Comment on I'm A Game Dev Who Got Layed Off From His Non-Game Dev Job
BigPotato@lemmy.world 3 days agoLike, part of me is curious what your rate is now but I’m not actually planning a commission so is that, like, rude to ask?
I was trying to find a translation for a PSP game and couldn’t find any online but I had no idea how much one might cost to commission but I guess a single game would be cheaper than a whole series…
rursta@retrolemmy.com 3 days ago
It depends on the type of work you’re asking.
If you only want a transcription, with no notes, alternative interpretations, directions, dictions, etc., it can be really cheap on the quality you’re seeking. The requester had asked several additional things than just a transcription: typesetting, font work, editing, translation notes, sfx, 擬態語, 擬容語, hosting, etc… Scanlation was more than he could afford for a singular chapter, even at a salaried rate.
For a PSP, it is correct that a single game is cheaper than a whole series, but not many people buy a transcription to a game linearly. Games have options, branches, game lingo, settings, impact, etc… It’s not just asking “does character A do this action Y” but “goal YZK is achieved by the exact complicated arrangements of GOHEDOTN, in order to progress branch Σ of mode O.” Often too, we are requested to reverse engineer parts of the game to make an appropriate working non-hazardous patch file, so the game emulates the origin language narratives as close as target language can yield. Meaning, game design elements need to be considered as well as testing and quality assurance. Making game localization one of the most expensive media to localize, while also one of the most cut-throat professions to that budgets are eliminated first.
So depending how large and convoluted the game is, you’re asking in the tens thousands and up. Maybe up to a million and some change. It reads like a lot, but recall, every part of game localization needs to be tested, retested, and attested. It’s not as simple as transcribing a visual novel, even if some VNs break conventions and standards.
And unlike most cut-throat localizers, I am politically, financial, and media literate, meaning, I shan’tbe asking for Iranian Rial when I know I can ask for Kuwaiti dinar. I want to be compensated fairly, and anyone I hire to to work I know I will need to iron out work that I am not strong in. Say e.g. the game is a rhythm-music game, I already know I will need to hire a sound editor to assure the localized songs emulate more than just voice synthesized melodies, no? I know my strengths and weaknesses. I also know the importance of having another person than a client and I review our work, and mediate conflicts. Last thing I want is to get sued for not owning rights to the work that was commissioned. NDAs cost plenty more than doing open commissions.