eurekasavonarola
New member
In this Jan 22 major update, the two opposing forces in the game are named “Hidden King” and “Archmother.” In the Simplified Chinese localization, these two terms have been rendered as “隐王” (Hidden King) and “源祖（Archmother）”
As a female player, I believe that the concept of “mother” has not been adequately represented in the Simplified Chinese localization. The word mother carries profound implications related to motherhood, matrilineality, and feminine origin. Semantically, archmother represents “the highest level of maternal authority combined with the position of origin.”
However, the current Simplified Chinese translation “源”“祖” clearly corresponds to concepts ”ancestor“ and ”origin“, rather than to mother. As a result, the explicitly feminine imagery embedded in the original term is significantly weakened or erased. In contrast, the localization of “Hidden King” retains the word “王” (king), which in the Chinese linguistic and cultural context is strongly marked as a male primary gender category, with king conventionally contrasted with queen. This asymmetry is therefore particularly striking.
This issue is not an isolated case within the field of Simplified Chinese localization. Due to the long-standing patriarchal social structure in China, male-centered perspectives often dominate linguistic choices. For example, in the documentary QUEENS | National Geographic, the word power, which contextually refers to political and social power, was localized into Chinese as “能量” (energy). This translation choice prompted significant feedback and criticism from female audiences on Chinese social media platforms, as it diluted the concept of power and its gendered implications.
For these reasons, I respectfully urge the development team to pay closer attention to such details when reviewing localization decisions.
As a graduate of Simon Fraser University BA in Linguistics and University of Ottawa MA in Linguistics, a Deadlock player, a Simplified Chinese localization translator for GPORTAL game servers, and a woman, I would suggest that archmother could be translated as “始母,” “母神,” “祖母,” or “源母.” and so on.
The current translation being used, however, does not accurately reflect the meaning or the gendered symbolism of the original term therefore is unacceptable.
As a female player, I believe that the concept of “mother” has not been adequately represented in the Simplified Chinese localization. The word mother carries profound implications related to motherhood, matrilineality, and feminine origin. Semantically, archmother represents “the highest level of maternal authority combined with the position of origin.”
However, the current Simplified Chinese translation “源”“祖” clearly corresponds to concepts ”ancestor“ and ”origin“, rather than to mother. As a result, the explicitly feminine imagery embedded in the original term is significantly weakened or erased. In contrast, the localization of “Hidden King” retains the word “王” (king), which in the Chinese linguistic and cultural context is strongly marked as a male primary gender category, with king conventionally contrasted with queen. This asymmetry is therefore particularly striking.
This issue is not an isolated case within the field of Simplified Chinese localization. Due to the long-standing patriarchal social structure in China, male-centered perspectives often dominate linguistic choices. For example, in the documentary QUEENS | National Geographic, the word power, which contextually refers to political and social power, was localized into Chinese as “能量” (energy). This translation choice prompted significant feedback and criticism from female audiences on Chinese social media platforms, as it diluted the concept of power and its gendered implications.
For these reasons, I respectfully urge the development team to pay closer attention to such details when reviewing localization decisions.
As a graduate of Simon Fraser University BA in Linguistics and University of Ottawa MA in Linguistics, a Deadlock player, a Simplified Chinese localization translator for GPORTAL game servers, and a woman, I would suggest that archmother could be translated as “始母,” “母神,” “祖母,” or “源母.” and so on.
The current translation being used, however, does not accurately reflect the meaning or the gendered symbolism of the original term therefore is unacceptable.
