The Best Target Languages for Indonesian Game Localization

It is important to remember that the gaming ecosystem in Indonesia is currently growing stronger, from the roots to the leaves. The gaming market in Indonesia is in the 3rd largest position in the world with 3.45 billion downloads in 2022 (Data.ai, 2023). From an economic perspective, Statista estimates that the total profits from the Indonesian gaming industry will reach US$3.667 million in 2024 with an annual increase of 8,45%. This revenue is mainly derived from game top-ups and advertising services.

Moreover, many games made in Indonesia currently occupy the number one position on the Steam platform. This further strengthens the evidence that Indonesia has great potential in producing quality and highly competitive games, not only on the national market but also on the international stage.

Therefore, it is not surprising that many Indonesian game developers want to explore bigger market opportunities abroad. The question is, which market should be focused on? And in what language should the game be localized to have good sales in the target market? If you have the same dilemma, check out the following article which will discuss the top target languages ​​to start your Indonesian game localization.

How to Choose the Right Target Language for Game Localization Needs?

There are no patent guidelines for choosing the right language for localizing Indonesian games. However, your choice of target language must be in accordance with your business goals and revenue model, the characteristics of your game, and market expectations. Here's the explanation!

1. Adjust to Revenue Model

Players from diverse language backgrounds enjoy different types of games and exhibit varying purchasing habits. To achieve success, localize your game for regions where players are inclined to prefer game genres similar to yours. Additionally, ensure that your game supports your revenue model (ads or in-game purchases) in those areas. If you rely on ad revenue and want to maximize downloads, investigate whether your game genre is popular in specific regions. For example, if you're localizing a Hyper Casual, Action: Arcade, or Puzzle game, consider languages like German, French, or English (for the US, UK, and Australia) because speakers of these languages frequently download these types of games.

On the other hand, if your game revenue is based on in-game purchases, make sure that players in certain regions regularly make in-game purchases for your game genre. For instance, for MMORPG or Party Battler games, focusing on Korean, Japanese, Chinese, and Taiwanese audiences can be advantageous since they commonly make in-game purchases for these genres.

Keep in mind that download and purchase patterns may vary by gaming platform (e.g., Google Play and Apple App Store for mobile games). Therefore, it is essential to analyze download and purchase data for the specific platforms you are targeting.

2. Study Competitor’s Local Games

One important way to choose a target language for Indonesian game localization is to study local games from your competitors. While your game's genre and revenue model are very important, you also need to consider whether it makes sense to compete with certain industry players in a region. Avoid immediately translating your game into the language that is easiest to understand – think realistically first. You'll likely be competing with companies that have stronger prospects and larger localization budgets.

If competition in a particular region for your game genre is fierce, it may be wise to look for another region. Many gaming companies today adopt expansion strategies that focus on less competitive markets, such as Arabic-speaking countries or small countries in Europe. By studying local games from competitors, you can also discover missed opportunities, such as whether their games fail to meet the expectations of residents. It could be an advantage for you to enter that market by offering games that better suit the wants and needs of local players.

3. Find Out About Different Market Expectations

When choosing a target language for Indonesian game localization, it is important to understand that different markets have different expectations when it comes to game localization.

Some gamers from certain regions will definitely expect their games to be only partially localized, while others want complete localization. This provides a good opportunity for companies looking to localize their games on a limited budget. Game localization comes in several levels, and as a game developer, you are feel-free to stop at one level or go further. Of course, the deeper level of localization you choose, the higher the costs (though the gaming experience also becomes more immersive). Your decision on how far to progress will also be influenced by the nature of your game, including how much text is involved.

For example, if you plan to expand the reach of your Indonesian language game to Poland, the Netherlands, and the UAE, a wise decision would be to carry out level 2 localization, namely localizing the text in the game, including subtitles (for example, Sony and Bethesda). Research shows that around 77% of Dutch gamers prefer subtitles to voice dialogue, as this option allows them to still hear the game's original soundtrack. Likewise, of the 613 Arabic-speaking respondents surveyed, almost two-thirds (64.27%) preferred partial localization (text only). On the other hand, to reach the French, Italian, Spain, German, or Asia markets, it is better to provide fully localized games (level 3: voice-over localization).

4. Assess the English Language Skills of Your Target Market

Before investing in Indonesian game localization to foreign markets, you should consider how good the English language skills of potential players are in the target market. Do they have a strong grasp of English or prefer to use their own language? This will help you determine whether you need to do level 1 localization (optimize keywords, screenshots, app description, and title), level 2 localization (localize subtitle text), or level 3 localization (full sound).

