Cover not available

Article published In: Digital Translation
Vol. 12:1 (2025) ► pp.39–61

Get fulltext from our e-platform
JBE logo with link
PDF logo with download linkDownload PDF
EPUB logo with download linkDownload EPUB
authorization required

An eco-translatology-based comparison of localization in simplified and traditional Chinese locales

A case study of Hearthstone

ORCiD logo with link | National University of Singapore
Published online: 7 July 2025
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/dt.24003.che
Abstract
Through an examination of the three dimensions of eco-translatology, this study aims to identify the localization characteristics and differences in Hearthstone between the simplified and traditional Chinese locales, with the intention that the results can serve as guidelines for future localization projects for the two markets. In the linguistic dimension, faithful translation is the most frequently adopted strategy, although traditional Chinese teams sometimes rewrite text to enhance the entertainment level. In the cultural dimension, straightforward and simple wording in the source text again results in the most frequent use of faithful translation, and the traditional Chinese team still employs rewriting to create humor. Finally, to fulfill the expected effect in the communicative dimension, five transcreation strategies are identified in both localized versions, namely, re-creation of wordplay, contextualization by rewriting, referring to the Warcraft universe elements or regional expressions, imitation of the Chinese literary form, and use of political satire. The current findings can inform future localization teams, as well as future researchers who aim to investigate the strategies used in the two Chinese locales.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Delineating eco-translatology
  • 3.Research aim
  • 4.Research materials
  • 5.Localization context
  • 6.Method and analytical framework
  • 7.Results
  • 8.Discussion
    • 8.1Linguistic transformation
    • 8.2Cultural transformation
    • 8.3Communicative transformation
      • 8.3.1Re-creation of wordplay
      • 8.3.2Contextualization by rewriting
      • 8.3.3Referring to the Warcraft universe elements or regional expressions
      • 8.3.4Imitation of the Chinese literary form
      • 8.3.5Use of political satire
  • 9.Key insights from the comparison between the SC and TC versions
  • 10.Concluding remarks
  • References
References (38)
References
Bernal-Merino, Miguel Á. 2006. “On the Translation of Video Games.” JoSTrans 61. Accessed January 15, 2024. [URL]
2017. Translation and Localisation in Video Games: Making Entertainment Software Global. London/New York: Routledge.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Berry, David M. 2008. Copy, Rip, Burn: The Politics of Copyleft and Open Source. London: Pluto Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Carlson, Rebecca, and Jonathan Corliss. 2011. “Imagined Commodities: Video Game Localization and Mythologies of Cultural Difference.” Games and Culture 6(1):61–82. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Chandler, Maxwell Heather, and Stephanie O’Malley Deming. 2011. The Game Localization Handbook (2nd ed.). Burlington: Jones and Bartlett Learning.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Chang, Gina Chiu. 2014. “Film Translation in Chinese Mainland and Taiwan — A Theoretical Exploration of Intercultural Communication across the Strait.” International Journal of Comparative Literature & Translation Studies 2(3):24–35. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Đorđevića, Jasmina P., and Dušan Stamenković. 2020. “The Influence of Monomodal and Multimodal Presentation on Translation Error Recognition: An Empirical Approach.” Perspectives 29(6):833–848. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Fandom. 2021. “Dark Portal.” Accessed on January 20, 2024. [URL]
Fernández Costales, Alberto. 2012. “Exploring Translation Strategies in Video Game Localization.” MonTI 41:385–408. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2014. “Video Game Localisation: Adapting Superheroes to Different Cultures.” Quaderns: Revista de Traducció 211:225–239.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Fry, Deborah, and Arle Lommel. 2003. LISA: The Localization Industry Primer (2nd ed.). Accessed on January 20, 2024. [URL]
Gamepedia. 2021. “Murgur Murgurgle.” Accessed on June 12, 2021. [URL]
Hearthstone. 2021. “Year of the Phoenix in Review.” Accessed on June 1, 2021. [URL]
