"Foreign languages" - implants, mother tongues and learning

[Cyberkowloon]

"Foreign languages" - implants, mother tongues and learning

I remember reading articles in which the developers say that in-game characters might speak in languages that are not English.

I can imagine two types of them. 1. Just a foreign language 2. A combination of several languages - a Pidgin.

I don't suppose the game would force any player to know nothing at the beginning? A player who happens to be Italian should have no problem communicating with Italian-speaking NPCs, right?
No forced implants?

 

[4meg]

What? You mean speaking slower and LOUDER won't work?

 

[kofeiiniturpa]

I don't suppose the game would force any player to know nothing at the beginning? A player who happens to be Italian should have no problem communicating with Italian-speaking NPCs, right?

Multiple languages is a bit of a problem precisely for that reason. It can, however, be solved in a way where foreing languages (those not selected as the primary audio and wriiten language) are turned into gibberish, textual and spoken. If the player has proper language skill, there is a chance that he hears and reads a comprehensible sentece in his chosen language.

E.g. if an Italian player has the game run in English, and encounters an Italian NPC with a character that does not know italian, he doesn't hear that NPC speak any languange. Onhly gibberish that might in some way be indicated it is representing a non-Italian hearing Italian.

This doesn't necessarily even require extra voiceacting, since the gibberish can be - I believe - "assembled" from the original spoken lines with audio effects and syllable scrambling. Text could be just letters scrambled and/or replaced with #¤%/&"#¤"! markings.

Or they could pay for their VA's to learn gibberish with an accent, but that's probably quite expensive.

 

[metalmaniac21]

In ideal scenario, an Italian-speaking player should have no problems interacting with italian NPCs if he so writes his character to be italian-speaking also.

 

[Sydanyo]

As for the character knowing languages, 2020 has chipware, and you can get Know Language +1 to +3 chips, the amount of which depends on your INT; if your INT is 7, you can use 7 different chips. So, a character who needs to know language X, can simply walk into a local chip kiosk, buy said chip, install it, and voila...they now know the language.

If the player knows a language that the character does not, then they can just metagame, and pretend that they don't. No need to create a mechanic around it.

 

[kofeiiniturpa]

In ideal scenario, an Italian-speaking player should have no problems interacting with italian NPCs if he so writes his character to be italian-speaking also.

Obviously. Though he need not ever hear or a word of actual Italian (unless the game has a localisation in that language), just a "representation" that's implied to be that.

And I believe you can pick languages as pickup skills in character creation in 2020, so... there's that too to consider.

 

[Suhiira]

I know having multiple languages and translator chips was discussed early in CP2077s development.
If it's still planned we don't have a clue.

The problem is the size of the games voice files would be enormous if every language the game was recorded in was in every localized version of the game.

 

[4meg]

What's another gig or two when we're dealing in terabyte drives now?

 

[kofeiiniturpa]

The problem is the size of the games voice files would be enormous

Can the gibberish scrambling effect thing I talked about earlier not be done realtime on the spot? With no extra audiofiles needed?

 

[EvilWolf]

Can the gibberish scrambling effect thing I talked about earlier not be done realtime on the spot? With no extra audiofiles needed?

To be honest I would think it would be done the other way around. The dialog would actually be recorded in the language it was meant to be, and then would use on-the-fly code which either produced a synthesized voice, immersive marquee-like text, or both as the translation from the translator chips. This method would simply add a few dozen MBs to the game compared to having multiple full recordings of each language for a single piece of dialog. We also don't exactly know to what extent the feature would be used in the game. They might use it sparingly enough that recording the full dialogs in each language won't impact the overall file size that dramatically.

 

[Calistarius]

This post ended up being to noone in particular... just my general thought on the viability of the whole different voice stuff and what not... XD


Consider that a lot of games that get released in Europe already contain multiple language packs... since a few countries here in Europe insist on that the games they get will have at the very least all the text translated to their language... but a lot of games also have the voices dubbed to their language as well.

So... with that in mind... even if Cyberpunk 2077 where not to include that people in the game would be speaking in different languages, and where not to include that you might need translator chips to understand some languages in the game, or have the actual skills them selves on your character (or your self)... even if the game did not include all that, chances would still be that CDPR would have multiple different language dubs recorded for the game for various localizations... and a large part of that comes down to Europe, where some several nations here want/need/demand that the games they can buy are available in their language.

A lot of nations only really demand that the subtitles should be available in their language (Sweden for example... although, I personally never use Swedish subtitles, I prefer using English subtitles... partially because I can get annoyed when I see translations where the word(s) they used in Swedish does not compleatly match the word(s) spoken in English for example... so I stick to using English subtitles... I even have English subtitles on in everything even though am am very capable with my English, I just like to have the option to throw my eyes down to the subtitles quickly if I happend to miss what someone said... I have also grown up with subtitles on tv and movies , where everything which was not in Swedish had at the very least Swedish subtiles on it, so I am very used to that whole aspect of my eyes darting down to the subtitles every now and then)... but some nations demand that all the text in the game is translated to their language (in Sweden this only aplies to games ment for children, since we don't start to learn English untill 3rd grade)... but in some cases some nations demand that the actual voice acting being in their language as well (again, in Sweden this only really aplies to games ment for children of about 10-11 years of age and younger). And some countries are more adamant about this then others are... for example Germany and France I belive tend to be very adamant about both voice and text being available in their language... where as Sweden only ever demands that of games for children, and that the subtitles are available in Swedish for most other things for anyone 12-15 or older.

