Genshin Impact‘s brand new 1.3 patch, which was released earlier this week, added new characters, new activities, and a whole new event, but it also took something away: Barbara’s voice. Barbara is a playable character who is basically a pop star, and before 1.3, her spunky demeanor reflected that. Now her delivery is more muffled. Many fans are extremely opposed to this change, but instead of kicking developer Mihoyo’s doors on it, they go after the goal that makes the least sense: Barbara’s voice actor.
While the new Barbara sounds like she’s been voiced by a completely different person, anime and video game veteran Laura Stahl actually voiced both versions. As some fans have pointed out, that’s impressive! But many others have gotten into her listings and DMs to ask why she personally made the decision to change the voice of a character she has no real control over, essentially bugging her for being good at creating from a director’s notes.
“I can’t ask them to change it back,” Stahl wrote on Twitter. ‘I don’t know why the change was made. I also couldn’t tell you if I did. Just enjoy the game and stop asking. Thanks.”
The change is relatively small, but remarkable. Barbara’s lines in battle – which consist of simple grunts and short callouts for bigger attacks, like, “Come on, we can do it” – now sound less enthusiastic. Where before, it almost sounded as if Stahl was straining her voice in places to convey how in it Barbara, the new version sounds cuter and more subdued – a vocal type Genshin Impact pretty clearly has a thing for it, based on how many other characters speak the same way. Barbara’s voice isn’t blatant, but in the context of the character’s lavish animations, it’s a bit strange. However, her voice is now more aligned with the way she is spoke in cutscenes and promotional material since the game was released.
W.While a few lines may not sound like much, keep in mind that players will hear them repeat thousands of times as they make their way through Genshinthe gigantic world. Still, I.Is it worth bothering someone – especially a voice actor? No.
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Kotaku contacted Mihoyo to ask why this change was made but they did not answer. Stahl also did not respond to a request for comment.
Fans have made memes about Nu-Barbara and pictured her with dead eyes and depression, among other things. A much appreciated thread on the Genshin Impact subreddit compares her to ‘a grandmother at a bingo night’. But a lot of fans think their big-butted comrades in anime arms need to cool it down.
“While I think we can almost all agree that the old voice lines were better, everyone should remember it’s not the VA’s fault for the change,” he said. another highly rated Reddit thread, he begs Genshin Impact players to stop harassing Stahl. “Mihoyo is the one who changed it… Regardless of your stance on the new voice lines for Barbara, don’t bother or dislike her VA. The people who attack her for this are disgusting. “