Some countries in Latin America are considered nowadays emerging markets and the video game industry is wisely redefining its marketing strategy in order to reach a potential new audience of millions through localization. But how? Obviously, this huge area is very heterogeneous so can the European Spanish be used for all territories? Or, as opposed to that, is a country-specific version required? Well, as usual, virtue lies in the middle ground.
Let’s have in mind that all products, in order to be successful, need to find a balance between budget and the scope as regards target localized versions since localization implies a cost for the publisher. This may be significant when several languages are involved. Addressing all Spanish-speaking American territories with a so-called Latin American version is an efficient way to reach a vast audience while keeping localization costs within reasonable limits.
In fact, this is the approach that most key companies are following for video game localization nowadays – games as important as League of Legends, Fable, and many other AAA titles reach Spanish-speaking audiences both sides of the Atlantic with just two versions: European Spanish and Latin American Spanish.
Still, besides the fact that this has proven to be a good approach with excellent ROI so far, we cannot disregard the key factor – target user satisfaction. In this sense, and to make things easier for everyone, this one-Latin American version for all Spanish-speaking American territories has a long tradition in TV and movies. Why not taking advantage of an existing solid and successful approach and implement it for the most demanding and exciting localization: Video games!
All things considered, they –the public in Latin America– are the ones to decide, and they say yes.
Soon we will be posting more information on Latin American Spanish localization related to translation or dubbing constraints so stay tuned!
