"Videogames are a little more work and they're a little more stilted"
About this Quote
Videogames, in Carlos Alazraqui's framing, aren’t “the future of storytelling” so much as a different kind of labor: closer to voice acting in a recording booth than acting with another human being. Calling them “a little more work” punctures the tech-utopian vibe that often surrounds games. It’s the unglamorous truth from a working actor: the medium asks you to do more with less. You’re generating intensity on command, repeating variations, delivering contextless lines that will be stitched into dozens of branching scenarios. The work isn’t harder because it’s more artistic; it’s harder because it’s more industrial.
“Stilted” is the sharper word. It hints at the persistent friction between interactive design and naturalistic performance. Games, especially those built around player choice, can force dialogue into modular chunks: sentences that must make sense in multiple emotional pathways, scenes recorded out of order, relationships built in code rather than rehearsal. Even when the acting is strong, the form can create that slightly artificial cadence - as if the character is speaking in menu options.
The subtext is also about status. For decades, game voice work was treated as adjacent to “real” acting: less visibility, less prestige, often less protection. Alazraqui’s remark lands in that cultural moment where games are massive but still negotiating legitimacy. He’s not dismissing the medium; he’s naming its constraints. The line works because it’s modest, almost offhand - the kind of shop-floor honesty that cuts through hype and reminds you art is also workflow.
“Stilted” is the sharper word. It hints at the persistent friction between interactive design and naturalistic performance. Games, especially those built around player choice, can force dialogue into modular chunks: sentences that must make sense in multiple emotional pathways, scenes recorded out of order, relationships built in code rather than rehearsal. Even when the acting is strong, the form can create that slightly artificial cadence - as if the character is speaking in menu options.
The subtext is also about status. For decades, game voice work was treated as adjacent to “real” acting: less visibility, less prestige, often less protection. Alazraqui’s remark lands in that cultural moment where games are massive but still negotiating legitimacy. He’s not dismissing the medium; he’s naming its constraints. The line works because it’s modest, almost offhand - the kind of shop-floor honesty that cuts through hype and reminds you art is also workflow.
Quote Details
| Topic | Art |
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