Nicholas Thurkettle - Voice Actor
@nthurkettle.bsky.social
Actor/Writer/Filmmaker. Shakespeare junkie. Road tripper. Cat lover. Profile pic by @missluuna.bsky.social linktr.ee/nthurkettle
As for the concept of a player-voiced protagonist: Having heard an example of someone cloning my voice against my wishes, the issue is, A.I. doesn't know how to act. A voice that sounds like yours but doesn't express itself like you is more jarring than immersive. Look up the "Uncanny Valley Effect"
November 12, 2025 at 5:02 PM
As for the concept of a player-voiced protagonist: Having heard an example of someone cloning my voice against my wishes, the issue is, A.I. doesn't know how to act. A voice that sounds like yours but doesn't express itself like you is more jarring than immersive. Look up the "Uncanny Valley Effect"
The question to me is - What does it do that can't be done by an actor? If your game has a lot of text and you want a vocal option for accessibility, an audiobook narrator can record over 10K words in a single session cleanly and clearly for a few hundred bucks. I've done that in my bedroom closet.
November 12, 2025 at 5:02 PM
The question to me is - What does it do that can't be done by an actor? If your game has a lot of text and you want a vocal option for accessibility, an audiobook narrator can record over 10K words in a single session cleanly and clearly for a few hundred bucks. I've done that in my bedroom closet.
They really do believe that they've unlocked the secret vault where the Holy Grail of "FAST, CHEAP, *AND* GOOD!!!" has been hidden away; when the reality is that it will be none of these things. It won't even be cheap once the VC dries up and Silicon Valley jacks the price.
November 12, 2025 at 1:36 AM
They really do believe that they've unlocked the secret vault where the Holy Grail of "FAST, CHEAP, *AND* GOOD!!!" has been hidden away; when the reality is that it will be none of these things. It won't even be cheap once the VC dries up and Silicon Valley jacks the price.
When I was just about to publish my short story collection, the editor who'd worked on a previous book project with me let me know their true name; so I opened up the publishing master docs and replaced their deadname. You just have to give a damn is all.
November 12, 2025 at 12:27 AM
When I was just about to publish my short story collection, the editor who'd worked on a previous book project with me let me know their true name; so I opened up the publishing master docs and replaced their deadname. You just have to give a damn is all.
Speaking of legendary, a closing example: Koji Kondo composed the now instantly-recognizable overworld theme for the first “Legend of Zelda” IN ONE DAY when Nintendo realized their original pick, Ravel’s “Bolero,” was still protected by copyright. Could A.I. turn defeat into victory so well? (END)
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Speaking of legendary, a closing example: Koji Kondo composed the now instantly-recognizable overworld theme for the first “Legend of Zelda” IN ONE DAY when Nintendo realized their original pick, Ravel’s “Bolero,” was still protected by copyright. Could A.I. turn defeat into victory so well? (END)
The embrace of collaboration and the surrender of absolute control go hand-in-hand. So does accepting that you may never feel completely ready to stop working, but you must stop working nonetheless. And you never know when an element you didn’t control makes your work legendary.
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
The embrace of collaboration and the surrender of absolute control go hand-in-hand. So does accepting that you may never feel completely ready to stop working, but you must stop working nonetheless. And you never know when an element you didn’t control makes your work legendary.
What I hear behind this argument is a need for control, with A.I as the false solution. It isn’t just about paying all those humans, it’s about what they bring to the table. Inevitably, there’s some element you can’t control. But the mistake is when you miss how their artistry ADDS to the work!
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
What I hear behind this argument is a need for control, with A.I as the false solution. It isn’t just about paying all those humans, it’s about what they bring to the table. Inevitably, there’s some element you can’t control. But the mistake is when you miss how their artistry ADDS to the work!
All of this is to say - I don’t buy the explanation. Especially in a world where every game gets patches, bugfixes, DLC…You can make changes. What you can’t do is infinitely dither against a deadline. No, not even with A.I., which I GUARANTEE will not give you exactly what you need on a first pass.
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
All of this is to say - I don’t buy the explanation. Especially in a world where every game gets patches, bugfixes, DLC…You can make changes. What you can’t do is infinitely dither against a deadline. No, not even with A.I., which I GUARANTEE will not give you exactly what you need on a first pass.
Another uncomfortable truth about creating is that you truly can never predict how your work will be received. Lack of control is baked into the process. What last-minute tweaking can do, though, is offer an illusion of control for people too anxious to let go. So it HELPS that there’s a cost.
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Another uncomfortable truth about creating is that you truly can never predict how your work will be received. Lack of control is baked into the process. What last-minute tweaking can do, though, is offer an illusion of control for people too anxious to let go. So it HELPS that there’s a cost.
George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” which changed 20th century music overnight? A rush job written in five weeks to beat a rival working on a similar idea. The “root beer” scene that thematically-defined “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine?” Filler they shot when the episode came in two minutes short.
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” which changed 20th century music overnight? A rush job written in five weeks to beat a rival working on a similar idea. The “root beer” scene that thematically-defined “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine?” Filler they shot when the episode came in two minutes short.
