Stop calling all video game performers “voice actors”

Rockstar is recording scenes for the original Red Dead Redemption and Benjamin Byron Davis, playing the role of Dutch van der Linde, is waiting for a confrontation to kick off in a bar. Him and the other actors are standing inside the performance capture volume – a stage filled with props to simulate a saloon …

[Sophisticated_Chap]

Well excuuuuuuuuuuse me! What humble people in Hollywood...

[Gameseeker_Frampt]

You think that is bad? You should see what happens here when some study calls people who play mobile games "gamers." Hell, people went crazy last week when someone posted an article about calling a custom built PC that plays video games a "gaming PC."

[Smokehouse]

I nominate “video game capture actor” instead. Let’s get hyper-semantic and do it right.

[Smellsforfree]

Not to be confused with a ... lowly Voice Actor (*clutches pearls*)...

[Smokehouse]

Ewwwww

[rainslacker]

I don't really care who they were in the first place. They did a good job in their parts, and all credit where it was due, but whether they're voice actors, or just some waitress from the Applebee's down the street from the dev is moot to me, and likely 99.9% of the people who actually play the game.

[TeamIcoFan]

Well they're not wrong.

[Abnor_Mal]

With only their voices heard while acting out a scene from a script, what else should they be called? Simply an actor? Is being called a voice actor really beneath them, should we call movie stars only as big screen actors, television stars, small screen actors? Stage actors? Mo cap actors?

[Profchaos]

I guess their argument is that they are actually performing the motions in the same way Andy serskies performs as golum or Cesar and he gets Oscar nominations maybe that's what they are after.

[Abnor_Mal]

Different medium, understandable if video game performances were considered for Oscar nominations.

I honestly would not consider Andy Serkis as an actor when he is portraying fictional motion captured cgi characters, at that point in my opinion he is a mo cap actor.

Nic Cage is a one dimensional actor, just had to get that in.

[rainslacker]

And then those actions are often edited and a character model is placed into scenes created by the devs.

I just call them actors, regardless of where they do it. Some voice actors, or mocap actors are better than some of the most popular actors in hollywood, so all they should care about is their work, not what people call them.

[Segata]

Full Reactive Experience Entertainer.

FREE. :P

[Smellsforfree]

>'You're the voice of Dutch van der Linde, I love you so much', you don't want to say 'Listen, asshole, I am not the voice of him—I did full performance capture'," Davis

Next time I'll just pretend like I don't even recognize you, then.

[YodaCracker]

They’re decent voice actors.

[AK91]

Well they did Mocap all their scenes so that makes sense.

[RazzerRedux]

mocap actors then.

[Smokehouse]

Video game motion capture voice actor

[RazzerRedux]

rolls right off the tongue. so many feelings have been saved.

[Segata]

......k...

[silenthillstrangler]

I am a serious ACTOOOORRRR darling.
The pretension of these cunts is ever astounding, just shut up and do the voice.

[KwietStorm_BLM]

Shut up and do the voice LOL

[BrainSyphoned]

Do I have to label games as movies if I use a projector?

[ShadowWolf712]

Funny, Troy Baker and Nolan North have been doing full performance capture for years, and I have yet to hear them get upset over people calling them "voice actors".

[SegaGamer]

I'm still going to call them voice actors.

[monkey602]

Same as myself then. More so out of belligerence than anything when I see this kind of crap Haha

[2pacalypsenow]

Hollywood already tells people how to live, now they want to tell us how to treat them?

They can all go su**************

[nibblo]

The story about standing up at the table was pretty funny, he forgot he wasn't actually Dutch. Suspect it shows how he views himself when acting for video games.

[isarai]

Dude chill, it's just that for decades all actors were used for in games were their voices, and that title is just a remnant of that. A carry over from film and cartoons. Wasnt till the last gen or that full performance capture started to be a thing requiring full acting performances. But I've heard plenty of people beginning to refer to them as "actors" it's just a matter of time before thats the common term.

[william_cade]

I'm here for the comments.

[KwietStorm_BLM]

Well then stop voice acting all up in da videogames. Every time I'm playin a game, you up in the game. Saying all the words... Eatin all da lines.

[Sniperwithacause]

1st thing I thought of was that scene in the movie Friday with Ice Cube and his father in the kitchen. Lol

[KwietStorm_BLM]

Glad someone got it. RIP John Witherspoon.

[MetroidFREAK21]

Nah, they voice actors

[jznrpg]

I’ll take their jobs and you can call me whatever the hell you want . I could be used in bad guy roles as I have a deep voice and some people say my voice scares them over the phone or in game chat

[monochromer]

Stop hurling demands about stuff that doesn't matter to any of us.

[lio_convoy]

Sounds like Gensie is deeply offended.

[Rebel_Scum]

If Benjamin Byron Davis wants to change everyone's mind about this then...

he needs a plan!

[KillBill]

When they supply voice to a video game they are voice actors. If they do something more as in performing motion capture or anything else than those labels what ever they might be can be added to their reparateur.

[outsider1624]

Alright... Game Voicers it is then. :-)

[Vaud-Villian]

Video game divas, got it

[Tross]

Well, there are motion capture actors too, but a lot of video game performers really are voice actors. Maybe the distinction can be made when it arises (such as here).

[ScootaKuH]

I'm sorry. It'll never happen again

[SolidGamerX]

Yes shame on all of you. LOL

[Flewid638]

Not all of them actually perform so why would I?

[GrizToof]

How about you call them what you want and i'll call them what i want too. I love when someone thinks they know better than everyone else and tries to shame people into doing things the "right" way. What an ass.