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How to Translate MMORPG Quest Text on PC

Select quest text on screen with an OCR translator and read it in the language you choose. Two real quest examples and a menu example, step by step.

Quest descriptions carry the story: who needs help, what happened, and why the objectives matter. When the game shows them in a language you do not read, you can still follow the markers, but the reason behind the quest is lost.

The short answer: use an OCR screen translator. It reads the text drawn on screen, so you select the quest text and read its translation in the language you choose, in a separate window, while the quest stays open.

The walkthrough below uses Lexa's Cursor mode on a Japanese quest in Aion 2, read in English. A second example applies the same steps to an English quest in AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity, read in Portuguese. For other approaches, such as official translations, fan patches, and text hookers, see the general guide on how to translate game text.

The Example: A Japanese Quest in Aion 2, Read in English

The quest entry shows a title, a two-paragraph description, and its objectives. The selection covers that quest text and nothing else: the rewards below it and the rest of the screen stay outside the box.

Aion 2, Japanese to English, Cursor mode. Step 1: the violet box covers the quest title, description, and objectives, and leaves the rewards out.
Aion 2, Japanese to English, Cursor mode. Step 2: the English result in the "Cursor Translate" window. This result was refined with "Improve with Lexa", which is why it shows the "Improved by Lexa" badge.

Screenshots from Aion 2. Lexa is an independent app and is not affiliated with the game or its developer.

About that badge: a new result appears without it. "Improve with Lexa" is an optional button at the bottom of the window that you can select when text is hard to read or a line feels off, so Lexa takes a second look at the same selection. It needs an internet connection and uses one of your monthly Lexa Improvements. The window also shows only the translation here, because the recognized original stays hidden until you turn it on.

How to Translate Quest Text with Cursor Mode

Japanese to English is only the demonstration. The steps are the same for the language your game shows and the language you want to read.

  1. 1

    Install Lexa and complete setup

    Install Lexa, sign in, and finish the first-run setup. The download and first-run guide covers each setup screen.

  2. 2

    Choose the game's language and yours

    During setup, or later in "Settings" under "Translation Languages", set "I see text on my screen in..." to the language the quest is written in and "Translate to..." to the language you want to read. In the Aion 2 example, those were Japanese and English.

  3. 3

    Open the quest and keep the text visible

    Open the quest window and, if the description scrolls, scroll until the passage you want is fully on screen. Lexa can only read what is visible.

  4. 4

    Start Cursor mode

    Press Ctrl+Alt+F7, the default shortcut, or select "Cursor" on the Lexa toolbar. The screen darkens, the pointer becomes a crosshair, and the toolbar button reads "Aiming". You can change the shortcut in "Settings", under "Modes & shortcuts".

  5. 5

    Drag a box around the quest text

    Hold the mouse button, drag around the text you want to read, and release. Leave a small margin around the first and last words, and keep buttons, rewards, and unrelated panels outside the box. Press Esc to cancel.

  6. 6

    Read the result in the Cursor Translate window

    The window shows the translation. The eye button ("Show original text") adds the recognized original above it, the minus and plus buttons change the text size, and you can drag the window by its header to move it off the text you still need.

Reading the Next Passage

Press the shortcut again to close the window, then once more to select the next passage. To collect several passages in one place, select the pin button first (its tooltip reads "Pin and append new captures"): the window then stays open, and each new selection is added to it.

Another Game and Language Pair: AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity

The same steps work on an English quest read in Portuguese. In Sir Fainal's quest window, only the description paragraph was selected; the "Quest Objectives" list underneath was left out of the box.

AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity, English to Portuguese, Cursor mode. Step 1: the violet box surrounds the quest description only; the objectives list stays outside.
AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity, English to Portuguese, Cursor mode. Step 2: with the original turned on, the window shows the recognized English text, then the Portuguese translation.

Screenshots from AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity. Lexa is an independent app and is not affiliated with the game or its developer.

With the original turned on, the small italic text at the top of the window is what Lexa recognized, so you can compare it with the game before relying on the translation.

Keep the original names in view. In this example, "the Graveyard" became "o Cemitério", but the game still calls the place the Graveyard. When you look for it on the map, or for an item in a shop or a quest on a wiki, use the name as the game shows it. The recognized original helps with this.

Applying the Workflow to Other Quest Text

The examples show a full quest entry and a description on its own. The same steps apply to other text you want to read once, as long as you choose what goes in each box instead of selecting the whole window:

  • Quest objectives: include them with the description, as in the Aion 2 example, or leave them out when you want the description on its own, as in the AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity example.
  • Item descriptions: open the item's details and select only its description text.
  • NPC dialogue: select the speech in the dialogue box, one passage at a time.

When Watch Mode or Realtime Mode Fits Better

On screens with many short labels in different places, such as a settings menu or an inventory, Watch mode saves you from drawing a box for each one. Start it with Ctrl+Alt+F5 or "Watch" on the toolbar, then hover over a label to read its translation.

Aion 2, Japanese to English, Watch mode. Hovering over 解像度スケール shows "Resolution scale", with the original label below it.

Give it a moment after the screen changes before you hover. This capture shows one label on one settings screen, so check the menus you need in your own game.

When text keeps changing in a stable place, such as a dialogue box or cutscene subtitles, Realtime mode fits better. Start it with Ctrl+Alt+F8 and place its frame over that area; a panel shows each new line as it appears.

Practical Limitations

  • Select the text, not the screen. A box around the whole window brings buttons, rewards, and menus into the text, which makes the translation harder to follow.
  • The characters need to be readable. OCR works from what is drawn on screen, so very small, stylized, or low-contrast text can be misread. If the game has a UI scale or text size option, a larger setting can help.
  • Check recognition before translation. Turn on the original: if it does not match the game, reselect with a tighter box or larger text. If it matches but the translation reads oddly, the issue is the translation.
  • Game terms can be mistranslated. Class names, item names, and invented words may come out literal or inconsistent, so compare with the original when something seems off. "Improve with Lexa" can give a difficult selection a second look.

Try It on a Quest You Cannot Read

Start with one quest entry, keep the box tight, and turn on the original to check it against the game. For installation, follow the download and first-run guide. To compare this with other methods, read how to translate game text, and for text outside games, see the OCR translator for PC.

Read Quests in Your Language

Lexa reads the text you select on screen and shows the translation in a separate window. It runs on Windows.

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