Because games want to be movies and movies want to be games. Blanc, a well-known voice actor and director who has worked with Burch several times. “They keep saying, ‘Games are different,’ ” said J.B. Tech firms often see the developers and engineers as the true stars of the show.

Voice actors want to be treated more like TV and film actors, who are viewed as central to the creative process. The lengthy strike highlighted how video games have emerged as the scene of a tense clash between Hollywood and Silicon Valley. A vote by the full union is going on now. Gaming fans feared delays for their favourite titles before a tentative deal was reached late last month. Burch was forced to give up a critically acclaimed role she loved. The bitter labour dispute dragged on for 11 months, making it the longest strike in the history of Hollywood’s largest actors’ union, SAG-AFTRA. This led voice actors to go on strike last year against 11 of the largest video game developers over bonus pay and safety issues, such as vocal stress. Yet voice actors in this industry are not treated like actors in television and movies. And the best voice actors - their names known to fans and promoted by companies - can become celebrities despite never appearing onscreen. Voice, that intimate marker of human emotion, is now seen as essential to the $24.5-billion (U.S.) video-game market, where hyperrealistic graphics and operatic storylines are used in games that can be as textured as the best film dramas. Voice actors are increasingly on the front line of a transformation taking hold in the entertainment industry as the creativity of Hollywood and the technological innovation of Silicon Valley converge.

Metal Gear Solid by Ashly Burch