The fact that there is a hard limit to changes, that the time and resources required escalate on a curve as deadlines approach, is painful but actually a blessing. Countless iconic works of art share a story about how they escaped into the world with their creators uncertain about them.
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
The fact that there is a hard limit to changes, that the time and resources required escalate on a curve as deadlines approach, is painful but actually a blessing. Countless iconic works of art share a story about how they escaped into the world with their creators uncertain about them.
There is such a thing as self-defeatingly precious. Past a threshold, dithering is just dithering. Maybe you improve the experience by 0.1% for a small part of your audience, make it worse by 0.1% for another part, and the rest couldn’t register the differences even if you showed them side by side.
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
There is such a thing as self-defeatingly precious. Past a threshold, dithering is just dithering. Maybe you improve the experience by 0.1% for a small part of your audience, make it worse by 0.1% for another part, and the rest couldn’t register the differences even if you showed them side by side.
My training as a writer really happened at my college newspaper, where the new issue came out Friday whether I liked it or not. I realized that no matter what, my words would be imperfect, and possibly compromised; but nonetheless the best I could do under the circumstances. Some of it was garbage.
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
My training as a writer really happened at my college newspaper, where the new issue came out Friday whether I liked it or not. I realized that no matter what, my words would be imperfect, and possibly compromised; but nonetheless the best I could do under the circumstances. Some of it was garbage.
So it’s a rare hypothetical, but a valid one. The question is - when is it a way to expedite improvements on deadline, and when is it an excuse to micromanage? Because if you create anything, a universal truth you learn is that eventually, you have to *commit* to a choice you’re not sure about.
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
So it’s a rare hypothetical, but a valid one. The question is - when is it a way to expedite improvements on deadline, and when is it an excuse to micromanage? Because if you create anything, a universal truth you learn is that eventually, you have to *commit* to a choice you’re not sure about.
Sometimes this is handy, as when the movie version of “Cats” was accidentally released with incomplete VFX. Since the movie was delivered via digital files instead of physical reels, a corrected film was provided to theatres within days; so “Cats” could live or die on its own, um, cinematic quality.
a woman dressed as a cat with blue eyes looks at the camera
ALT: a woman dressed as a cat with blue eyes looks at the camera
media.tenor.com
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Sometimes this is handy, as when the movie version of “Cats” was accidentally released with incomplete VFX. Since the movie was delivered via digital files instead of physical reels, a corrected film was provided to theatres within days; so “Cats” could live or die on its own, um, cinematic quality.
Technology makes it more possible to iterate and tinker than ever. Marvel Studios now can apply a human character’s makeup *after* filming the scene (which looks waxy and strange but made sets more COVID-safe during peak pandemic.) They can even change a character’s costume.
doctor strange is wearing a black jacket and a red cape while standing in front of a fireplace in a room .
ALT: doctor strange is wearing a black jacket and a red cape while standing in front of a fireplace in a room .
media.tenor.com
November 12, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Technology makes it more possible to iterate and tinker than ever. Marvel Studios now can apply a human character’s makeup *after* filming the scene (which looks waxy and strange but made sets more COVID-safe during peak pandemic.) They can even change a character’s costume.
Thanks! I've seen it in action that every audition on this level is a win; because you never know who's listening, and the thing you don't book today may, without your realizing it, have opened the door to something you're going to book next year.
November 11, 2025 at 11:26 PM
Thanks! I've seen it in action that every audition on this level is a win; because you never know who's listening, and the thing you don't book today may, without your realizing it, have opened the door to something you're going to book next year.
Paging @musezack.bsky.social - this is your kind of rave-up.
November 11, 2025 at 10:49 PM
Paging @musezack.bsky.social - this is your kind of rave-up.
Math checks out. Green/McBride trilogy only acknowledged the original so it would branch off as a II, III, and IV; while "H20" acknowledges the first two, so it and "Resurrection" count as III and IV of that branch. Wild.
November 11, 2025 at 8:11 PM
Math checks out. Green/McBride trilogy only acknowledged the original so it would branch off as a II, III, and IV; while "H20" acknowledges the first two, so it and "Resurrection" count as III and IV of that branch. Wild.
You can yell "Cry havoc, and let slip the dogs of war!" Like you're on horseback leading a battle charge; or whisper it like you're standing over the body of a murdered loved one, knowing all your efforts to prevent violence have failed. Or 100 more ways! Actors' emotional instincts are invaluable.
November 11, 2025 at 4:15 PM
You can yell "Cry havoc, and let slip the dogs of war!" Like you're on horseback leading a battle charge; or whisper it like you're standing over the body of a murdered loved one, knowing all your efforts to prevent violence have failed. Or 100 more ways! Actors' emotional instincts are invaluable.
A friend who is a terrific stage actor asked me about the challenges of voicework and I replied "You not only have to imagine the environment and circumstances, you have to imagine your scene partner." That extra level of contextual integrity separates real story immersion from line delivery.
November 11, 2025 at 4:03 PM
A friend who is a terrific stage actor asked me about the challenges of voicework and I replied "You not only have to imagine the environment and circumstances, you have to imagine your scene partner." That extra level of contextual integrity separates real story immersion from line delivery.