From the Devs: It’s a Local Treasure Hunt
Oh, well fancy running into you here! Has another week passed already? Time sure does fly when you are having fun (and are promoting localization). Anyways, onto the show!
In this entry of “From the Devs” we are delighted to have HenryDev, who spoke to us about translating his breakout success, Treasure Hunt Simulator, into Spanish!
Henry started about a hundred games before hitting the front page with Treasure Hunt Simulator, which took no prisoners (only treasure) as it stormed up the rankings. Of course, this is not to say that each game was unsuccessful — in fact, it is quite the contrary! Each one helped Henry learn, improve, and develop until he was able to synthesize it all together and with some smart market research produced Treasure Hunt Simulator, which is currently a top ten earning game! It just goes to show that not all who wander are lost.
Roblox: Can you please tell us how you started translating your game?
Henry: At first, I began translating my game on my own using the Google translate method. This was demonstrated in the developer tutorial video that Roblox produced upon the release of the Localization service. However, I knew that Google’s translator would have syntax errors, so I asked one of my long-time friends, who is fluent in both English and Spanish, to help me. He and I met several years ago through Roblox development and had worked together as development partners in the past. As a result, he was willing to help me translate my game to Spanish.
Roblox: How did you choose which languages to translate your game into?
Henry: Upon the release of the localization service, I knew that I wanted to translate Treasure Hunt Simulator to Spanish. This language was the obvious first choice because it was the only language besides English that I could test through studio. Also, I knew that there where many people playing my games that could really benefit from translation into Spanish. I hope to soon release localized versions of my game in many other languages so that people all over the world can enjoy my game!
Roblox: What challenges did you run into while translating the game?
Henry: The greatest challenge I faced while translating my game was going through my game and making sure that everything that needed to be translated was translated. There was also a lot of unnecessary text that showed up in the spreadsheet (like player’s names) that did not need translation and had to be deleted.
Roblox: What advice would you give someone who wanted to get their game translated?
Henry: It might seem like a lot of work to translate your game, but after it’s complete it will be worth it. Not to mention, seeing your game for the first time in another language is really cool as well!
Thanks a lot to HenryDev for answering our questions! And if any of you are particularly inspired to set sail for adventure and lost treasure, then good on you and may the wind be at your back! For the rest, if you are interested in adding Spanish (or another language) to your game, you can find excellent translators on our Job Board on the Developer Forum.
To find out more about localizing your game, check out our developer portal.
If you’d like to find out more about Henry’s games, check out Treasure Hunt Simulator
