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

Translating FiveM scripts to a new language used to mean hiring a translator, waiting two weeks, and dealing with broken placeholders when the file came back. With modern AI — DeepL, GPT-4, Claude — a 500-string locale file can be translated, QA-checked, and shipped in under an hour, at production quality.

This guide covers the full workflow: locale file architecture that scales, placeholder protection that actually works, a working Node.js pipeline for both DeepL and OpenAI, automated QA checks, and framework-specific notes for ESX, QBCore, and QBox.

TL;DR

• Centralize every user-visible string in locale files (locales/en.json, locales/de.json, etc.). No hardcoded strings in gameplay code.
• Protect placeholders (%s, %d, %{name}, ~r~, ^1) with unique tokens before translating.
• Use DeepL for major European languages, GPT-4 for edge cases or nuanced context.
• Run a glossary pre-pass, translate, restore placeholders, then a regex parity check in CI.
• Keep en.json as single source of truth; diff and translate only changed keys.

Why translate your scripts at all

• Player retention — localized servers keep non-English speakers engaged past the first session.
• Professional polish — consistent terminology across commands, UI, and error messages separates serious servers from hobby ones.
• Community contribution friendly — clean locale files invite PRs for languages you don't speak.
• SEO and discovery — servers that advertise multi-language support rank better on server lists for non-English queries.

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
%{name}	⟦name⟧
%s	⟪S⟫
%d	⟪D⟫
~r~ / ~g~ / ~s~	⟪COLOR_R⟫ / ⟪COLOR_G⟫ / ⟪COLOR_S⟫
^1 – ^9	⟪CHAT_1⟫ – ⟪CHAT_9⟫
<b>, </b>	⟪HTML_B⟫, ⟪HTML_B_END⟫

These tokens look like foreign words to the model and pass through unchanged. After translation, reverse the substitution.

Step 4: Translate in batches

Send values (not keys) to the translator, one batch per language. Supply the glossary and a style note (tone, formality) to the model.

Step 5: Automated QA

Four checks, all automated:

1. JSON parses valid.
2. Every placeholder present in source is present in target.
3. Forbidden tokens (commands, keybinds, color codes) unchanged.
4. Length deltas within budget (UI strings not more than 40% longer).

Step 6: Human spot-check

Five to ten minutes on a random 20 strings per locale. Focus on commands and long UI strings where nuance matters.

Step 7: Ship and iterate

Commit the translated locale. On the next source edit, diff en.json and re-translate only changed keys using a translation memory to skip unchanged ones.

Translate with DeepL (Node.js)

DeepL is the best default for German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, Polish, and about 25 other languages. Cheap, fast, near-native quality.

package.json

{
    "type": "module",
    "scripts": {
        "i18n:translate:de": "node tools/translate-deepl.js en de",
        "i18n:translate:fr": "node tools/translate-deepl.js en fr",
        "i18n:check": "node tools/i18n-check.js"
    }
}

tools/translate-deepl.js

import fs from 'node:fs';
import assert from 'node:assert';

const [, , srcLang, dstLang] = process.argv;
const apiKey = process.env.DEEPL_API_KEY;
assert(apiKey, 'DEEPL_API_KEY required');

const GLOSSARY = {
    EMS: 'Rettungsdienst',
    PD: 'Polizei',
};

function protect(str) {
    return str
        .replace(/%\{([^}]+)\}/g, '⟦$1⟧')
        .replace(/%s/g, '⟪S⟫')
        .replace(/%d/g, '⟪D⟫')
        .replace(/~([rgbso])~/g, '⟪COLOR_$1⟫')
        .replace(/\^(\d)/g, '⟪CHAT_$1⟫');
}

function restore(str) {
    return str
        .replace(/⟦([^⟧]+)⟧/g, '%{$1}')
        .replace(/⟪S⟫/g, '%s')
        .replace(/⟪D⟫/g, '%d')
        .replace(/⟪COLOR_([RGBSO])⟫/gi, (_, c) => `~${c.toLowerCase()}~`)
        .replace(/⟪CHAT_(\d)⟫/g, '^$1');
}

async function translate(text) {
    const res = await fetch('https://api.deepl.com/v2/translate', {
        method: 'POST',
        headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/x-www-form-urlencoded' },
        body: new URLSearchParams({
            auth_key: apiKey,
            text,
            source_lang: srcLang.toUpperCase(),
            target_lang: dstLang.toUpperCase(),
            formality: 'prefer_more',
        }),
    });
    const json = await res.json();
    if (!json.translations) throw new Error(JSON.stringify(json));
    return json.translations[0].text;
}

const src = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync('locales/en.json', 'utf8'));
const out = {};

for (const [k, v] of Object.entries(src)) {
    let input = protect(v);
    for (const [from, to] of Object.entries(GLOSSARY)) {
        input = input.replace(new RegExp(`\\b${from}\\b`, 'g'), to);
    }
    out[k] = restore(await translate(input));
}

fs.writeFileSync(`locales/${dstLang}.json`, JSON.stringify(out, null, 2));
console.log(`Wrote locales/${dstLang}.json (${Object.keys(out).length} keys)`);

tools/i18n-check.js (parity check)

import fs from 'node:fs';

const src = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync('locales/en.json', 'utf8'));
const dst = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(`locales/${process.argv[2]}.json`, 'utf8'));

const patterns = [
    { name: 'var', re: /%\{[^}]+\}/g },
    { name: 'printf-s', re: /%s/g },
    { name: 'printf-d', re: /%d/g },
    { name: 'color', re: /~[rgbso]~/g },
    { name: 'chat-code', re: /\^\d/g },
];

let ok = true;
for (const key of Object.keys(src)) {
    for (const p of patterns) {
        const a = (src[key].match(p.re) || []).length;
        const b = (dst[key]?.match(p.re) || []).length;
        if (a !== b) {
            console.error(`[${key}] ${p.name} mismatch: en=${a} ${process.argv[2]}=${b}`);
            ok = false;
        }
    }
}
process.exit(ok ? 0 : 1);

