SBT Localization in 2025: A Review

Once again, on New Year’s Eve, all of us make a single wish: peaceful skies over a free Ukraine. It will undoubtedly come true because we, Ukrainians, are strong—we have endured more than a century of struggle for our state, language, and culture; because we are united—any heated discussions on social media are forgotten when it comes to raising funds for Dronefall, Rusoriz, or even for a satellite.

However, each of us also has smaller wishes, such as Ukrainian localization in a favorite game. And SBT Localization strives to fulfill them all.

Just look at what we have accomplished in 2025!

NUMBERS SUMMARY

Over the past year, we have processed 511,400 words in volunteer projects. If we add the released projects (not counting the announced ones), that is another 3,625,500 words! In total, that comes to 4,136,000 words. Not bad, right? And some people even manage, between translations, to fight invaders or shoot down enemy drones and rockets—ten members of our team are currently defending Ukraine.

SBT Localization not only translates but also actively participates in various events aimed at promoting the gaming culture and the development of Ukrainian language. We attended Games Gathering and Dice Con in Lviv. And at Fancon 2025 in Kyiv, we set up our own booth, where we held various contests for event guests. At the invitation of the Ministry of Culture, we also took part in the forum “Ukrainian – the Language of the Strong”. There, we talked about the importance of Ukrainian language in video games and their influence on youth, as well as gave a speech at the roundtable on the language rights of Ukrainian children.

Furthermore, SBT Localization cooperates with Ukrainian universities by providing future translators with practice grounds and conducting lectures and masterclasses on video game translation. Our curators ensure that students gain diverse experience and learn as much as possible about localizing gaming texts.

Throughout the year, like all decent people, we donated to the Armed Forces of Ukraine and helped support fundraising efforts, including those for the Sternenko Community and Come Back Alive charitable foundations. We also joined the “Книголють 3.0” and “Книголють 4.0” fundraisers organized by book industry workers, including our favorite publishing house, Mal’opus, as well as the “Збір для супергероїв” by Fancon and its partners. In total, we raised 517,300₴.

During our giveaways, we distributed 199 prizes, including 65 video game keys, 14 cookbooks, 6 artbooks, 10 tabletop games, 81 merch items (notebooks, pens, stickers, thermal mugs, etc.), and 20 souvenir/collectible items. These included a sword with the “Rex, Familia, Ultio” inscription from Kingdom Come: Deliverance, character figurines from Baldur’s Gate 3, Cyberpunk 2077, Kingdom Come: Deliverance, and other games. So join our community, subscribe to our updates, and support SBT Localization. Let’s bring Ukrainian into gaming worlds together!

But you are probably waiting for the main part: when we will talk about video games. Without further ado…

VIDEO GAMES
OFFICIAL LOCALIZATIONS

KINGDOM COME: DELIVERANCE II

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II continues the story of young Henry. Immerse yourself in medieval Bohemia and help him carry out his long-awaited revenge. Along the way, a variety of unforgettable adventures awaits you.

We translated this game together with our colleagues from RiotLoc. Our collaboration also included the following projects:

City Tales, where you can build a medieval city without grid restrictions. Develop districts and expand your kingdom.

Becoming Saint, where you can find a new faith and become a saint. Gather followers, convert believers, and conquer new cities. You will face numerous moral, religious, and cultural choices along your path.

And finally…

CLAIR OBSCUR: EXPEDITION 33

In this game with a distinct French atmosphere, you lead an expedition to destroy the Paintress, who draws death. Explore a fantastic world, uncover hidden wonders, battle unique enemies, and sever the cycle of death. By the way, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 was named the Game of the Year and received a total of nine awards.

Now let’s get back to our own projects:

UNDERDOGS

In Underdogs, you step into the cockpit of your five-ton mech and descend into the depths of an underground megalopolis to fight in brutal duels. Prove that you are the arena’s ultimate fighter!

STRONGHOLD CRUSADER: DEFINITIVE EDITION

This time, Stronghold invites you to experience all the hardships of the crusades. Choose whose forces to lead into battle: Crusaders, Arabs, or Bedouins.

DICE LEGENDS

Dice Legends is not just a deckbuilder but a whole magical journey that will immediately enchant you with its soundtrack and exciting adventures, created by a Ukrainian-Polish team. Who will you be: a fierce lion paladin smashing enemies with his hammer, a nimble frog assassin whose poison will shred even the most armored foes, or perhaps a raven warlock capable of summoning demons from hell itself?

RUNEQUEST: WARLORDS

In RuneQuest: Warlords you venture through the world of Glorantha. Who will defend your tribe from the hordes of Chaos if not a wise warlord? Master the art of magical runes, apply your strategic combat skills, and fill your army with diverse creatures and unique heroes.

