The new play-by-play announcer for the EA Sports NHL series says AI is used for some of his lines, but he’s fine with it because it makes the work less tedious.
John Bucigross, who has been an anchor for ESPN for the past 30 years, provides the commentary for NHL 27 alongside Chicago Blackhawks color commentator Darren Pang, with the pair replacing last year’s broadcast team of James Cybulski and Cheryl Pounder.
In an interview on the Chirping Zebras Podcast, Bucigross said that while it’s great being the new voice of the EA Sports NHL series, the actual work involved is boring and very repetitive,
“That’s such a cool thing to be a [part of] – it’s not fun to do, it is tedious,” he explained. “You say every name in the league. You have to say it three different ways.
“You make up these scenarios: ‘Okay, it’s 2-0 midway through the second, home team has a faceoff in the offensive zone. Give us something.’ That’s the hard part.
“I can read names all day for money. I’ll do anything for cash,” he joked, “but to come up with that stuff, it’s like, what? ‘You’re up by more than three goals, here’s an offensive zone faceoff. Give us a line or two.’ So you’re like, ‘well the Bruins off to a good start here in this one, they’ve got to like the way they’re playing’, you know, just something, right?
“And then you might mess up, you’ve gotta do it again. So, it it’s one of those things you’re glad to be a part of it, the end product… but you know, these things always change and develop.”
Bucigross then explained that commentary work isn’t a case of simply performing some recording sessions then returning the following year, because the nature of sport means the situation is always changing, requiring more voiceover sessions. As such, he said EA has been using AI to create some new lines for him to lighten the workload.
سەرچاوەی فەرمی بە زمانی ئینگلیزی: https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/if-it-means-less-work-and-the-same-check-ill-take-it-ea-sports-nhl-27-commentator-says-ai-is-used-for-some-of-his-lines/
