We’ll make it quick: many gamers outside the anglo-sphere want to play games in their own language. And while there are some (very good) examples of games that are fully localized, there are many more that are not. This translates (pun intended) into gamers being unable or unwilling to enjoy many titles - which is a loss for both the players and the developers.
Suggestion: kickstarter-like campaigns for localization
We understand that many publishers, especially the smaller ones, can’t afford to localize every game they publish - or maybe they think it would not be profitable enough to have a good translation. A kickstarter-like campaign could help publishers to gauge the interest of the community in a specific language, and if the campaign is successful, the publisher can then invest in the localization of the game.
What we suggest, is to open preorders with a “requested language” optional field. If a game reaches a certain number of preorders for a specific language, the publisher commits to localizing it in that language - at release or in a post-launch update.
One important note: these preorders must stay refundable like any other purchase. We’re not going to contradict the right of withdrawal we asked for in chapter two, and in many countries it couldn’t be waived anyway. The value for the publisher isn’t locking players’ money in - it’s the signal. Preorder counts, corrected by the cancellation rates the industry already knows how to estimate, are a far more reliable measure of demand than any survey or wishlist.
This would allow publishers to minimize the risks associated with the localization of a game and reach a wider audience, and it would also give the community a say in which games get localized.