Project Management

So, you trust my skills, but you need more than just Dutch. You’ve read the tips on how to cut out the middleman and set up your own internal translation agency, but you simply don't have the time to keep your translators in line. You want a one-stop shop.

Even though I only speak English, Dutch, Japanese, and Chinese, I can still add massive value for you. If you go to a typical translation agency, you'll deal with project managers who might know a lot about project management but very little about translation, let alone game translation. Most project managers have never been translators themselves. But I've been in the trenches for over twenty-five years: translating since 1995 and playing games since 1985.

I work directly with big names in the gaming industry like Electronic Arts, SEGA, and Microsoft Game Studios. I know the people in the industry, and I know the translators working for them. The guy who translated Dragon Quest from Japanese to English? I know him. The person responsible for the Czech localization of The Witcher? He’s on my list.

True, I can't check if the Polish translation reads like an original. But neither can most translation agencies, and definitely not for every language they offer. Even the biggest agencies rely on external proofreaders. Sure, they might proofread "big" languages like French, Italian, German, and Spanish (FIGS) in-house, but that's about it. If you want a second check by external proofreaders, I can arrange that for you—just like any agency. Yes, it might cost more, but at least I'm honest about my added value. I won't pretend to read every language in the world, unlike most agencies.

For outsourced projects, I used to work with the Server Edition of memoQ, a 9,860-euro software package (plus 1,300 euros annually) for multilingual project management. But it wasn’t good enough. So, I built CATOTITUDE, a completely dogfed tool that’s constantly evolving. It has become more advanced than any other translation tool in the world. (By the way, CAT stands for Computer-Assisted Translation.)

The best part? Each game has its own formats and challenges. Because CATOTITUDE is developed in-house, I can adapt the tool to your needs instead of forcing you to adapt your code to mine. No agency in the world can offer this level of customization.

This software also lets me see exactly who translated what, when, and for whom. It features version history, rigorous checks for platform terminology, and all the tools needed to ensure your game’s localization gets raving reviews.

Plus, I know enough PHP, JavaScript, C#, C++, and MySQL to understand which parts of your code should be touched—and which should not. (Check out this small game I programmed myself.)

Last but not least, I speak, read, and write Japanese fluently. People say that mastering Japanese means you can accomplish anything. That might not be entirely true, but my affinity with an "exotic" language like Japanese gives me the necessary insight to solve linguistic challenges. As a coder, I understand your problems, and as a translator, I understand the problems my translators face, effectively bridging the gap between development and localization.

Interested? Request a quote and see what I can do for you.