Localization SIG

International Game Developers Association

Jump to: navigation, search
Special Interest Groups
FAQs

Image:SIG_Logo1_small_text.jpg

Last Update: 16 November, 2009

Welcome to the Game Localization SIG of the IGDA!

SIG Member Count = 325 (across email, Facebook, LinkedIn and Yahoo groups)

This SIG was launched in June 2007 in order to serve the need of the game localization community, i.e., those involved in the process of proactively planning for content adaptability in target international markets, performing the requisite translation and adaptation, and the act of reactively managing expectations when problematic content elements are identified by local customers. The announcement about the formation of this SIG was delivered in the September 2007 email bulletin of the IGDA.

Contents

Localization Summit @ GDC 2010

Loc Summit Returns to GDC 2010 - Call for Speakers NOW CLOSED!

The Game Localization Summit will return to GDC in 2010, taking place on Tuesday, March 9, 2010, with Tom Edwards and Miguel Bernal-Merino serving once again as Summit Advisors. We received a lot of excellent feedback for improving the focus and depth of the Summit's content, building upon the inaugural Loc Summit in 2009.
The Call for Speakers is now CLOSED - CLICK HERE TO VIEW. We received a great batch of proposals and we're starting the process of review. The goal is to inform the final chosen speakers ASAP, but hopefully by early December. Lastly, we are still interested in obtaining corporate sponsors for the Loc Summit, so if any company is interested in sponsorship opportunities, please contact the SIG leadership ASAP.

Announcements

Loc SIG Email Distribution List:

The Loc SIG FINALLY has its own, unified email distribution list! We've been waiting for 2+ years for this capability from the IGDA, and it's finally been provided. For those of you who responded to the call for emails, your email has already been added to the SIG distribution list. For those of you who wish to join the DL or aren't sure if your email is including, please visit the Loc SIG DL Information Page to sign up (currently, we only have ~150 valid emails out of the 300+ people who are part of the Facebook, Yahoo and LinkedIn groups). This new email DL will be the PRIMARY method by which the SIG will send announcements and conduct discussions. The Facebook and LinkedIn groups will remain open, but might be used only for major announcements. The Yahoo group will be closed soon.

Loc SIG in IGDA-Japan!

We're very glad to announce that a few members of IGDA Japan have initiated the creation of a Localization SIG within the IGDA Japan structure. We consider this to be a sister group to this primary Loc SIG and look forward to working very closely with the IGDA-Japan Loc SIG leaders. If you are interested in participating in the IGDA-Japan Loc SIG, please contact the SIG organizer, Harry Inaba.

SIG Guidelines and a Call for Working Group Proposals: The SIG leadership has created a set of guidelines that will help govern the SIG as well as provide guidance on establishing Working Groups. We'd like to encourage all SIG members to read the guidelines and please think of how you'd like to contribute to the SIG efforts. A Working Group is an excellent way for members to accomplish tasks that might otherwise not be possible from within their own domain of control and a great way to spread the responsibilities of the SIG among interested and passionate members (not just the Steering Committee). The SIG guideline document is available here: Localization SIG Guidelines.

Events

9 March, 2010 - Localization Summit @ GDC 2010 (San Francisco):
The Loc SIG is already in the early stages of organizing activity for GDC 2010, once again in San Francisco. As mentioned above, a Call for Speaker Submissions for the Loc Summit ended on 15 November, 2009. We hope to see you at the Localization Summit, as well as at the annual Loc SIG meeting (time/date to be determined).

Note: all information about Past Events can be found here: Localization SIG Past Events
Do you know of an event involving or of interest to game localization? Are you speaking at such an event? Please let us know and we'll post the news here!

SIG Overview

Reason/need for a Localization SIG: The number of game industry and localization industry professionals who are engaged specifically and exclusively in games has been increasing in proportion to the industry's growth. This group of specialized professionals is currently split between either being more "game industry-oriented" or more "localization services-oriented", without an appropriate "home" in which the hybrid field of game localization can exist. The game localization practice contains its own unique challenges and solutions that would benefit from a community space in which its professionals can interact and grow in association with the games industry. At the same time, the utility software localization industry has been developing tools and workflows that the game industry could utilize to save time and money which would benefit everybody involved in the localization process, as well as the game industry and the gaming community.

SIG Objectives

Goals/Mission: To provide a focal point and nexus for the growing number of game localization professionals in order to build community, draw together best practices and processes, and emphasize the requisite international dimension of game content development towards the goal of improving global game development processes and local end user experiences.

Potential projects/Initiatives: Beyond the goal of drawing together and building community among those involved in game localization, the SIG would also seek to fulfill collaborative projects. Some possible examples include:

  • Game Localization Summit: Organize at least one annual, one-day game localization tutorial/seminar, preferably in conjunction and in association with one of the GDC events. This event was launched at GDC in 2009!
  • Activities at Industry Events: Ensure that the SIG has a clear presence at events like GDC, Localization World, etc.
  • Critical Localization Issues Guide: Compile the contributions of members from various locales to produce a guide for top localization issues in each major games market. This wouldn’t be a comprehensive encyclopedia, but would at least include the top 5 overlooked issues in each market.
  • Best Practices White Paper: Generate a game localization best practices white paper that contains the more generic practices and procedures that have proven useful across the industry, while remaining company-agnostic and obviously not proprietary.

SIG Leadership

The following individuals are the current leadership and steering committee for the Localization SIG:

SIG Guidelines

The SIG guidelines document is available here: Localization SIG Guidelines

How to Join and Get Involved

First and foremost, we encourage everyone who's interested in the SIG to first join the IGDA as a paying member - more information is available here: http://www.igda.org/join/. Your paid membership and affiliation with the Localization SIG will help support the SIG's activities.

Once you have a profile on the IGDA website, you can go to My Groups and edit your affiliations, make sure you make the "Localization" SIG one of them. Next, you need to join the official Loc SIG mailing list, indicated below. You can also join the Facebook and LinkedIn groups, but the mailing list will be the primary channel for ALL SIG-related communication.

Feel free to introduce yourself on the SIG mailing list, send ideas, and/or express your thoughts on game localization! Also, we have a Loc SIG Survey in place to gather your opinions on the SIG's goals, etc.: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=6ibhvNIKtilcOdyPwzwWnA_3d_3d.

Retrieved from "http://wiki.igda.org/Localization_SIG"
Personal tools