Top Tips for Voice Recordings
L.A., Boston, Orlando, London, Cologne and Buenos Aires… remotely scouring the world to harvest the right voices…
Voice recording sessions usually only come around once every few months for me, but this latest run of recordings, three games at once, is pretty intense. Each project is a long, complicated and labor-intensive undertaking. I am in the director’s seat for the largest of these projects, for the other two I am in the back seat as writer/consultant. It isn't easy to calculate the entire scope of work without giving away too much, but I can estimate that between the three games I am currently recording some 15,000 lines of dialogue for 300 characters using about 50 actors across five different time zones in total. A lot is going on.
Since the pandemic, most of our actors now work remotely. This is a break from tradition and a welcome one as it means I have less to travel. There is really no point of flying to L.A. or London to sit in a windowless studio day after day. There are downsides, however, such as being stuck at my desk in Germany, straining at dual monitors with a headset on until 3 or 4 a.m. each morning. The conditions are also not always ideal with the actors, who I can often view in their converted closets with egg-cartons plastered onto the walls, sometimes stripped down to their underwear as it becomes intolerably hot in these closed spaces. We frequently need to pause for planes flying overhead or impatient kids banging on the door. When going through a long list of emotes - screams, laughs, pain, etc. - we can hear the kids querying their parent’s health from outside.
When I am writing, I am most of the time locked deep in thought with spreadsheets and several browser tabs of research, and alone except for occasional meetings with devs for design updates. These recording sessions are a break from this routine but also on a much more elevated level of insanity. I need to be on-point every moment, but the engagement with so much lovely talent is always a pleasure.
As stated, I am not a full-time voice director, although it is part of the package I offer. I have taken this role in some two dozen games over the last 15 years, which is experience enough. So I have some tips for a would-be voice director for games, or a walkthrough of the process for those interested. This is, so to speak, my “bedside manner” when it comes to directing, or how to keep things chop-chop while getting the desired results…
Recording sessions are usually planned months in advance with a very precise casting and booking procedure. The script should obviously be absolutely waterproof, having been edited and cross-checked by all hands numerous times beforehand, with a final script-lock a few days prior to commencing.
Castings can be brutal and fast. First impressions mean everything. Actors in the industry know how this works, which is why they set their nets broadly. We listen to their sample reels, we might give them some of our lines to try out if we’re interested in putting them in a lead role, and we discuss internally if the actor fits the bill. They either do or they don’t, and we take the risk from there.
When the actor arrives in the recording session, I allow a few minutes for the engineers and studio managers to get everything set up, levels tested, technical essentials straightened out. I await a signal that everything is good to go before I begin the briefing.
I begin by welcoming the actor to the session and introducing anyone else attending. This can include external audio engineers, producers, creative directors, devs, CEOs, and occasionally even stakeholders. A recording session might involve up to ten people in addition to the actor. This can become intimidating or discombobulating for the actor, so chatter is kept purely between myself and the actor for 90% of the time. I assume control from this point. The others only chip in when absolutely necessary - for example, when calling out an inconsistency, voicing a legitimate concern, or giving approval when asked. I do not shy from muting others as enforcement of input-control in my sessions.
Next, I give a very concise briefing of the game - what it’s about, what stage the development is at and when it’s likely to see release. This can usually be done in 2 or 3 minutes. Actors new to the project need this for context, returning actors need reminding as they are doubtlessly involved in many projects.
Following this, I give a briefing of the first character. Whether or not they are returning to the roles, they need to see any available portraits or animation, and I provide some backstory. I then give a very short overview of what will happen to this character in the session.
If working with a returning actor for a role, we play back any previously recorded lines on hand. The pros can tune back in within seconds. If something sounds off after a few lines of delivery, I will ask again to play some previous lines for reference, in case we have strayed from the original tone.
Some actors can get in the flow, and when they are nailing it, I don’t interrupt. Two or three takes, move on. Next two or three takes, move on. I let them know that if they hear nothing from me, they should just keep it going.
Changes to the script are inevitable. Sometimes the line just isn’t rolling out as planned. As a director, I allow everyone involved to suggest changes, and if I am in the writer/consultant seat I make the change accordingly in the script so it can be suitably implemented in the game and for translators.
