At Nóvalo, as a translation agency in Malaga with video game translation (localization) as one of our main specialties, we did not want to miss the latest edition of Gamepolis! Gamepolis, the IV Festival of Video Games at Malaga which was held at Malaga on last weekend (22th-24th July), is an indispensable event to keep abreast of the trends from the industry that pull the strings economically in the world, so there we were!

The Festival gathered on its first day more than 10,000 people. A great weekend for gamers! There seems to be no end to the unstoppable growth of this industry, which in 2015 moved around 9,000 billion dollars and whose estimates are more than 11,330 billion dollars for 2018.

In Spain, this is an industry on the rise: just in 2015 it invoiced 1 billion Euros, an increase of nearly 9% over the previous year. This leaves no doubt: the video game market is king.

This year, the organizers have dedicated a special space for video games localization and have brought an expert in the field: the video games professional translator Ramón Méndez, in charge of the translation of important games, like The Witcher 3, Far Cry 4, Papers, Please, Thief or Assassin’s Creed Unity.

Ramón’s lecture was a success! In addition to bringing the inexperienced to the complex world of game translation, Ramón spoke about the localization process from beginning to end, explaining the role of all the actors involved and the inherent complications to the work process, and also shared fun anecdotes about the day to day work. In addition to explaining the need to adapt the game, not only linguistically but also culturally, the translator mentioned issues as current as professional interpretation in the gaming industry, a recent application of the world of translation to this leisure industry. The number of events relating to the video game industry has grown exponentially, so professional interpretation (and also translation) has become a need in the sector and an interesting opening for future professional translators.

The professional translator Ramón Méndez in his talk about video game localization.

The professional translator Ramón Méndez in his talk about video game localization.

Besides the interesting conference by this very experienced translator, this edition of Gamepolis was riddled with interesting proposals: gamers tournaments, exhibition games, bands in concert, exhibitions of renowned gamers, youtubers lectures, product presentations, various exhibitions (with a special space dedicated to the first video games and arcade games), and artwork and cosplay contest. A whole range of possibilities for gamers and fans so they could entertain themselves for hours in the Palacio de Congresos building in Malaga, which was receiving assistants from morning to night and during all weekend.

Some players in the middle of a game.

Some players in the middle of a game.

Our CEO Carlos Bolívar with some of the youtubers invited to the Festival.

Our CEO Carlos Bolívar with some of the youtubers invited to the Festival.

In short, a massive event that grows each year and has become in a very short time in a national model in the gaming industry.

Some members of Novalo team together with a member of the Gamepolis 2016 organization staff, Rafael Hurtado.

Some members of Novalo team together with a member of the Gamepolis 2016 organization staff, Rafael Hurtado.

From our translation agency Nóvalo, we want to convey our gratitude to the organizers who joined us during the day and to wish them the best of lucks for the future editions! See you in the next battle, gamers!