GET FILTERED.
There’s a free-to-play gacha game called Snowbreak: Containment Zone, accessible on mobile devices and PC through platforms like Steam and the Epic Games Store.
It’s a typical 3D sci-fi RPG shooter, reminiscent of games like Destiny or Warframe. While the game has been around for some time, it became increasingly apparent in recent months that Snowbreak was facing challenges. Consequently, its developers opted to make a significant shift in focus.
Earlier this year, Seasun Games Pte, the developers, initiated a significant shift in the game’s direction. They began by removing all male characters from the game and replacing them solely with female characters.
Undoubtedly, this shift is a significant boon for the average gacha gamer. It contrasts with the trend seen in developers like miHoYo, who have prioritized the inclusion of more male characters influenced by fujoshis and homosexuals.
However, considering that the vast majority of the demographic for these games is male, the decision to focus on female characters in Snowbreak: Containment Zone aligns better with player preferences.
The developers of Snowbreak: Containment Zone have been steadily increasing the game’s fanservice content over the past several months. This strategy has undoubtedly made a significant impact, as download counts for the game surged domestically.
It even reached second place on China’s iOS rankings list for games at one, ultimately their decision to give male characters a sex change while making female characters more revealing have saved the game from an early death.
As a result of these changes, players are either returning to Snowbreak or discovering it for the first time. While the game may be smaller in scale compared to its rivals, it’s currently flourishing in its new environment.
So much so, that the developers have decided to rehire English voice actors to reprise their roles. Originally released in July 2023 with multiple language options, including Japanese, Chinese, and English, it’s not surprising given the game’s Chinese origin.
The fact that even more English players prefer Japanese or possibly Chinese voices over the official English dubbing speaks volumes. In December of last year, Seasun Games Pte informed players that, after careful evaluation, they would discontinue providing English voices starting from version 1.4.
They seem to have wished to retract upon their decision due to the game’s newfound popularity and increased revenue, driven by its focus on fanservice and appealing to heterosexual players. With the extra income, they can afford to rehire voice actors to reprise their roles.
This won’t actually be happening, as news has broken out on the official Snowbreak Discord server that the English voice actors themselves have chosen to decline a paid job. They made this decision due to the developers’ newly fixated direction on fan service content.
Yes, you heard that right. Aspiring English voice actors, who are quite literally a dime a dozen and offer barely little talent outside of taking submissions on platforms like Fiverr, rejected the offer to reprise their roles because they found the game’s new direction too raunchy for their liking.
When the game first launched, it was relatively tame. However, over time, its developers saw the writing on the wall and opted to make radical changes.
Due to the low percentage of players actually using the English voices compared to native Chinese or even Japanese dubbing, the English voice was cut back in December 2023 due to budget cuts. Seasun Games Pte then radically gave its male characters a sex change and upped the game’s fanservice factor to 11.
They not only made the characters themselves far more enticing with more revealing outfits but also added interactive affection scenes between the player and the characters themselves which are VERY provocative.
Naturally, given how majority of English speakers who play such games don’t actually bother with English voices the reception and response to this has been rather celebratory on Twitter.
With many effectively praising Snowbreak: Containment Zone for gatekeeping these voice actors who seemingly don’t want to be apart of suggestive softcore material.
This is yet another reason to praise the inevitable AI takeover. Voice actors seemingly turning down cash offers because they don’t align with the material at hand, or more rather, simply don’t want to be associated with an overly sexual product.
If they won’t moan, I say don’t groan when games don’t include an English voice option. Much akin to translations, AI voice morphing and synthesizing has come a long way in recent times and will only ever get stronger as time moves on.
It’s far more cost-efficient and practical for small-time developers to begin leveraging artificial intelligence for in-game assets, such as sound effects, and possibly voice lines in the future.
This approach also offers the ability to translate games into various languages without hiring a middleman to insert their own political beliefs into the mix.
English voice actors have proven themselves to be extremely entitled. Many of them lack talent, and there are instances like Hellena Taylor’s outright lie regarding the money offered by Platinum Games to reprise her role for Bayonetta 3. She asked fans to boycott the game because the money she was offered simply wasn’t enough for her tastes.
It’s disheartening to witness small-time developers prioritize catering to a small fraction of players who use English voice dubbing in an “anime” style game, rather than enhancing the overall quality of their product. In the coming years, we can expect to see a surge in the use of AI voices in video games.
Their attempts to rehire voice actors have failed, and I sincerely hope they abandon any plans to seek new ones. With the successful reception and financial gains from the new direction taken for Snowbreak, it would be prudent for them to retain their earnings rather than squander them unnecessarily.
Snowbreak: Containment Zone is available for download and play on PC through the Epic Game Store, the games own launcher and Valve’s Steam Store. With a review rating of 79% from a total of 2,869 reviews, the game shares similarities with titles like Warframe, Destiny, and The Division.
It’s a third-person, over-the-shoulder RPG shooter that immerses players in levels where they must fend off hordes of enemies or complete various objectives. The game also offers limiting co-op experiences, with a moderate concurrent player peak of around 2,400 players daily, ensuring players can easily find others to join them in their adventures on PC.
I’m unsure about whether or not it supports cross play with mobile players, I would imagine so.
