A definitive guide to video game dubbing

"All your base are belong to us." "A winner is you!" "I feel asleep." What do these weird phrases all have in common? They’re infamous video game translation mistakes.

As gamers know, localization and dubbing for video games are notoriously tricky to get spot on. The art of video game dubbing is a delicate dance between preserving the essence of the original and captivating audiences worldwide. 

But now, AI is having a transformative effect on the gaming industry—and the dubbing process is no exception.

Key takeaways

• Video game dubbing plays a core role in facilitating universal gaming experiences, transcending language barriers, and deepening player immersion.
• Thoughtful dubbing fosters inclusivity and cultural appreciation, broadening the appeal and accessibility of games worldwide.
• Traditional dubbing involves meticulous translation and voice casting to ensure linguistic and emotional consistency across languages. It's incredibly time-consuming and costly.
• However, tools like ElevenLabs are transforming the dubbing process, making it quicker, more cost-effective, and adaptable while maintaining quality.

Video game translation: What is video game dubbing?

Video game dubbing is a localization technique that involves replacing the original voice acting of a game with new recordings in a different language. This is done to make the game more accessible and enjoyable for players who may not be fluent in the original language.

Traditionally, dubbing has required a team of translators, voice actors, and sound engineers who work together to create a new audio track that matches the game's visuals and story.

Cultural adaptation in games: Why is video game dubbing important?

Video game dubbing isn't just about translation—it's a cultural dialogue. It carefully tweaks cultural references, humor, and sayings to strike a chord with players across the globe, crafting a gaming experience that's as authentic as it is enthralling. 

The impact of dubbing on the international gaming market is profound. In 2024, the video games market is projected to reach an astounding revenue of US$282.30bn, so game developers looking to reach this huge global audience must prioritize top-tier dubbing.

Unsurprisingly, games that undergo meticulous localization and dubbing often see a marked increase in sales over their untranslated counterparts. Speaking to gamers in their language, using references and sayings they're familiar with, makes them more immersive. And, ultimately, more enjoyable.

Voice acting in games: The traditional dubbing process 

The traditional dubbing process is a hefty undertaking, requiring plenty of time, effort, and expense. It involves several key steps.

Step 1: Script translation

Professional translators translate the original game script into the target language with accuracy and cultural relevance.

Step 2: Casting

A casting director selects suitable voice actors to portray the game's characters, based on voice quality, acting ability, and appropriateness for roles.

Step 3: Recording sessions

Voice actors record their dialogue in a studio, guided by a director.

Step 4: Lip-syncing

In cases where lip-syncing is necessary, actors synchronize performances with on-screen character lip movements

Step 5: Editing and mixing

Sound engineers edit and mix the recorded dialogue with the game's audio tracks for polish

Step 6: Quality assurance

Test and rectify errors and inconsistencies

Step 7: Localization checks

Linguists and cultural experts review for linguistic and cultural accuracy, considering the nuances of the target language

Step 8: Finalization

Once all revisions and adjustments are complete, the finalized dubbed version is integrated into the game, ready for distribution to players worldwide.

This traditional dubbing process ensures that the localized version of the game maintains the same quality and immersion as the original, allowing players from different linguistic backgrounds to enjoy the fullest gaming experience.

But innovators like ElevenLabs are opening up the possibility for developers to automate this process, cutting this lengthy process down to seconds. 

The challenges of video game dubbing

The traditional dubbing process is complex and time-consuming, which makes it a costly endeavor.

First, developers have to hire translators and voice actors. But hiring alone is just the first step. They then have to schedule multiple recording sessions, all while ensure consistency across languages and retaining the spirit of original voice performances.

What's more, translating humor, idioms, and cultural references for a global audience can be a tricky process requiring plenty of input from localization experts.

To overcome these challenges, game studios are increasingly looking to innovative AI tools to streamline their game development process.

How AI is transforming video game dubbing 

Using AI in game dubbing offers several transformative benefits.

First, AI-powered dubbing can significantly accelerate the game development process by automating various tasks such as script translation and voice synthesis. For example, ElevenLabs AI-powered dubbing can localize videos into 29 languages, in seconds.

Take a glimpse into how the dubbing studio works by watching the video below.

AI is also a far cheaper option, eliminating the need for video game developers to hire multiple voice actors and conduct extensive recording sessions. This cost-effectiveness makes video game localization more accessible to indie developers and smaller studios. 

Better yet, AI solutions are inherently scalable. Developers can use ElevenLabs' text-to speech to near-instantly create voices in one language, before turning to the dubbing studio to then translate this into multiple languages (29, in ElevenLabs' case).

By harnessing the power of AI tools ElevenLabs' dubbing suite, video game dubbing is quicker, cheaper, and easier than ever before. And it's only going to get better in the future.

Final thoughts 

Video game dubbing, video game localization, and voice acting in games plays a pivotal role in crafting universally engaging gaming narratives.

The advent of AI in game dubbing tools like ElevenLabs’ AI Dubbing Suite is transforming the industry, making the process quicker, more cost-effective, and adaptable while maintaining high quality and fostering innovation.

Ready to try AI-powered dubbing for yourself? Sign up today.

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