Run pnpm i18n:translate:de && pnpm i18n:check de and you have a translated, parity-checked German locale ready for human review.

Translate with OpenAI (for edge cases)

When DeepL doesn't cover a language or you need context-aware translation, GPT-4 class models work well.

System prompt

You translate FiveM game UI strings from English to <TARGET_LANGUAGE>.

Rules:
- Preserve every placeholder exactly as-is: %{var}, %s, %d, ~r~, ~g~, ~s~, ^1, ^2.
- Keep slash-commands unchanged: /report, /me, /do.
- Keep citizenid, license, steam identifiers unchanged.
- Do not add quotes, extra punctuation, or change meaning.
- Return only a valid JSON object with the same keys as input.

Glossary (these terms must translate this way):
EMS → Rettungsdienst
PD → Polizei
Mechanic → Mechaniker

Few-shot examples

Include 2–3 correctly translated pairs with placeholders:

EN: "You have %{count} fines."
DE: "Du hast %{count} Strafzettel."

EN: "~r~Error:~s~ You lack permission."
DE: "~r~Fehler:~s~ Dir fehlt die Berechtigung."

Then paste the JSON to translate. Models do better with 50 strings at a time than with 500.

NUI (HTML/JS) translations

For browser-based UIs in your scripts, mirror the Lua approach.

const dict = await (await fetch(`/locales/${lang}.json`)).json();

export function t(key, vars) {
    let s = dict[key] ?? key;
    for (const [k, v] of Object.entries(vars || {})) {
        s = s.replace(`%{${k}}`, v);
    }
    return s;
}

Keep the same keys as your server locales. Mixing key schemas between NUI and server side is a guaranteed source of bugs.

ESX and QBCore specifics

• Many legacy ESX scripts ship locales/en.lua and locales/de.lua with a _U helper. The JSON approach above is cleaner, but if you have to stay on Lua tables, keep one style across the repo — mixing JSON and Lua for the same resource doubles maintenance cost.
• QBCore often uses config-driven messages scattered across config.lua. Migrate them to locale files when you touch them.
• QBox uses ox_lib notify, which integrates cleanly with JSON locales.

Lua table locale (if you prefer Lua)

Locales = Locales or {}

Locales['en'] = {
    no_permission = 'You do not have permission.',
    welcome_player = 'Welcome, %{name}!',
}

Locales['de'] = {
    no_permission = 'Du hast keine Berechtigung.',
    welcome_player = 'Willkommen, %{name}!',
}

Quality gates before you ship

Gate	Tool	Blocks release?
JSON parses valid	jq . locales/*.json	Yes
Lua syntax valid	luac -p locales/*.lua	Yes
Placeholder parity	tools/i18n-check.js	Yes
Forbidden tokens unchanged (commands, keybinds, color codes)	Regex check	Yes
Length budget (+40% max)	Custom script	Warn
Human spot-check 20 strings	Manual	Yes

Automate gates 1–4 in CI. Gate 5 is the only one that needs a human.

Maintenance strategy

• en.json is the single source of truth. Never edit target locales directly (except for spot-fixes after human review).
• On every English edit, run a diff script that: translates new keys, re-translates changed values, deletes orphaned keys in targets.
• Store previous outputs as a translation memory (just a SQLite file or JSON map en_value -> target_value) to skip unchanged keys. This cuts API costs to near zero for routine maintenance.
• Document your glossary and style guide in /docs/i18n.md so community contributors stay consistent.

Common pitfalls and fixes

• Broken placeholders after translation — always use protection tokens plus the parity check.
• Inconsistent terminology — glossary discipline, enforced in both the pre-pass and the LLM prompt.
• Mixed locales in gameplay code — CI grep for hardcoded strings outside locales/; fail the build on matches.
• RTL languages (Arabic, Hebrew) — ensure NUI CSS sets direction: rtl; and uses fonts with RTL support. Some layouts need conditional styles.
• Casing or punctuation drift — instruct the AI explicitly and run a punctuation linter as part of QA.
• Re-translation explosion — without a translation memory, every edit re-translates everything. Always cache previous outputs.

External resources

• DeepL API developer docs — pricing, rate limits, supported languages.
• Google Cloud Translation — alternative when DeepL doesn't cover your target.
• OpenAI API docs — GPT-4 class models for context-aware translation.
• FiveM fxmanifest reference — canonical manifest documentation.

Related guides on FiveMX

• How to set up a FiveM server — spin up a test bed for QA on translated locales
• Optimize loading times — translation files hit load time if done wrong
• Best QBox scripts 2026 — curated scripts with clean locale files
• Best free FiveM scripts 2026 — ready-to-install scripts to practice on