Johanna Ericson
Reporter
COVID-19 has changed people’s lives in many different ways. One of the biggest changes that it brought to us was adapting to a completely digital world where everything had to be held virtually. A major example of this is gaming conventions. Last year, events such as Overwatch League, League of Legends Championship series and ROECon were all held virtually. Even Comic-Con held its event online last year, while the E3 2020 conference was canceled altogether.
In proper COVID-19 fashion, voice actors also had to make the transition of recording in the studio to recording in the comfort of their own homes.
“A lot of things changed. I was relatively new to voice acting, I’m more of a mo-cap guy on set, and they record your VO at the same time,” said Nick Apostolides, professional voice actor and motion capture performer. “So, I had to adapt, I had to actually build a... like a voice recording booth in my home. You know, that cost a couple hundred bucks, a little bit of engineering. But I do that, invest in better mic equipment, and also get some software like Source-Connect, that allows you to record kind of remotely in real time with engineers. It’s a whole mess, and a lot of people wanna get back to just good old-fashioned recording in the studio, so you don’t have to worry about any of that stuff.”
Aside from the average gaming convention, many voice actors have been streaming on Twitch and Instagram live to connect with fans since they can’t meet them in person. They have also been doing virtual signings, where fans can purchase a print through Streamily and watch it be signed.
“That’s been really fun,” Apostolides said. “We had just started the convention run, my fellow Resident Evil 2 cast, right before COVID hit, and that was really exciting and I said ‘Wow, we get to go out and meet the fans!’ Because we’re fans ourselves. And then when COVID struck, it all just kinda went down the tubes, and we started thinking of ways that we could connect.”
For many people, the last year has been difficult because of the limited in-person interactions. For those in the gaming industry, the lack of contact with fans was painful.
“There was a lot of depression that was going around, and uncertainty like a year ago, and so we started randomly appearing on like, IG live, and just connecting with people taking some questions in lieu of seeing them in person,” Apostolides said. “And then, the signings, it’s fun because a lot of people connect. I’ve had a great time appearing on a lot of streams when people play through like, whether it’s Resident Evil games or whatever, and I just appear as a guest and commenting, or this and that, answer questions, it’s just a really good excuse to hang out, have a good time with friends, and connect with the online community.”
Apostolides said that gaming has been more important than ever in the last year while people were spending large amounts of time alone, and that for some people the games have functioned as a social lifeline.
“Because the fan base, especially for Resident Evil, is so loyal, so deep, and I’m just a fan myself, so it’s been fun. And I know it helps a lot of people with mental health issues, like this is their social lives. That’s how I’ve connected with so many of my friends is online playing games, so I totally get it. I’ve just been happy to use whatever kind of exposure that I have right now, whatever kind of power I have, I wanna use it for positivity, and spreading positivity, and this is one way I can do it.”
It’s unknown when fans and creators will be able to connect with one another in person again. With COVID-19 hopefully winding down in the coming year or so, fans are more than ready to be able to gather with fellow gamers, meet their favorite voiceover artists and be able to connect with everyone in person to talk about the love and passion they share for their favorite games.