Abstract:

Problems and perspectives of intercultural communication remain highly relevant in the current circumstances of ongoing technical progress and ever-rising demand for computer products among which the entertainment industry achievements prevail the most. Russian-speaking gamers make up an impressive part of the world gaming community, though still feel non-confident in understanding the English language, which in case of lack of translation or its bad quality leads to their frustration and adverse response to the gaming industry innovations. Regarding the interaction of both the culture of the native language and the culture of the foreign language in the course of localizing computer games, the process of complex adaptation of a computer game involves its content modification in such a specific way that the culture of the foreign nation is being properly introduced into the new localized version of the game [Pyae, 2018]. Concerning this, a good localizer, besides language skills, has to acquire adequate knowledge of context, sense of tolerance, sociocultural sensitivity and even gaming experience which are projected onto the story line of the computer game and define the commercial success of the latter in its localized version. This paper focuses on certain challenges a translator faces when localizing the game “Disco Elysium” for Russian-speaking audience and reveals the necessity of designing a curriculum of the university practical translation course. The above mentioned project, being part of an optional course in translation developed at the department of foreign languages of the arts faculty, mainly refers to pre-translating preparation in which special attention is given first and foremost to the investigation of language features (in English and Russian) reflecting ethnicity as important component of modern communication. The research presents the analysis of localization of the game and points out areas of teaching specific skills. Thus, the curriculum, being designed, can provide a deep insight into the characters’ world and motivates students to develop ability to translate national concepts and implicated meanings. “Disco Elysium” is distinguished by an extremely thoughtful game universe, the reality of which is based on the stories of different countries, world classical and pop cultures, references to which often appear in the text of the game and require special attention. It would therefore be practical to identify the competencies the development of which will allow translators to successfully localize texts with the preservation of culturally significant components of the original and adapt them to the norms of the recipient country [Pym, 2003]. The findings of this research contribute to translation training classes and can be used in any further investigations related to the issue of localization.

Keywords:

“Disco Elysium” localization, intercultural competence, localization training, translation training.