Although usually an ensemble cast, dialogue exchanges are rarely recorded with more than one actor at a time. As a cue, we play back already recorded audio of the other actor, or if unavailable, I read the opposite actor myself and we bounce off each other.
I keep a pronunciation glossary for each project I work on with words written out phonetically. Sci-fi/fantasy scripts can have many inventive naming conventions. Even I, as the author, can forget the growing lexicon of the vast and complex lore and need reminding. Typically, when briefing an actor, I scan their lines ahead and give them any pronunciation points they might need in advance, rather than interrupt them each time. They mostly take these weird wordings on board with ease.
There is usually fast turnaround in game recording sessions as we have many “bit parts”. Actors are typically in session for 1 to 3 hours. On some days, we can handle as many as 6 actors a day. Each actor can handle 5 or 6 characters comfortably before exhausting what they can bring to the session, sometimes up to 10.
If an actor has multiple characters to voice, I tackle the most important (or lead roles) first while they have their energy. The generic NPCs are left to last, as the actor might run out of puff, or else we kick those less important lines over to another actor if there is no time left over.
I prefer to record chronologically according to the game progression, rather than keeping strictly to the order of the script, even if we have to jump around in line numbers a lot and annoy the engineers. Game scripts can take a lot of twists and turns and include various scenarios at different trigger points. Actors are more involved when they have the context of the sequence of events of the journey they are on. I would not, for example, record a scene where they die only then to tell them “okay, now another situation where you trade some banana bread for a passage over the river.”
Time is money. I can’t allow chit-chat or catch-ups. I try to minimize this by keeping it to the end, only if all else is completed, and only if there is time left before the next session. I will gently suggest that people catch up at the next convention or before the next booking round. As director, I am the one held accountable when we overrun on studio time. I can hear the hundreds of dollars trickling away with each minute of unnecessary chatter.
When done with an actor, I offer a de-briefing. Will we need them back and when would that likely happen? Offer goodies if available, such as access codes. Thank them profusely for their efforts and professionalism.
If another actor is waiting, reach out and keep them up to speed on how long it will take. Make everybody feel important all the time.
At the end of a day’s session, never forget to thank the engineers and studio managers specifically. Their work is essential, and to express acknowledgment of that ensures that they feel appreciated enough to continue giving the project their best.
It can happen that we find an actor doesn’t fit after the fact and we decide to re-record. Re-casting can become necessary (and, from my experience, has) due to a sudden death, general unavailability for follow-ups, or even an actor making it big and suddenly tripling their fee. Roll with it and try to ensure these likelihoods are factored into the budget, along with any other pick-ups which might be needed down the line.
It can also happen that we find out an actor is unsuitable while we have them in the booth. Either they can’t hit what we want, or it’s a bad day, or for whatever reason. This happens, but it’s a rare occurrence and this probability needs to be factored in. If the realization is felt by others observing during the session (we will have a private chat box), the most I would do is suggest we try another role. With games, there are always more NPCs to cover. I would never send an actor out of the booth - this would be very rude. I have, however, seen other directors do this. I wouldn’t, I’m not that type of guy. We’ll get what we can, even if we have to distort the voice or make them a robot - and it’s only a game, for god’s sake!
Once the audio files are integrated into the game, usually replacing text-to-speech placeholders, we can hear the magic come to life. It can be that either the team or the stakeholders dislike a particular voice and we need to reconsider. If the budget is still there, we re-cast. If we have planned accordingly, there should be time to do this.
I would like to go into more detail of the finer points of recording audio for games in time and perhaps even offer a Q&A session. There is an art to this, and I have seen some of the best directors in the business operate with such flourish as to leave me dumbfounded. The pros on our casting roll, for each project, are among the best in the world at what they do and are incredibly versatile. I sometimes can’t get over when we ask an actor to do an android voice, but not to overdo it as we’ll add the effects later, but then they just go ahead and nail it, leaving us sitting there saying “well, I guess we won’t need the effects after all!”
Stay tuned for more tips and insights on game writing, narrative design and voice recording!
