How to Translate FiveM Scripts with AI: The Complete 2026 Workflow

Architecture: structure your resource for translation

The cardinal rule is zero user-visible strings inside gameplay code. Everything routes through a locale layer.

Recommended resource layout

my_resource/
├─ fxmanifest.lua
├─ locales/
│  ├─ en.json        # source language (single source of truth)
│  ├─ de.json        # generated + human-reviewed
│  ├─ es.json        # generated + human-reviewed
│  ├─ fr.json        # generated + human-reviewed
│  └─ qa.rules.json  # optional: placeholder whitelist
├─ client/
│  └─ main.lua
├─ server/
│  └─ main.lua
└─ shared/
   └─ i18n.lua       # translation helper

fxmanifest.lua

fx_version 'cerulean'
game 'gta5'
lua54 'yes'

shared_scripts {
    'shared/i18n.lua',
}

files {
    'locales/*.json',
}

shared/i18n.lua (lightweight loader + interpolation)

local LOCALE = GetConvar('my_locale', 'en')
local CACHE = {}

local function loadJSON(path)
    local file = io.open(path, 'r')
    if not file then return {} end
    local content = file:read('*a')
    file:close()
    local ok, data = pcall(function() return json.decode(content) end)
    return ok and data or {}
end

local function readLocale(lang)
    if CACHE[lang] then return CACHE[lang] end
    local dict = loadJSON(('locales/%s.json'):format(lang))
    CACHE[lang] = dict
    return dict
end

local function interpolate(str, vars)
    if not vars then return str end
    for k, v in pairs(vars) do
        str = str:gsub('%%{' .. k .. '}', tostring(v))
    end
    return str
end

function _U(key, vars)
    local dict = readLocale(LOCALE)
    local src = dict[key] or readLocale('en')[key] or key
    return interpolate(src, vars)
end

exports('Translate', _U)

Usage in client/server code

-- Client
lib.notify({
    title = _U('notify_title'),
    description = _U('welcome_player', { name = GetPlayerName(PlayerId()) })
})

-- Server
print(('[MyRes] %s'):format(_U('server_started')))

locales/en.json (source of truth)

{
    "notify_title": "Server Message",
    "welcome_player": "Welcome, %{name}!",
    "server_started": "Server module is ready.",
    "no_permission": "You do not have permission.",
    "items_remaining": "%{count} items remaining"
}

Everything in your gameplay code now routes through _U(key) — no hardcoded strings means no translation drift when you add or change features.

The AI translation workflow

Step 1: Extract and freeze the source

Lock locales/en.json before touching any translation tooling. Enforce a key naming convention like domain.action.subject (inventory.drop.confirm, police.arrest.success) so keys stay stable across refactors.

Step 2: Build a glossary

A glossary maps framework-specific or brand-specific terms to canonical translations. CSV is fine:

source,de,fr,es
EMS,Rettungsdienst,Urgences,Emergencias
PD,Polizei,Police,Policía
Mechanic,Mechaniker,Mécanicien,Mecánico
Citizenid,Citizenid,Citizenid,Citizenid

Glossary discipline matters — this is what separates professional localization from machine-translated slop.

Step 3: Protect placeholders

Before the text hits the translator, substitute every placeholder and color code with a unique token the model won't modify:

| Original | Token | |