UNOFFICIAL PATCHES

If the mountain won’t come to us, then we will go to the mountain. That is how our Ukrainian-language patches are created, despite the circumstances. This time, we have:

PLANESCAPE: TORMENT

Planescape: Torment is a classic of the Dungeons & Dragons genre, a dark fantasy with equally dark humor. Travel across different dimensions of the Forgotten Realms and explore the deep, complex story of the Nameless One. What is immortality—a blessing or a curse?

DARKEST DUNGEON

Yep, we translated Darkest Dungeon a long time ago, but now we have also completed the text for all its expansions. Now you can explore the darkest of dungeons in all their grim glory.

SPELLFORCE: CONQUEST OF EO

Take up your mentor’s trusty grimoire and unravel the secrets of the world of Eo in the new installment of the Spellforce series. In SpellForce: Conquest of EO, you will master the mysteries of magic: raise the undead, summon demons… and perhaps even take the lead of the magical council?

FTL: FASTER THAN LIGHT

The Ukrainian patch for FTL: Faster Than Light may be on the older side, but we have updated it. It now works with the latest game version, as well as Steam, GOG, and Epic Games versions. In addition, the fonts have been redrawn to match the originals, and several errors have been fixed.

THE BANNER SAGA

This localization of The Banner Saga was planned to be official, but circumstances changed, and now we have an unofficial patch instead. This epic saga will take you on a journey through the world of Vikings, where you may even save humanity from a great threat.

Reminder: the Ukrainian patch for The Banner Saga 3 has been waiting for you on our website for quite some time.

TABLETOP GAMES

Let’s not forget tabletop games. And who is the god of tabletop gaming in Ukraine? Geekach, of course! Visit their website of “well done games” and choose what suits your taste. Here is what we recommend:

SAVAGE WORLDS CORE RULES

Savage Worlds is a universal system that can be easily adapted to any adventure, world, or genre. To play, you need only a set of dice and a full deck of cards (with jokers). You can also get the Power Cards so you don’t have to keep flipping through the rulebook.

CYBERPUNK RED. JUMPSTART KIT

If you are a fan of Cyberpunk 2077—and even if you are not—you absolutely need to get your friends and play Cyberpunk RED. Jumpstart Kit. The dark future is calling. Adventures in Night City await the daredevils!

AND THAT’S ALL?

Nope, not even close! We are working on many projects, and each has a long road ahead, because translation is only one stage before a product reaches its audience. So stay tuned for:

ZONA: THE SECRET OF CHERNOBYL

A tabletop game set in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. If you like the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series, then you will definitely enjoy Zona: The Secret of Chernobyl. There is still time for a pre-order, so don’t dilly-dally.

CYBERPUNK: EDGERUNNERS MISSION KIT

This game is based on the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners anime series. The story unfolds between the events of Cyberpunk RED and Cyberpunk 2077. Learn more about your favorite characters from the series and join them on a seemingly simple mission.

BALDUR’S GATE II: ENHANCED EDITION

Better late than never. Beamdog will finally add Ukrainian localization to Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition. Since this is a fairly old project, the studio is working on it whenever time allows. So let’s be patient. But if you can’t wait, feel free to use the unofficial patch available on our website.

THE ART OF S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2

An artbook for the fans of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 and beyond. Did you know that the developers put not only a platform for adventures into this project, but also fragments of lost Ukrainian culture? Available for order at Mal’opus publishing house.

THE ART OF KINGDOM COME: DELIVERANCE II

Is it easy to create a game that is not just based on history, but simulates life in medieval Bohemia? Find out how the developers worked on every historical detail in this artbook. Available for pre-order.

L’ART DE CLAIR OBSCUR: EXPEDITION 33

A beautiful and captivating artbook that will take you behind the scenes of the creation of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Learn about how the authors designed the appearance of characters and creatures, why they made certain choices, and what inspired this extraordinary game world. There is still time for a pre-order.

CYBERPUNK RED. CORE RULEBOOK

A hefty book packed with rules. This is not Ukrainian orthography; everything has to be clear and serious. We are working on it, and the publisher is getting ready.

INTO THE BREACH

Ukrainian localization for Into the Breach is coming soon. We have returned to this project and are translating new text. Keep an eye out for updates.

THE BANNER SAGA 2

The third game is done, the first one is done, so the second must follow. Work on The Banner Saga 2 is nearly complete, so you will once again be able to embark on a journey through the world of Saga in Ukrainian.

As we can see, it has been a good and productive year. We hope the next one brings us even more positivity and great projects. And most importantly—peaceful skies and victory for Ukraine!

We thank Crowdin for their wonderful translation platform. Games, books, or software—it is easy to work with everything there!

We thank everyone who supports us on Patreon and Monobank. Thanks to you, we are reaching new heights in bringing Ukrainian to gaming worlds!

And we thank our community for being with us. Because to you, we are becoming better!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Sofia Shul

December 31, 2025