THE CHALLENGES OF IGAMING LOCALIZATION IN LATVIAN

As in a number of other languages, the Latvian localizers often struggle with concise button names. What is short and sweet in English, e.g., Autospin, Rebet etc. may require a longer phrase in Latvian, e.g., Automātiskie griezieni, Izdarīt likmi atkārtoti / Likt atkārtoti, respectively. Besides, even for such popular games as Poker, Baccarat, Craps etc. there is not generally accepted and unified terminology, which is at the discretion of the translator localizer/gaming operator. To avoid any confusion, the key terms, especially the ones featuring in the gaming interface, are oftentimes left in English and explained in Latvian in the rules section. Besides, seasoned gamers are used and understand the English terms, such as Natural in Blackjack, Full House hand in Poker, or Hardways bet in Craps.

On the other hand, the action words, such as Hit, Stand, Double Down etc. are usually translated to optimize the game process, although sometimes it means sacrificing accuracy to some extent for the sake of brevity. For example, Double Down in Blackjack essentially means doubling a bet after seeing one’s initial cards, with the requirement that one additional card be drawn. However, in Latvian, it would require an explanatory phrase, which would be way too long for a button name – along the lines of Dubultot un paņemt papildu kārti, so it is shortened to Dubultot (Double) or left in English altogether.

Another major issue is the word order. Gaming operators often presume the word order would be the same as in English, e.g., Spins Remaining, where this phrase would be preceded by a number. Let’s say: [10] Spins Remaining. In Latvian, the number should go in the middle of the phrase, e.g., Atlikuši 10 griezieni, but there is no option to form a coherent phrase as the translator is given only the phrase Remaining Spins. The outcome is a phrase understandable in the context, but awkward from the grammatical perspective: 10 atlikuši griezieni, where the number is dynamically populated by the gaming operator at a later stage.

There is another challenge that Latvian translators face on a regular basis that is the presumption that the same translation of the word will fit in any sentence or phrase. This may work in English – it being an analytic language (See Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analytic_language), which means that it is not necessary to change the form of the word to convey its role in the sentence, or, in other words, it is not necessary to use inflections. For example, in English Free Spins would remain the same in such phrases as 15 Free Spins, Win Additional Free Spins, Free Spins Feature etc. However, in Latvian, and, especially if a sentence is divided into several lines without the option of changing the word order, the same grammatical form most probably won’t work.

The phenomenon above does not pose any problem in a single string or segment. However, if the strings are broken up and presented in separate segments/rows and if the client presumes that they already have the translation of “Free Spins” and lock the respective segment, there is no way to create a grammatically sound phrase.

Things can get even more complex if we talk about the prepositions for a good measure. This pitfall is closely related to the word order and the fact that Latvian is a synthetic language (word endings change depending on their position in a sentence/phrase/plural/singular etc.). Again, it only poses a challenge if the client insists on translating prepositions separately. I am sure you’ve seen segments with just IN, ON, AT etc. Depending on the context, it may be possible to translate these on their own, but these are isolated instances. In most cases, you need a noun to accompany a preposition and create a phrase, or at least you must know the context! Therefore, we always recommend that the safest bet is to always double-check the risky segments with your trusted translator or reviewer and to avoid the approach ‘one translation fits all’.

Only professional Latvian translators with experience in iGaming lingo will be able to offer you the high-quality translation that you want to provide to your players. At All-in Global we are proud to only hire top world-class linguistics that are passionate about the gaming world. Contact us for more information about localizing your content in the Latvian market: salesteam@all-in.global