutch on the App Store and Google Play Store! It is developed by Infinity Games, who you perhaps know from popular games like Maze: Path of Light and Energy (both 10 million+ downloads).
The goal and purpose of the game is deceivingly simple: gather 3 of the same item to pack it away and clear the level. Don’t lose your streak or mismatch too many items, or you’ll have to start over. In combination with the game play, there are a few characters whose stories you can unlock by playing through the levels.
The challenges of translating a video game app
Localising an app, particular one with such a gameplay-heavy focus as this one, is harder than it looks: ideally, you want the Dutch to be as simple as possible so that it interferes as little as possible with the game itself. The game is by no means narrative-focused, which means that with few words you have to give as broad of a sketch as you can.
On the other hand, you also want to do the characters justice by telling their tales. The game is pleasurable enough to work your way through it and relax for a few minutes, but I do think that even a small story that is told compellingly helps with staying engaged and coming back to complete the game.
Finally, a note on the sporadic nature of this blog
Before rounding out this post, I would like to briefly address the fact that blog posts about my work as a Dutch translator are not as frequent as I would like them to be.
The reason for this is quite simply: I have too many assignments to write them!
This is a good problem to have of course, but I am setting myself the challenge to publish more frequent updates, once a month at the very least, but I aim to release one every two weeks. I have made an effort in the past two or three weeks to write a few, so be on the lookout for those.
Additionally, expect more posts about my thought process on topics related to my work, in a similar vein to my post about AI checkers. That post is a year old now(!), but I still think it holds up, so go read it if you haven’t. If there is anything in specific you would like me to discuss, do let me know!
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Speaking of blogs: let’s close out this one. Do check out the game if you are so inclined, and keep an eye out for more posts.
Are you an app developer that is looking for a Dutch translator? Get in touch today!
Have a good week, everyone!
-Thijmen
