French being a gender-based language, it’s difficult to use neutral language while still keeping the text simple and easy to read.

We do have some tools at our disposal, such as the use of epicene terms («une personne»), the midpoint («les joueurs·euses»), the double mention («les joueurs et les joueuses») or the gender-neutral pronoun «iel».

Their use remains at the discretion of the client and their editorial choices. In any case, it’s common practice to add a side note in the rulebook which states that even if the text exclusively uses masculine pronouns, the rules intend to include everyone.

Ambre – French Team

Portuguese is a highly gendered language. The most common example is the noun “player”, which in Portuguese is either masculine (jogador) or feminine (jogadora), thus requiring a change in all player-related expressions.

Alternatives include the use of a neutral word such as “person” (pessoa) instead of player, or the use of pronouns such as “who” or “whoever”, as appropriate.

This may be combined with the extensive use of the imperative and of the second person singular, which are gender neutral, and are especially suitable for instructions, as well as further changes in the sentence structure.

Miguel – Portuguese Team

In Spanish, where every name has a gender, (for the moment) we don’t have an official way of applying a neutral gender. However, we can use different strategies to minimize gender distinctions.

One of them is splitting the gender group and mentioning both feminine and masculine plural names: «los jugadores y las jugadoras» instead of just the generic masculine.

We can also use collective nouns that include both genders: «El equipo», or a periphrasis: «Las personas que juegan».

Other ways to approach gender neutrality that are still aligned with the Spanish established grammar can be metonymy or dropping the gendered subject in the sentence.

Jael – Spanish Team

German is a very gendered language. Every single word has a gender, whether it is male, female or neutral.

This has caused controversy in the last few decades, because German uses the so called “generic masculine”, which means that the standard form for the vast majority of plural nouns in German is male.

In the German team, we like to take an innovative stance, translating games in such a way that they speak to as many people as possible.

A good case study of this would be our work on Kinfire Chronicles: Night’s Fall. We also introduced non-binary gender systems to fit the world of the game.

Paul – German Team

As an Italian translator, adapting boardgames for gender-neutrality presents some unique challenges.

Italian nouns and adjectives are inherently gendered, making inclusive language trickier than in English.

We often use creative workarounds, like replacing “giocatore/giocatrice” (male/female player) with “chi gioca” (those who play). Some publishers now opt for symbols or color-coding instead of gendered terms.

Another strategy for inclusivity could be alternating male, female, and non-binary names in examples. While change is gradual, the Italian gaming community is increasingly embracing these inclusive solutions.

Valentina – Italian Team

In Dutch, gender neutrality in rulebooks can be achieved relatively easily by switching to the second person singular and using the imperative form.

For example, if the source text says “The starting player takes their dice and rolls them”, your translation could say “If you’re the starting player, take your dice and roll them.”

If you have to resort to pronouns, you can use “wiens” (whose) and “hun” or “diens” (their).

However, readers might perceive these neutral terms as unusual or archaic. Before committing to anything, it’s advised to check in with the publisher to ask if they are comfortable with this style of writing.

Jo – Dutch Team