Game Voice Recording Procedures

Often disregarded by gamers and usually only noticed when their are quality bad, voices in video games don't get as much attention as they would deserve to.

Their role, however, is extremely important as it helps gamers feel and appreciate the atmosphere game designers are trying to create.

Game voice recording is a pretty heavy task requiring a perfect project management, in particular for multilingual games.

I. Familiarization and casting

Before you get actors to record voices for a game, you will first need to have a complete listing of the characters requiring voices. Even more importantly, you will have to understand each character's mind and behaviour, in order to give voice actors clear instructions.

Once the needs are determined, the acting staff has to be recruited. Young recording companies may be tempted to go for castings, while bigger companies will need to have their project managers browse the list of actors available and select relevant ones, depending of the game's characters. This part will make the difference between a good and a bad voice over job.

II. Recording

Probably the most known part. Studios ask sound engineers to prepare micros and recording machines. The project manager then prepares a recording schedule for each actor and part of the game (usually sessions of about one hour).

The voice actors then step in and record the given texts during the sessions, usually having little to no pauses. This exercise requires a lot of experience since the actors have to keep their tone and pace consistant for the whole session.

III. Post-processing

The hardest part begins here. Sound engineers have to extract sound files for each of the lines of text, make sure to remove all the unwanted noise, make sure the volume is consistant, remove blank recording times, and check there was no major problem with the voice itself.

In case of problems, a few more sessions may need to be prepared to record the missing lines.

Engineers often have to go through lists of several thousands files in a couple of days maximum. This requires a strong experience in sound editing and post-processing.

Once all the files are cleaned up and checked, they can be sent to the developer.

IV. Implementation

Developer then has to add the files to the game project and make an important number of checks (debug).

Is the file length ok? Not too short or long? Is the lip synchronisation good enough? Depending on the cases, the developer may have to ask the game localization studio for more recordings or adapt the game's cinematics accordingly.

In conclusion, the whole process can take up to several months and shouldn't be taken likely by game companies who care user experience.

Opportunities for voice actors, sound engineers and project managers will be listed here.

For UK-based actors