The Study of Chinese Translation Strategy on Chinese Online Games’ User Interface Vocabulary

Abstract

This qualitative research aims to investigate the translation strategies for User Interface (UI) terminology across two interaction models: 1) Menu Interaction 2) Object-Based Interaction. The study categorizes the terminology into two groups: 1) Vocabulary for action commands (Action Function) and 2) Vocabulary for system settings (Setting Function). The study collects data on terminology from 3 Chinese online games: 王者荣耀 (Honor of Kings/HOK), 和平精英 (PUBG Mobile), and 原神 (Genshin Impact). The research references the translation strategy concepts from Thawatchai Chaiyanakitpong and Jatuwit Kaewsuwan (2022), who identified four main translation strategies. The results are reported in terms of percentage values and descriptive statistics.

The findings reveal a total of 460 words for both Action Function and Setting Function across the three games, with 115 terms from 王者荣耀, 139 from 和平精英, and 206 from 原神. The study identifies five translation strategies: 1) Translation free translation (162 terms, 35.22%), 2) Translation literal translation (152 terms, 33.04%), 3) English literal translation (30 terms, 6.52%)., 4) Translation using multiple strategies (86 terms, 18.70%), and 5) Paraphrase from English and then transliterating to Thai (30 terms, 6.52%)

The findings of this research can be utilized in the field of Chinese language education, particularly in the translation of terminology found in online games, which often does not appear in textbooks. This study may serve as a source of motivation for learners interested in studying Chinese by providing relevant and practical language usage examples.