The constantly evolving gaming assiduity is always seeking new ways to make gaming more pleasurable and instigative. It aims to transform gaming from a medium that relies solely on finger dexterity and quick reactions to one that appeals to different senses and emotions. Still, it should be noted that creating a videotape game is relatively grueling. It involves considering and designing various aspects such as the type of game (FPS, RPG, etc.), storyline, character development, gameplay mechanics, and game world. Numerous individuals and components must come together seamlessly to create a cohesive experience. Game developers must explore and test countless scenarios that can shape the game according to players’ reactions. In addition to all these considerations, particularly in recent years, voice technology has emerged. The voiceovers for game characters and the translation of games for different markets have become increasingly important. As a result, the game localization service industry has experienced rapid growth. Now, the next frontier in the gaming industry is games with voice recognition technology.
What is a Game with Voice Recognition?
Voice control has come a technology that we decreasingly use in our everyday lives. Cars, smart fridges, wearable devices, and even video games are among the main objects where voice technology is employed. A game played with voice control offers an immersive, exciting, and seamless experience. Games with voice recognition generally concentrate on real-time decision-timber and strategy, allowing players to direct their characters or interact with other in-game characters using their voices.
Games with voice recognition make gaming more accessible by enabling individuals with limited motor skills or visual impairments to participate in the fun. Also, they add another subcaste of absorption, allowing players to further engage with the game. Games with voice recognition also reduce the learning curve for beginners by minimizing the time spent figuring out controls. Innovative gaming companies support this technology to reach a broader audience and provide a more impactful gaming experience.
The Challenge of Developing Games with Voice Recognition
The biggest challenge for game developers in voice recognition-enabled games is the vast amount of voice data required. It is crucial for meticulously crafted games that countless hours are dedicated to developing the game to ensure smooth functionality. When localizing video games for different countries, cultural differences must be taken into account, along with variations in accents, dialects, and other linguistic nuances. In this context, it will be necessary to identify and collect different expressions and voice commands that players may use.
Disregarding natural language expressions in any foreign language during localization can disrupt gameplay and the flow of the game. Even if players use the correct expressions, the lack of desired reactions due to accent or dialect differences can lead to frustration.
Ultimately, seamless voice recognition requires consideration of numerous factors. It would be a significant loss for both players and developers if a player consistently gives a command without any response.
There’s no mistrustfulness that voice recognition will have an important place in gaming assiduity in the coming times. Still, to achieve this, we must gather our guests from history to the present, identify our failings, and work together with players and game inventors from around the world to shape our path forward.
12 Games with Voice Recognition
Many games today benefit from voice recognition technology, with some relying on smart virtual assistants to assist with completing voice commands. However, the number of games entirely controlled by voice is still very low because this technology has not yet reached that level.
While technology is advancing at a dizzying pace, most games with voice recognition capabilities have limited functionality. Misunderstanding voice commands or encountering speech impediments, accents, dialects, and other differences can lead to frustrating gaming experiences.
As artificial intelligence and machine literacy continue to progress, it’s a fact that we will see games in the future that make further effective use of voice recognition technology. We will have to make do with the following days until that day comes.
1. Lurking
Inside games with voice recognition, in this chine-chilling horror adventure game, you find yourself in pitch darkness, and the only way to be apprehensive of your surroundings is to use sound swells, much like batons do. You can create these sound waves by throwing objects around in the game or by using your microphone. Inside games with voice recognition, Lurking’s unique feature that utilizes your microphone is a significant aspect that sets it apart from similar games. Despite having many successors, the game’s mechanics being genuinely well-executed still make it a good choice in the gaming world.
By the way, it’s worth mentioning that the enemies lurking around you also use the sounds you produce to track your location. Lurking is a game where you must use sounds while also remaining silent.
2. Scream Go Hero
Inside games with voice recognition, in the game “Scream Go Hero,” you need to jump to the next platform and to accomplish this, you have to scream! By screaming, I don’t mean getting angry and yelling at the game, but rather, your character’s jumping power is fueled by your own screams. So, the louder you scream, the further your character will jump. For a short jump, a moderate volume might be sufficient, but for longer distances, you may need to let out a strong scream.
Inside games with voice recognition, when you are playing this game, the quality of your voice does not count in this game; being suitable to produce a laugh is enough. Just make sure your voice is powerful enough to propel you to the next platform, and that you have neighbors who won’t mind you constantly screaming. The only drawback of this game that utilizes voice features is that as you progress to higher levels, your voice may become hoarse.
3. There Came an Echo
Inside games with voice recognition, in this real-time science fiction game, you take the lead of a small war fleet to fight against aliens. There Came an Echo, a strategy adventure game, immerses you in an adventure deep in space.
To achieve success in this space odyssey, you’ll need to be a capable and analytical team leader, as well as utilize voice commands in the right and precise manner. In this intergalactic adventure, you’ll enjoy unraveling mysteries while simultaneously showering your team with voice commands, all while facing nameless enemies.
