‘Assassin’s Creed’ voice actor describes AI as an “invisible enemy”

Voice actor Victoria Atkin, who played Evie Frye in Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, has criticised the use of artificial intelligence software to simulate voices for mods, calling it an “invisible enemy.”

“I was kind of shocked, really, that it’s been used without my say, without my consent, it’s just out there,” she said in an interview with IGN on the realisation that her voice was featured in a mod without her permission.

“To think that my living could be taken away because somebody could copy it and modify it and make me say whatever they want me to say, it’s extremely frightening… It’s a threat all around. It’s kind of like this invisible enemy that we’re fighting right now,” continued Atkin.

Update on this… AI just stole my voice for this role. @sagaftra @WGAEast @WGAWest #Unionstrong #videogames #performancecapture #eviefrye #AssassinsCreed @assassinscreed @Ubisoft @latimes @Variety @DEADLINE @IGN https://t.co/IUGta4Pssh

— Victoria Atkin (@VictoriaAtkin) July 15, 2023

Earlier this month, a Skyrim fan exposed the use of artificial intelligence to replicate the voices of actors like April Stewart, Paul Ganus, Jon Curry and more in pornographic mods.

Those involved were in disbelief, but Nexus Mods’ stance on AI-generated content is flexible. Only if there is a “credible complaint” from the “affected creator/rights holder” will the modding website consider taking down the mod.

Atkin added that it is deeply worrying to her to think of how her voice might be used through these tools, as artificial intelligence is too new to be included in an appreciable amount of the contracts she has signed.

“I’ve done so many games I’ve lost count, and there’s so much of my voice out there that I would never be able to keep track of… There’s credits that are not even on my IMDb that I’ve done,” she said. “It’s kind of dangerous what they can do with it without my say.”

In other gaming news, Insomniac Games shared some new information about Venom in the upcoming PS5 exclusive Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.