After a forum post alleged the new Mercy German voice lines were AI-generated, Blizzard addressed the community’s concerns.
The discussion surrounding the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for creating content and art in gaming has been quite controversial. Recently, a player initiated a conversation on the Blizzard Entertainment forum, claiming that Mercy was not the character speaking in the new German voice lines and that it was actually AI-generated. This post garnered nearly 7,000 likes, prompting Blizzard to respond.
German Mercy voice lines
Everything started two days ago when a player started a discussion on the Blizzard Entertainment official forum. In the post, the player expressed how disappointed they were with the "Windows 95" voice in both the Battle Pass and the Gundam event regarding the new Mercy German AI-generated voice lines. "The new voice lines in the Battle Pass and Gundam event are completely unacceptable. We’re not spending loads of money on cosmetics just to get fobbed off with this kind of stuff", the person wrote.
People quickly began commenting on the issue. The original poster later replied, stating that "the German voice actor confirmed she’s no longer working as Mercy’s voice." They also urged Blizzard to "collaborate with the voice actors" to ensure the voice lines meet the right quality standards.
The player also mentioned the intention of Microsoft to integrate AI into the Blizzard gaming division, which is true since Microsoft has been very vocal about its investment in this technology. Not only that, but Microsoft was thinking of integrating Copilot AI inside Overwatch 2, which was not accepted by Blizzard due to "possible cheating problems."
"Living in a dystopia"
Several players are voicing their dissatisfaction with AI-generated content. One player said, "AI should only assist in completing a product more efficiently; it shouldn't be the product itself." Another warned, "I’m considering boycotting their games until they find a solution that satisfies everyone involved". "That should be a trillion % illegal", others added. And the negative replies kept going.
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No AI-generated Mercy voice lines
After the post gained significant traction, accumulating over 160 replies and nearly 7,000 likes, Eric, the Public Relations Manager, commented on the original post. He clarified, "These voice lines are not AI-generated.
However, Blizzard acknowledged that "certain localized voice lines in some recent game content are currently unavailable or have been changed." The spokesperson added, "Out of respect for all parties involved, we won’t make any additional comments while discussions continue. We aim to reach a mutually beneficial outcome as soon as possible, so we can restore the talents and creative contributions of these performers for players to enjoy."
The players were glad that Blizzard clarified the situation and are "looking forward to seeing what happens" in the future. One expressed: "Hopefully, a good solution for all parties will be found as the regular VAs are a part for the success of the game, at least for the German version, what I can say from my side/experience, and there is actually a not so small fan base behind". Others criticized the players who jumped to conclusions based on assumptions.
This conversation around AI and voice actors has been happening for a while in various games. For now, you can expect real people voicing your favorite Overwatch 2 heroes.
That's all for now. Stick around for more Overwatch 2 news, guides, and updates on esports.gg.
