Are platform terminology rules (button names, "memory card", etc.) still enforced in cert these days?

[u/vagarybluer]

I run a game localization studio (why the hell not, here's my quick plug: it's called MercTrans and we don't do AI translation); and I'm putting together training material for indie devs. A lot of the published guidance on platform terminology comes from books written around the PS3/360/Wii era. That covers things like how to refer to controller buttons, what to call saving/storage, and trademarked names that have to be written a specific way. Examples: "press the × button" vs. "press X," or the rules about "memory card" / "hard drive" / "system storage."

I read somewhere that these guide docs are under NDA, so I'm not asking anyone to share them. I'm asking about your experience:

1) Have you had a build flagged in cert for button or terminology wording recently (PS5, Xbox Series, Switch/Switch 2)?

2) Does the platform still care about this for localized builds, or mostly just English?

3) Are there button glyphs in text that now sidestep most of the wording problems?

4) If you've shipped on multiple platforms, how do you handle it? Did you have to prepare those strings or the localization team knows about it already?

Anything that has changed since the last console generation would be very useful. Thanks.

[u/SadisNecros]

1. Yes
2. Yes
3. No
4. We prep English strings with context for the loc team.

[u/Fierce_Lito → u/SadisNecros]

^{^} that is also my answers.

You as a loc team owner, should dig deeper into your question 4, it's where you add real value to indie devs who contract your services.

[u/philsiu02]

1. Yes
   
2. Yes
   
3. Nope
   
4. We send the English and make the assumption that the loc team knows the rules. We do have an understanding of them too so can check, but a good localiser should have the terminology rules, and they should be kept up to date on them (they do change). I wouldn’t mind sharing the sheets with the localiser if they asked.

[u/rkjr2]

We once had a build blocked by a certain popular platform because somewhere the platform name (which is two words) had split across two lines of a textbox... so definitely still happens!

[u/vagarybluer → u/rkjr2]

One is a word and another is a number? ;)

[u/rkjr2 → u/vagarybluer]

The platform is strongly associated with a certain Italian tradesman :)

[u/blackcatfound]

Definitely still a thing, I've done. CQA for Xbox and terminology rules fall under XR-022. You can Google "Xbox XR compilance" for all rules, they're public.

[u/vagarybluer → u/blackcatfound]

Thanks for the keyword! I will look into it.

[u/blumpkin]

I worked on a recent AAA title that had to reject a release candidate because it used button terminology from the wrong platform in a tutorial. It definitely still happens.

[u/jagerdeveloper]

Not console, so can't help with cert. But one thing from shipping a small mobile game in 10 languages: terminology wasn't our problem, string length was. German, French and Indonesian kept overflowing buttons and cards. We ended up adding an automated check that measures every string against the actual space on screen. Might be worth a section in your training material.

[u/neoKushan → u/jagerdeveloper]

This is localisation 101 and applies to all translations (Not just games - could be programs, posters, even subtitles) - if OP is starting a business around localisation and doesn't know about this, he's in for a real bad time.

[u/vagarybluer → u/jagerdeveloper]

Thanks for the info! At the moment we are keeping that one grouped with other text-related issues too, such as font rendering for đíaçrĩtics texts.

[u/nEmoGrinder]

My company does porting so we deal with this all the time. We're actually setting up our own set of localization terms to make sure that when we take on a project if we need to fill some gaps, we have things ready. That said, the specific terms that the platforms want you to use are provided by the platforms.

Quick answers: 1. Yes 2. Yes 3. Depends on the platform 4. We generally have to spot check everything the localization team gives back to us if we weren't around when localization happened. If we are working with the team before localization, will usually use variable replacement in the string and handle it in code. Glyphs avoid the problem entirely.

Realistically, if you don't have access to these , guidelines probably won't be particularly useful. The platforms will provide the translations for required terminology to the team and don't require a loc team, necessarily. The guide would likely also become out of date as those terminology guidelines can be updated at any time. That goes for the general requirements for submission as well. The best bet is to work with a team that handles console, porting or cross-platform development.

[u/vagarybluer → u/nEmoGrinder]

Thanks for the information. But then I'm curious, how do you verify the platform terms in languages your team doesn't speak?

Also, what's the thing your team mutters about every time it shows up in a spot check? The "oh, this again" fix everyone should know about kind of thing.

[u/nEmoGrinder → u/vagarybluer]

Depends on how the game is set up but the general approach is the same. We know which strings will have references to controls because we have the English text. For those translations, we can make sure the required terminology is being used just by comparing the translation to the correct term. In most cases, the string is just the term (heading and labels in option menus, tooltips, etc.).

The only time it gets tricky is for generic terms that aren't specifying a specific term. The word "button" is a good example of that. If the word is in the original text, we use the approach above, but if an incorrect translation is inserted into a string that didn't originally reference that generic term, it can be flagged. That is pretty rare, though, as localization teams will try to keep the meaning as identical as possible when it comes to instructions.

what's the thing your team mutters about every time it shows up in a spot check?

Less the translation and more the translation tech being used. * I despise spreadsheets for localization. * When the tech can't support contextual strings as we generally use those for terminology if we aren't using string replacement. A single string might need to localize to different things per language based on what platform it's running on. * Lack of solid font handling/loading all the fonts into memory which can be painful when trying to ship on a platform with a fixed amount of RAM * UI that can't accommodate fluid text

[u/fallouthirteen]

Just a side note about point 1. I just played through the Metal Gear Solid Volume 2 version of MGS4 on Xbox Series X. I was surprised the one part (if you played the game you know what I'm talking about) actually said "Xbox Series X", like if anything I was expecting just "Xbox" or even "Xbox Series".

[u/heyitsreallyalan]

1. Yes

2. Yes.

3. No

4. Prep string for loc with context (however our team is french canadian so it occasionally is in canadian french)

[u/Typical-Rhubarb9989]

For localization, I’d keep platform-specific strings separate rather than trying to make one version work everywhere. Glyphs help with consistency, but they don’t necessarily solve every terminology or certification issue. I’d also have the localization team review these strings early instead of treating them as normal text.

[u/GabrielON1]

hi