par Copet, Simon ;Ray, Alice
Référence Mutatis Mutandis, 19, 1, page (9-38)
Publication Publié, 2026-01
Article révisé par les pairs
Résumé : The localisation of lexical units specific to a fictional universe (irrealia) poses a challenge for translators, as they must recreate these highly creative elements in the target language. In the context of video game localisation, this phenomenon has received limited attention, particularly with regard to the manifestation of irrealia in different types of gameplay. This EN>fr translation research addresses this aspect through a quantitative and qualitative corpus study with three objectives: first, to determine whether ir-realia are more or less frequent depending on the genre; second, to analyse whether gameplay influences the types of irrealia; and third, to study the translation strategies used for each type. To achieve this, two new typologies were established based on a corpus of 18 video games: one for the types of irrealia encountered and another for the linguistic translation strategies employed in the games. Findings suggest that the type of gameplay influences the frequency of irrealia, as well as the types of irrealia and the translation strategies used to render them. Findings stress the importance of considering the localisation of irrealia as both a worldbuilding tool and a significant element of gameplay - demonstrating that video game localisation must be an integral part of the game design process.

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