Sony Speaks on Giving Games a Voice

Sony’s dialog manager Greg deBeer sat down recently for an interview on chooses voices for video games. Even with the best scene writers and dialog, voice actors need to be carefully chosen to set the right tone for a video game.

DeBeer talks about finding voice actors to read video game dialog and the changing attitude towards voice acting in the industry.

So I’ve been doing it for I guess about eight years now, and yeah, it’s been getting a lot better. I think the biggest shift that a lot of people agree with is that there’s a steady trend away from the thought that anybody can do dialog.

He also explains why he prefers to work with voice actors rather than actors.

In general, my recommendation is to stay away from celebrity talent. My personal reasoning for that — which I’ve discussed with a lot of people, and a lot of people disagree with me — is for me, hearing an identifiable celebrity voice takes you away from the game. Instead of being immersed in this environment with these characters who are supposed to be a part of whatever world you’re playing, you say, “Oh, I recognize that voice,” and it brings you back into the real world. It’s a very disruptive experience for me personally. ');

I also find, in many cases, celebrities are used to a very specific way of being dealt with and dealing with production, and voice over is very different from that. And game voice over is different from just straight animation or ADR or something in a film setting. There are some actors that can handle it very well, but I’ve found that more often than not, the more exposure they’ve had in the film world, the less they are able to cope in these situations.

I have to agree that when an actor’s voice is used in a game, I focus more on the delivery than the game or the dialog. Of course if the game is based on a film, using the actors is preferable if they’re available and capable of voice acting.

The interview is a very insightful look at the process of bringing the dialog to life. People interested in game development should definitely check it out. Also make sure to read the first comment by Eric Webb, another industry vet specializing in voice casting and recording for video games and animation. It’s practically a two for one deal.

via Gamasutra