Should Your Indie Game Work With Non-English Creators?

Short answer: often, yes. English reaches the most people, but it's also where every studio competes. Creators in other languages can reach big Steam audiences that see far fewer game videos. On SOS OPS!, German speaking creators drove a large share of early reach, and Germany became the biggest market, with almost 40% of copies sold on day three. The key is to pick countries based on your own Steam data, not guesses.

Isn't English enough?

English gives you the widest reach, and for many games it should stay the base. But the same views don't bring the same results everywhere. Where a viewer lives changes how likely they are to wishlist and how much that wishlist is worth to you, because Steam prices differ by region. Steam displays prices in 37 currencies across 4 region groups, and developers manage their own price in each currency (Steamworks pricing docs).

What happened when German creators led?

SOS OPS! ran three back to back campaigns with 175 creators and 336 videos, reaching 11,452,423 views. German speaking creators brought in a large share of the early reach. In the sales week, the game sold 287,139 copies, compared with 452 the week before, and Germany was the biggest market, with almost 40% of copies sold on day three.

The case also shows that language was only one part of it: "The discount worked as an entry ticket, the co op format pulled friends in, and the DLC carried the revenue." More on that combination in how to combine a Steam discount with a creator campaign.

How do you find your best countries?

• Check your wishlists by country. In Steamworks, the Regional Sales Report for your app breaks wishlists down by region or country (wishlist reporting).
• Look at your price in each region. A wishlist where your game sells at a lower price is worth less in revenue than one where it sells at full price.
• Test before you commit. Start with a small group of creators in one or two languages and compare the wishlist growth against your normal daily average, as described in how to measure wishlists from a creator campaign.
• Localize the basics first. If creators send viewers to a store page in a language they don't read, many will leave. A translated store page description is a cheap fix.

On Trapster, Wishlist Autopilot runs this test for you. Every day it matches your Steamworks wishlists by country with where each creator's audience lives. Countries that don't bring wishlists stop getting the campaign, and the best ones get more creators. It needs a Steamworks key for your game.

What should you tell non-English creators?

• Give them the brief in English and let them create in their own language. They know their audience. Our creator brief template works for any language.
• Tell them whether your game supports their language. Viewers will ask.
• Keep the game's name the same in every language, so viewers can find it on Steam.

FAQ

Does my game need to be translated before working with non-English creators?
Not always, but viewers often ask. A translated store page and clear information about supported languages help a lot.

Which language should I try first?
Start from your own data: the countries already wishlisting your game in the Regional Sales Report.

Are non-English campaigns cheaper?
Rates can differ by region. What matters more is the value of the wishlists you get, which depends on the country and your price there.

Find the countries that want your game

Send us your Steam page and we'll send back a free forecast, including which creator audiences fit your game. See Trapster for studios or book a call.

Sources: Steamworks documentation on wishlist reporting and pricing. Campaign figures come from Trapster case studies.