Hu, Gengshen. 2004. 翻译适应选择论 [Approach to Translation as Adaptation and Selection]. Wuhan: Hubei Education Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2011. “生态翻译学的研究焦点与理论视角 [The Research Focus and Theoretical Perspective of Eco-translatology].” Chinese Translators Journal 21:5–9.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2013. 生态翻译学：建构与诠释 [Eco-translatology Construction and Interpretation]. Beijing: The Commercial Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Hu, Gengshen and Tao, Youlan. 2016. “Eco-Translatology: A New Paradigm of Eco-translation — A Comparative Study on Approaches to Translation Studies.” T&I Review 61:115–131.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Hu, Gengshen. 2020. Eco-Translatology Towards an Eco-paradigm of Translation Studies. Singapore: Springer. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Hung, Yi-Chun. 2010. An Analysis on the Translation of Hollywood Film Titles between Mainland China and Taiwan. M.A. Thesis, unpublished. Taipei: National Taiwan Normal University. Accessed on June 12, 2023. [URL]
Jiang, Xiaohua. 2015. ““Eco” and “Adaptation-Selection” in Eco-Translatology Explained.” In Translation and Academic Journals, edited by Yifeng Sun, 135–148. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Juul, Jesper. 2005. Half-Real: Video Games between Real Rules and Fictional Worlds. Cambridge: The MIT Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ku, Wan-Yu. 2020. A Comparison of English Movie Title Translation Strategies: A Case Study of Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Mainland China. M.A. Thesis, unpublished. Changhua: National Changhua University of Education. Accessed on May 21, 2023. [URL]
Ma, Jing. 2014. “The English Translation of Public Signs in Qingdao — From the Perspective of Eco-Translatology.” Theory and Practice in Language Studies 4(12):2527–2532. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mangiron, Carmen. 2021. “Found in Translation: Evolving Approaches for the Localization of Japanese Video Games.” Arts 101: 9. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mangiron, Carmen, and Minako O’Hagan. 2006. “Game Localisation: Unleashing Imagination with ‘Restricted’ Translation.” JoSTrans 61: 10–21.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mangiron, Carmen, and Xiaochun Zhang. 2016. “Game Accessibility for the Blind: Current Overview and the Potential Application of Audio Description as the Way Forward.” In Researching Audio Description: New Approaches, edited by Anna Matamala and Pilar Orero, 75–96. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mejías-Climent, Laura. 2018. “Multimodality and Dubbing in Video Games: A Research Approach.” Linguistica Antverpiensia, New Series: Themes in Translation Studies 171:99–113.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Newmark, Peter. 1988. A Textbook of Translation. London: Prentice Hall.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
O’Hagan, Minako. 2015. “Game Localisation as Software-Mediated Cultural Experience: Shedding Light on the Changing Role of Translation in Intercultural Communication in the Digital Age.” Multilingua 34(6):747–771. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2019. “Game Localization: A Critical Overview and Implications for Audiovisual Translation.” In The Routledge Handbook of Audiovisual Translation, edited by Luis Pérez-González, 145–159. London/New York: Routledge. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
O’Hagan, Minako, and Carmen Mangiron. 2013. Game Localization: Translating for the Global Digital Industry. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Peng, Wenqing. 2021. “Video game localization as homecoming in Total War: Three Kingdoms.” The Translator 28(1):1–17.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Robertson, Wes. 2020. “Unspeakable puns: kanji-dependent wordplay as a localization strategy in Japanese.” Perspectives 28(4):606–624. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Song, Zhiping, and Gengshen Hu. 2016. “翻译研究若干关键问题的生态翻译学解释 [An Eco-translatology-based Explanation of Some Key Issues in Translation Studies].” Foreign Language Education Waiyu Jaioxue 11:107–111.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Van Oers, Annelies. 2014. “Translation strategies and video game translation: A case study of Beyond Good and Evil.” In Fun for All: Translation and Accessibility Practices in Video Games, edited by Carmen Mangiron, Pilar Orero, and Minako O’Hagan, 129–148. Bern: Peter Lang.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Wang, Ning. 2011. “生态文学与生态翻译学:解构与建构 [Eco-literature and Eco-translatology: Deconstruction and Construction].” Chinese Translators Journal 21:10–15.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Wang, Yang. 2023. “Translation strategies for game localization from the “Three-Dimensional Transformation” perspective of Eco-Translatology — A case study on MU Origin 3.” Modern Linguistics 11(11). Accessed on June 25, 2024. [URL]
Xing, Panpan, and Zuo, Haiqing. 2023. “Localization of translation strategies of game websites from the perspective of Eco-translation studies.” International Journal of Education and Humanities 10(1):252–255. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mobile Menu Logo with link to supplementary files background Layer 1 prag Twitter_Logo_Blue