The use of the Catalan language in the video game industry

Abstract

Video games have become one of the most popular forms of entertainment in the 21st century. Their significance in society keeps increasing due to their important social functions, such as education and health, and their presence in an array of platforms: mobile phones, tablets, PCs, and consoles. The number of languages into which games are being localised is also increasing beyond the traditional French, Italian, German and Spanish to include Polish, Portuguese, and Russian. However, speakers of minority languages, such as Catalan, do not have access to a wide selection of games in their language and often have to play in a different one. This paper presents an analysis of the position of the Catalan language in the video games industry and compares it to the situation of this language on the Internet and in the computer software industry. It describes the situation of the video game industry in Catalonia and analyses what kind of games are available in Catalan, outlining the paucity of electronic games available to Catalan players. The paper also examines the steps and measures that are being taken by the Catalan Government and the Catalan gaming community to redress this situation and provides a number of ideas about how to promote the presence of Catalan in this ever-growing area of interactive audiovisual entertainment.

Keywords: video games; game localisation; Catalan video games; apps in Catalan; digital industry; promotion of the use of Catalan.