Kareem
@shadetooth.bsky.social
Dialogue Lead @ Insomniac Games
he/him
he/him
This is how I do it:
December 4, 2025 at 10:37 PM
This is how I do it:
It's incredible!! Did you know he composed most of it based on the books and script? He didn't wait for cinematography to start coming in.
November 28, 2025 at 1:54 AM
It's incredible!! Did you know he composed most of it based on the books and script? He didn't wait for cinematography to start coming in.
All the Roberts working on Fortnite:
November 20, 2025 at 9:56 PM
All the Roberts working on Fortnite:
I think that's a valid choice for sound design, a little harder for music, and kind of impossible for dialogue.
Maybe if a dialogue team only used human scratch recorded professionally and some of the actors were really good? That could work but it would be much slower than most temp VO systems.
Maybe if a dialogue team only used human scratch recorded professionally and some of the actors were really good? That could work but it would be much slower than most temp VO systems.
November 20, 2025 at 3:11 PM
I think that's a valid choice for sound design, a little harder for music, and kind of impossible for dialogue.
Maybe if a dialogue team only used human scratch recorded professionally and some of the actors were really good? That could work but it would be much slower than most temp VO systems.
Maybe if a dialogue team only used human scratch recorded professionally and some of the actors were really good? That could work but it would be much slower than most temp VO systems.
SILENCE... The ultimate solution to all game audio problems!
I feel like that's more upsetting than shipping temp content tbh, just nothing there.
I feel like that's more upsetting than shipping temp content tbh, just nothing there.
November 20, 2025 at 3:08 PM
SILENCE... The ultimate solution to all game audio problems!
I feel like that's more upsetting than shipping temp content tbh, just nothing there.
I feel like that's more upsetting than shipping temp content tbh, just nothing there.
Until a non-audio director comes over and says "Why did you start taking out the walkie-talkie effect on all of the voice lines? I thought it was very creative and gave our world a really cool, grungy quality. Can you bring it back?"
It's a great solution, and can still backfire!
It's a great solution, and can still backfire!
November 20, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Until a non-audio director comes over and says "Why did you start taking out the walkie-talkie effect on all of the voice lines? I thought it was very creative and gave our world a really cool, grungy quality. Can you bring it back?"
It's a great solution, and can still backfire!
It's a great solution, and can still backfire!
"These voice actors are good, but I'm missing a nice satisfying SNAP at the start to grab my attention."
Gosh we as humans can get attached to the wildest things.
Gosh we as humans can get attached to the wildest things.
November 20, 2025 at 3:01 PM
"These voice actors are good, but I'm missing a nice satisfying SNAP at the start to grab my attention."
Gosh we as humans can get attached to the wildest things.
Gosh we as humans can get attached to the wildest things.
Yeah, I would say text-to-speech (aka robo) is the industry standard solution right now for temp dialogue.
Still, it's not unusual to be in a situation where folks want to hear temp dialogue, but like BETTER. And that's a slippery slope.
Still, it's not unusual to be in a situation where folks want to hear temp dialogue, but like BETTER. And that's a slippery slope.
November 20, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Yeah, I would say text-to-speech (aka robo) is the industry standard solution right now for temp dialogue.
Still, it's not unusual to be in a situation where folks want to hear temp dialogue, but like BETTER. And that's a slippery slope.
Still, it's not unusual to be in a situation where folks want to hear temp dialogue, but like BETTER. And that's a slippery slope.
Gotta get the audio designer SAG certified if you wanna keep it next time!
November 20, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Gotta get the audio designer SAG certified if you wanna keep it next time!
Was he doing it all in his natural voice or was he doing an impression of each of the iconic characters?
November 20, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Was he doing it all in his natural voice or was he doing an impression of each of the iconic characters?
I didn't really talk about how it can be useful, both as a proof of functionality and to create awareness outside of the audio team of what we're working on.
I'm not opposed to implementing temp audio, I just think it can easily cause a surprising amount of issues.
I'm not opposed to implementing temp audio, I just think it can easily cause a surprising amount of issues.
November 20, 2025 at 2:56 PM
I didn't really talk about how it can be useful, both as a proof of functionality and to create awareness outside of the audio team of what we're working on.
I'm not opposed to implementing temp audio, I just think it can easily cause a surprising amount of issues.
I'm not opposed to implementing temp audio, I just think it can easily cause a surprising amount of issues.
You just have to make sure nobody's TOO GOOD at their mouth noises or an asset or two might creep into the final product!
November 19, 2025 at 4:56 PM
You just have to make sure nobody's TOO GOOD at their mouth noises or an asset or two might creep into the final product!
As a dialogue developer I am jealous of this solution that doesn't translate over to my team!
