Do you know that Arabic video game culture is greatly influenced by cartoons? As children watch cartoons to entertain themselves, in the same way, adults play video games to relax. People love localized games as per the regional and linguistic preferences of the target market. Therefore, Arab countries try to translate games and go for video game translation services.
The Emergence of Video Games in Arab Culture
When cartoons and games are translated into Arabic and are localized to fit the Arabic culture then one question that comes to everyone’s mind is why Arab countries don’t try to make cartoons and video games in their native language. At the start of the 2000s, many new cartoon series was developed in the Middle East and they were turned into electronic games later. At that point, the young generation watched cartoons so it became very difficult to release new games and make them popular. So, youngsters started adapting Japanese anime and Western cartoons to promote the video game industry in the Arab world.
Gaming Industry of Arab
The Middle East is not only a lucrative market for oil only. However, it is also a stable market for the gaming industry. People from developing countries ask their relatives to send them modern games from there. These games are in different forms like consoles, PC, and mobile phones. When these games reach developing countries, people go for video game translation. In this way, they can enjoy the game to the fullest without any communication barrier.
In the Middle East, 22 countries use Arabic as their native language. Therefore, if you are in the gaming industry and want to launch your game in the Middle East then you must go for Arabic translation services. One important thing to note about Arabic video game culture is that use of violence in the games is prohibited. No doubt, most of the games are developed to cater to the Western world but to penetrate the Arab markets, you must hire a professional translation agency. These agencies can provide you with robust game localization and translation services so that you can make your place in the Arab culture and market.
Video Game Localization in the Middle East
Many regional gaming organizations and conventions are working in the Middle East. Therefore, the number of startups in the Middle East with lots of gaming events shows the strength of the Arabic gaming market. Thus, many Chinese, Japanese, European, and American game publishers are trying to tap into this region. They can do this only if they go for game localization.
Video games and cartoons localization is not about translating them. The most important part of localization is to make a game or cartoon fit the country’s culture. For this reason, you need to develop harmony between the image, color, sound, and language. If you miss any part of the game, avid gamers won’t have a pleasant gaming experience and they will look for other games.
The Gaming market in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia is the hub of the gaming industry in Arab countries. Let’s find out about the success of this industry in Saudi Arabia.
- Saudi Arabia holds the 19th position for earning massive revenue. Thus making the gaming industry of Saudia Arabia the largest in the Arab world.
- The people of Saudia Arabia spend more than 25 million dollars on video games than the developed countries of the world, especially the USA. Therefore, the Saudi Gaming market is one of the best markets to invest in. The critical thing to note is that Saudi Arabian spend three times more on games per day compared to Chinese and American gamers.
- With a population of 34 million, 26 million people use the internet which shows that these 26 million people can download games easily from the internet.
- The number of smartphone users in Saudi Arabia is 22.7 million which is 68.3% of the total population. Thus, this massive population plays games on smartphones. According to one of the surveys, 46% of Middle East people play games on cell phones, and 88% of millennials in Saudi Arabia enjoy electronic games.
- The massive growth of Saudi Arabia’s gaming market is a valid reason to invest in this region. There is no risk because the gaming behavior of avid gamers in Saudi Arabia is identical to the behavior of other Middle East countries. 90% of the young generation uses smartphones in Arab countries. Thus, it provides you with ample business opportunities in the gaming industry.
Wrapping Up
The success to key in the video game industry is to translate and localize the game wisely. Localization task does not require Arabic language proficiency only, it also requires cultural and regional intricacies. While localizing your game for Arabic countries, you must check the writing directions. This is because people write Arabic from right to left, and pay special attention to details. For this reason, you must hire a professional translation company. They have a team of native translators with prior experience in the gaming industry. Therefore, they provide you with impeccable game translation and localization services. In addition to it, they consider Arabic culture which is different from the West.