To assess the English language skills of your target market, you can check the language specifications in the T-Index or EF English Proficiency Index. This information is important to know which countries may be less accepting of games without localization (especially in countries with low or very low English proficiency).

What are the Most Popular Target Languages ​​for Indonesian Game Localization?

According to data from Newzoo, the top ten markets and countries by revenue in 2022 are:

• United States
• China
• Japan
• South Korea
• German
• UK
• French
• Canada
• Italy
• Brazil

Overall, these 10 countries account for nearly 78% of global income. Meanwhile, data from Logrus IT shows that the languages ​​most used by gamers on the Steam platform are:

English (33.19%)

Using English opens up access to large gaming markets such as the United States. It is highly recommended to localize your game into English, as many gamers prefer English games if the localization is quality. If you want to expand to the US and UK and your game has audio, make sure the dubbing is available in both American and British English.

Simplified Chinese (31.69%)

Simplified Chinese is the most common dialect in China. However, investing in Indonesian game localization into this language can be very challenging for international companies and game developers, especially non-Asian ones, due to large cultural differences and an official approval process that can take months.

Russian (9.16%)

Russian is the third most popular language for game localization industry (based on Steam). Targeting your game to Russians allows one to reach users from Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan; however, trying not to bring up sensitive subjects like LGBT issues, religion insinuations or all events that occurred during the WWII – is of particular importance. One example of an Indonesian game that localizes its downloaded content (DLC) into Russian is DreadOut. In the future, the developer also plans to support Spanish.

Spanish (4.19%)

Did you know that Spanish speakers make up nearly 20% of the US population and include Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, and Spain? Investing in Indonesian game localization into Spanish can open up access to this huge market. However, remember that Spanish has various dialects, so choose the dialect that suits your target region

German (2.76%)

Using this language, you can reach gamers in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Lichtenstein. However, the German audience prefers simplicity and does not like exaggeration. When writing marketing text, avoid descriptions like "the best game in the world" or "better than all other games." Use simple diction choices to attract their support.

Japanese (2.41%)

It cannot be denied that Japanese is highly sought after for game localization considering the large number of game fans in Japan. However, localized versions must also follow strict linguistic quality assurance (LQA) as the Japanese market highly values ​​perfection and attention to detail. Take for example Escape from Naraka, this game made in Indonesia is available in Japanese in terms of interface and subtitles, as well as in Simplified Chinese, Korean, Spanish, and Russian. Meanwhile, in English, the localization version is full VO.

French (2.11%)

France was the 6th top market in the world, worth $3.8 billion USD (in 2019). By localizing your Indonesian games available in French, you won't just reach more gamers in France but also in places like Belgium, Switzerland, Canada, and some countries in Africa.

Korean (1.46%)

As many as 70.5% of South Korea's population are gamers. If you want to invest in Indonesian game localization into Korean, consider developing video games with additional multiplayer features, in-game chat, and social media.

So, should we just focus on the most popular languages? It is allowed! However, the challenge is that the more popular a country is, the tougher the competition becomes. For example, the US market is very competitive, while the markets in Japan and China, although profitable, may not always be suitable for all types of graphics or game genres.

Therefore, you need to not only rely on a highly competitive market but also consider developing countries that can provide significant downloads and adequate profits. Alternatively, you can target languages ​​later on the list, such as Southeast Asian languages ​​(such as Indonesian, Thai, Vietnamese), Arabic, Australian, and Hong Kong. Interestingly, some of these target languages ​​also have large gaming markets with high download numbers. An example of a game that you can emulate is Genshin Impact which not only focuses on the popular English, Japanese, and Mandarin languages but also Indonesian and Vietnamese.

Need Help for Your Indonesian Game Localization?

Is the language you want to use for the Indonesian game localization included in the list above? Whether you're focusing on localization levels 1, 2, or 3, then certainly it means that you ought to have a partnership with an expert agency that does localization.

At Digital Trans-Asia, we offer a wide range of translation dan localization services and like Ragnarok Online, Genshin Impact, Metal Slug Awakening, and Honkai Impact 3rd, some examples of the projects we’ve worked on.

We master various languages, from popular ones such as English, Japanese, Korean, and Mandarin, to potential ones such as Thai, Indonesian, and Vietnamese. For more insight into game localization, be sure to visit our services page.