November 19, 2025 at 4:54 PM
As a dialogue developer I am jealous of this solution that doesn't translate over to my team!
Audio (sound effects, music, and dialogue) has a weird relationship with temp assets, mostly because of issues revolving around human psychology.
Problem #1: How do you communicate that something you're hearing is temp?
Problem #1: How do you communicate that something you're hearing is temp?
The annoying thing about the "oh we left a placeholder" generative AI slop excuse is that that is EXACTLY NOT how you should be using placeholders. Anything "not obviously terrible with a panicked hurried half-awake glance" is getting shipped.
November 19, 2025 at 3:37 PM
I've said no to temp dialogue requests in favor of just leaving something silent until we get the final assets recorded and in place. And I hate saying no to people.
Game development is hard, and temp audio is a trap.
SOURCES:
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
www.bbc.com/future/artic...
Game development is hard, and temp audio is a trap.
SOURCES:
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
www.bbc.com/future/artic...
Repeated Listening Increases the Liking for Music Regardless of Its Complexity: Implications for the Appreciation and Aesthetics of Music
Psychological and aesthetic theories predict that music is appreciated at optimal, peak levels of familiarity and complexity, and that appreciation of music exhibits an inverted U-shaped relationship with familiarity as well as complexity. Because ...
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
November 19, 2025 at 3:36 PM
I've said no to temp dialogue requests in favor of just leaving something silent until we get the final assets recorded and in place. And I hate saying no to people.
Game development is hard, and temp audio is a trap.
SOURCES:
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
www.bbc.com/future/artic...
Game development is hard, and temp audio is a trap.
SOURCES:
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
www.bbc.com/future/artic...
So yeah, in conclusion navigating temp audio can really trip you up in ways that are surprising and confounding.
I've found myself arguing with audio directors on behalf of making temp assets sound worse to ensure that no one ends up falling in love with them.
I've found myself arguing with audio directors on behalf of making temp assets sound worse to ensure that no one ends up falling in love with them.
November 19, 2025 at 3:36 PM
So yeah, in conclusion navigating temp audio can really trip you up in ways that are surprising and confounding.
I've found myself arguing with audio directors on behalf of making temp assets sound worse to ensure that no one ends up falling in love with them.
I've found myself arguing with audio directors on behalf of making temp assets sound worse to ensure that no one ends up falling in love with them.
- RECORD AND IMPLEMENT SCRATCH VO
"Ok great! We're ready to start casting the actual voice actor for this role now. Wait, how come no one sounds as good to me as the person we used for the scratch VO?"
- RE-RECORD THE VO WITH THE SAME SCRATCH VOICE ACTOR BUT THIS TIME BETTER BECAUSE IT'S FINAL
"Ok great! We're ready to start casting the actual voice actor for this role now. Wait, how come no one sounds as good to me as the person we used for the scratch VO?"
- RE-RECORD THE VO WITH THE SAME SCRATCH VOICE ACTOR BUT THIS TIME BETTER BECAUSE IT'S FINAL
November 19, 2025 at 3:36 PM
- RECORD AND IMPLEMENT SCRATCH VO
"Ok great! We're ready to start casting the actual voice actor for this role now. Wait, how come no one sounds as good to me as the person we used for the scratch VO?"
- RE-RECORD THE VO WITH THE SAME SCRATCH VOICE ACTOR BUT THIS TIME BETTER BECAUSE IT'S FINAL
"Ok great! We're ready to start casting the actual voice actor for this role now. Wait, how come no one sounds as good to me as the person we used for the scratch VO?"
- RE-RECORD THE VO WITH THE SAME SCRATCH VOICE ACTOR BUT THIS TIME BETTER BECAUSE IT'S FINAL
"This temp VO doesn't sound great, it's just a text-to-speech system. Can we upgrade to a more expensive synthetic voice tool?"
- NEW TEMP VOICE TOOL
"The voices are very realistic but it's lacking emotional tone and rhythm. Let's replace it with scratch VO where we cheaply record real voices."
- NEW TEMP VOICE TOOL
"The voices are very realistic but it's lacking emotional tone and rhythm. Let's replace it with scratch VO where we cheaply record real voices."
November 19, 2025 at 3:36 PM
"This temp VO doesn't sound great, it's just a text-to-speech system. Can we upgrade to a more expensive synthetic voice tool?"
- NEW TEMP VOICE TOOL
"The voices are very realistic but it's lacking emotional tone and rhythm. Let's replace it with scratch VO where we cheaply record real voices."
- NEW TEMP VOICE TOOL
"The voices are very realistic but it's lacking emotional tone and rhythm. Let's replace it with scratch VO where we cheaply record real voices."