4. The Broken Seal
Inside games with voice recognition, in The Broken Seal, an open-world action-adventure RPG game, you cast powerful spells and battle against monstrous creatures using voice commands.
After the breaking of a magical seal that imprisoned them, terrifying creatures have flooded the world, submerging it underwater. To defeat these fearsome monsters and restore balance, you harness your spell arsenal, controlled by your voice. While the game still requires some refinement in its voice recognition feature, diving into the enchanting world of spells activated by your voice commands is truly exhilarating.
5. Radio General
Inside games with voice recognition, in this strategy simulation game, Command Tent, you assume the role of a general responsible for a military unit during World War II. You only have access to the region’s map and a radio to communicate with your unit.
In Radio General, your task is challenging since you are not on the field to directly command your troops. The only thing you have at your disposal is radio reports, which you must rely on to make instant and swift decisions. Alongside the enjoyment of using voice commands, the game tests your strategic intelligence and whether you possess the necessary skills to be a commander.
6. Bot Colony
Inside games with voice recognition, this game has a special place. Agrihan Island is a private island governed by Nakagawa Corp robots. In 2021, the company sends you as a researcher to this island. Upon arriving at the island, completely run by the company’s robots, you discover that the behaviors of the robots have been misdirected by their managers, and you step in.
Inside games with voice recognition, in this game, The Bot Colony operates entirely through voice commands and entered instructions. You must communicate with the robots and ask them the right questions to progress. However, if you ask the wrong questions you will have to start over. You’ll need to do some detective work to uncover the mystery behind the robots on Agrihan Island.
7. In Verbis Virtus
Inside games with voice recognition, in this action-adventure game, you have everything you need to unleash the wizard within you. In this magical realm, you must use your voice to cast spells, solve puzzles, and escape from terrifying demons. If you’ve played as a wizard in Dungeons & Dragons, you will like this game, too.
The characters in the 2015 game In Verbis Virtus may seem to come from the World of Warcraft expansion pack, but they embody a dark fantasy blend reminiscent of Lovecraft.
8. One Hand Clapping
Inside games with voice recognition, One Hand Clapping is a 2D platform game that requires you to have a throat lozenge on hand while playing. This is because you need to sing, shout, or scream into your microphone to progress through the levels. You can also use rhythm elements to defeat silence and achieve victory, meaning that applauding or beatboxing is also allowed in the game.
Playing this game doesn’t require a complex setup or having a beautiful voice. All you need is a microphone and a sense of meter.
9. Tom Clancy’s EndWar
Inside games with voice recognition, in this retro tactical game from the Tom Clancy franchise, which was revolutionary for RTS games, you use your voice to command your armies and units on the battlefield. You could not only use your microphone to play the game but also for voice chat in multiplayer mode. However, we say “could” because multiplayer mode support was discontinued in 2018.
10. Binary Domain
Inside games with voice recognition, Binary Domain, a third-person shooter game. It is one of the relatively modern games on our list, released in 2012. In this game, inspired by its forerunners, players use their voices to give simple commands to their platoon members in the heat of battle, similar to “cover me” or “fire.”
However, one of the most criticized aspects of the game is the constant misinterpretation or complete disregard of player commands. Due to this issue, it is difficult to consider it a successful example among games that utilize voice recognition commands.
11. Risk
The Alexa contribution offered for free in RISK is a great example of how voice assistants can enhance existing games. It adds an element of chance to the classic board game. Acting as the voice of fate, Alexa introduces random events at the end of each turn, altering the course of the game. These events can range from a medicinal plant that aids in healing a player’s troops to a natural disaster that eliminates a portion of their forces.
There’s no mistrustfulness that the addition of Alexa brings a new dimension to the game, soliciting those who may have grown tired of playing the classic interpretation to come back to the table.
12. Starfinder
Inside games with voice recognition, Starfinder was first designed as a tabletop part-playing game, Starfinder has evolved into a wisdom-fantasy game where the player’s character selection and in-game opinions shape the plot. This transformation was greatly influenced by the collaboration with Amazon.
The game consists of six parts, each lasting roughly 90 twinkles, although the duration may vary grounded on the player’s choices. While the first occasion is free, there’s a cost associated with retaining the entire season.
A New Era in Game with Voice Recognition
There’s no mistrustfulness that games exercising voice recognition technology will have a significant place in the future of the gaming world. However, current games utilizing this technology have not yet achieved the desired level of success. They still have many improvements to make, but that doesn’t hinder our praise for their innovation.
Although many players still prefer using a joystick/button and keyboard/mouse to communicate and control their characters on-screen, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that these habits will change parallel to the advancements in voice recognition technology.
One of the biggest challenges in voice recognition technology is the demand for a large quantum of speech data. Achieving such a vast volume of speech data is a challenging task. However, through collaboration among industry stakeholders, a solution to overcome this difficulty will undoubtedly be found.
Prostrating these challenges will open the full eventuality of voice recognition technology in videotape games, allowing players to witness a further unique gaming experience.