Take Witcher 3 Wild Hunt for example... that game has 7 different speaking languages available (as in everything spoken in the games are available in other languages, I asume the text might be as well). Those languages are English, Polish, German, French, Russian, Japanese, and Brazilian Portuguese.

So... If you take all this into account with Cyberpunk 2077... they will already have had to spend some serious money on multiple different recorded languages for the game, due to mostly Europe... so why not use that in more ways then just giving some several different available language options for people who want the games to be in their language. CDPR will already have everything available to them after all... so squeezing out as much as possible out of it just makes sence to me, because VO's tends to be very expensive, and most people would never hear anything else then the language that they play the games in... and a game that takes place in a Cyberpunk world (and some several other Sci-Fi's as well) is the perfect place for them to do this in.

 

[Guest 4149880]

I don't see an issue with multiple languages. Basically, the players selected main language is used for most characters in the game for the default, and random NPC in the city and the main quests and so on. Any NPC that speak a foreign language like Japanese for example, would speak Japanese regardless of the players selected language and the player would have to buy a translator device unless the player actually speaks Japanese aside from their selected language. There wouldn't need to be multiple voice overs for one foreign character to speak in every language so the player understand it after the translation. It will more than likely be a robotic style translation that interprets the language for you.

It would literally be no different then real life. Unless a person speaks multiple languages you understand, you're not going to know what they're saying unless you have someone or something else translating it for you. That person isn't going to start speaking English because you bought a new translation phone app, the app would do it for you.

 

[ZhynSci]

if it were so, there will be a skill or something related to language knowledge in the game.. btw...subtitles in my language (Italian) could be already a big thing, if there will be the dubbing, it would be perfect, but I prefer that CDPR use more resources on others things than for dubbing.

 

[Suhiira]

What's another gig or two when we're dealing in terabyte drives now?

For (many) PCs ... not a problem.
For consoles ... BIG problem.

 

[Decatonkeil]

Even if the player knows said language the PC not knowing it could just be solved failing to engage in actual conversation. We can't speak the language, so we can't say anything. Of course that isn't an ideal solution and it also dismisses the NPCs being polyglots that would talk a language you both know and feel comfortable with... I don't even know how much it would be used anyway.

In PnP it's very easy as the GM just can keep players on edge and feed them as much information as they need, and not needing to know jack about the actual language. GM only has to narrate: "You understand the words for 'room' and 'question'" "Oh, fuck, are they going to take us to a torture chamber for questioning?"

 

[Lisbeth_Salander]

Big solution: make many npcs speak different languages, but don't give any of them any big importance. Make foreign languages something like a scenario, where you hear one npc here and there talk japanese but you can't interact with them in any way.

 

[patrikspacek]

I got Complete Edition on PS4 hoping its gonna have all subtitles like a PC version! Unfortunately, you haven't included them...why??

I am happy that PL and FR got language packages, but you have all subtitles already done, why didn't you add them as well?? Can you make an additional PS4 language pack that have all countries subtitles only?? That would be great and I am sure all fans that spent money would be appreciated as well!

I jus dont get it...

 

[RLKing1969]

What? You mean speaking slower and LOUDER won't work?

No, all that results in is getting shot for being an uncivilized cretin.

 

[Snowflakez]

I don't really want to have to get a language translator chip implant or anything like that just to understand what people are saying. It's fine if some of you guys want that, but I don't. For me, it comes down to the whole "Realism versus gameplay" thing.

Plenty of games just use subtitles so that the player can understand what people in other languages are saying. I'd prefer it if CP2077 stayed that way. The dialogue can still be authentically recorded in the appropriate language, of course.

The impact it has on my immersion is minor, especially because the game isn't being set in a foreign country. It'd be nonsensical if we were in, say, Italy, and everybody there spoke English.

Now that I think of it, actually, a lot of the Nilfgaardians in TW3 spoke in their native tongue. Guards, certain quest NPCs and citizens... Dialogue just popped up over there head in brackets [ ] to show the English translation in the case of "general dialogue".

But hey, if CDPR wants to develop that sort of mechanic, it's not like I have much choice in the matter, and it's not going to ruin my enjoyment of the game.

EDIT: For the sake of clarity, it's not the characters speaking in different langauges that I object to. I'm all for that. It's just having to have some weird gameplay mechanic (Realistic or not) to understand them that would irritate me. MGSV made you get a translator to understand NPCs, and that already frustrated me, but it was slightly acceptable because you don't talk to nearly as many people (via interrogations or otherwise) in that game as you do in a CDPR RPG.

And, honestly, if all CDPR has said in the past is that "some characters might speak in non-English languages", that's hardly news. Just about every game on the planet with any level of diversity has that. It's the implementation that we'll need more info on - could be as simple as what I said above, having subtitles with translations.

 

[Suhiira]

Plenty of games just use subtitles so that the player can understand what people in other languages are saying. I'd prefer it if CP2077 stayed that way. The dialogue can still be authentically recorded in the appropriate language, of course.

I think the whole point is for you NOT to understand what they're saying unless you have a translator.

Night City is pretty multi-lingual and some might easily claim whatever mish-mash passes as the "common" language on the streets is basically a separate language most Corps don't know and all Cops need to learn.