Translating Board Games: An Interview with a Translator for Arclight Games

Francis "Keita" Takino is a translator who has worked on bringing Anno 1800, the Clank Series, Yukon Airways, and others to Japan through his work with Arclight Games. 

In this interview, we talk about: Hidden difficulties of translating, what happens if you get a terrible rulebook, the translation process for board games, advice for people who want to be translators, and so much more!

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00:00: Intro
01:07: How did you get into board games?
04:51: Othello/Board Game Cafes
06:08: How did you get into translation?
07:18: What is the translation process?
08:20: Hidden difficulty of translation work
09:52: What happens if you get a bad rule/rulebook?
11:30: What game do you want to bring to Japan?
13:13: 5 Games You Can't Live Without
19:06: Advice for Future Translators
20:08: What happens when you get a joke that doesn't translate well?
22:55: Small Talk