There exist several other plugins to facilitate localizing your game, but as far as I know, all of them take a different approach, and personally, I just don’t like their approach.
So I made this plugin, which allows you to use the widespread PO file format as a medium to work on your translation, while at the same time being able to develop the game itself without much worry. Unlike most other localization plugins. you don’t need to write special codes in the editor to indicate that something is translated – you just write as normal, and the localization engine automatically substitutes in the translated version at runtime when requested and available.
Get it on itch.io.
Two versions are offered – the Lite version, which is free, and the full version. There are demos available for both MV and MZ. I also wrote a manual, which you can download and read for free. The manual is also bundled with each of the demos.
Features
- Manage your game’s translation with a new language debug scene, accessible by pressing F9 at the title scene.
- Create the translation yourself with an editor such as poedit, or send the files to a professional translator. The result can be imported back into the game from the language debug scene.
- Configure sounds and images to be substituted with translated versions where necessary.
- Intelligently substitute numeric variables in a way that correctly adjusts the wording to fit, even when translated.
- Switch language on the fly at runtime in the Options scene.
- (full version only) Configure translations for movies by substituting the audio track (for a dubbed version) or providing subtitle files.
How it works
The plugin scans your entire game data for text that can be translated. This is called “gathering localizable strings”, and can be done either automatically on each launch, or explicitly through the language debug scene. You can configure in the plugin settings whether you want it to run automatically.
By default, it does not scan plugins, since it has no way to know what would need to be translated in the plugin. You can provide this information by configuring the plugin parameters. Some plugins (including all of my own) can automatically provide this information to the plugin.
Once you’ve gathered strings, you can export them via the language debug sceen. This produces a .POT file in a new translations folder in your project’s root directory, which contains all the strings the localization engine found. The .POT file format is widely used and can be edited with a variety of tools, from a simple text editor to dedicated translation tools such as PoEdit, meaning the translator can choose their preferred tool for the job. When a .POT file is opened in one of these editors and translations are filled it, the result will be saved as a .PO file. If you place the .PO file in the translations folder, you can then import those translations back into the game via the language debug scene.
Terms of Use
- Credit me as “Solar Flare” or “Solarflare Software”.
- You can use both the Lite plugin and the Full plugin in non-commercial games. There is no charge for using the Lite plugin in a non-commercial game.
- The Full plugin may be used in commercial games. You may not use the Lite plugin in a commercial game (unless you’ve purchased the Full plugin, but then why not just use the Full plugin instead?).
- Do not make any modifications to the plugin source code, unless explicitly authorized in discussion with myself.
- Do not distribute either the Lite or Full plugin in public places. Link to the itch.io page or this thread instead.
- Do not distribute the demos or use any of their data in another game. This includes maps, events, database content, and the included French translation. If you want to share the demo, link to the itch.io page or this thread.