JRPG developer Falcom contemplating AI for localization efficiency

Non-English game developers may soon be looking toward AI as a means to shorten localization times.

In an interview with 4Gamer (translated by Siliconera) at Tokyo Game Show, Nihon Falcom president Toshihiro Kondo posited the idea of using artificial intelligence to more quickly localize games developed in the Japanese language. Kondo took the stage after a demonstration of ELLA, software created for the purpose of localizing a game’s text in multiple languages, using it in a hypothetical instance for Nihon Falcom’s Legend of Heroes: Kai no Kiseki, another Falcom game known for immense scripts.

Kondo stated that he believed this process of AI translation would speed up translating games into multiple languages, though he thought that a human still needed to make a final pass on the script before it gets applied to the games. He also acknowledged that there’s cultural pushback to using AI in game development and that it could cost jobs.

He also added that even Falcom staff in non-localization divisions, such as designers and artists, push back against using AI. There is a fear from artists that their illustrations will be used for AI learning that they do not consent to. Kondo is hoping these objections can be solved in the future, as he believes that localization AI will be a benefit.

Nihon Falcom, as Kondo notes, does indeed take a lot of time between Japanese-language releases and localizations. The upcoming Ys X: Nordics released in Japan over one year ago but will only release in America in late October. On the other hand, the release of Ys VIII in 2018 required localization company NISA to formally apologize and redo the entire game’s script due to a messy and fast translation, so acting in the name of expediency has proven negative for Falcom games in the past.

Still, localization through AI has been feeling inevitable for the translation industry for some time, so perhaps Kondo is thinking ahead of the curve.