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Grand Alliance Smartphone Game Pulls Voice Actor Casting Call After Criticisms of $1 Per Line Rate

The official Twitter account of Crunchyroll Games announced on Thursday that a casting call for the upcoming Grand Alliance smartphone RPG has been removed. It indicated that publishers Crunchyroll Games and Viz Media were not previously involved in the voiceover process, but that they will now work closely with the game's developer Gaudium "to formally hire a studio to ensure that all talent is paid appropriately."

The full statement is below:

The casting call following criticism stemming from a tweet which highlighted that the job paid "$1 per dialogue line." Professional voice actors who voiced negative reactions to the rates include Steve Blum, Brittany Lauda, Patrick M. Seymour, and Bryson Baugus.

The Casting Call Club, which hosted the ad, responded to the tweet saying that it removed the project. "CCC wants to be a place to 'start,' for talent to level-up. AND we want to uphold the industry standards. Any studio claiming to be aff with CR and pays these rates clearly violates that."

A message written by the developers stated that Crunchyroll Games is "helping us on the marketing and publishing side but we are responsible for the development side. This isn't any criticism to them and we really appreciate them giving us a chance and as a non-Japanese development indie studio with a brand new IP." The developer that they themselves are living off "savings and $5 an hour." "This is not to justify that our VA prices are fair, but it is the situation we are currently in and I wanted to let you know our publisher is not to blame for this."

Crunchyroll announced in April that Crunchyroll Games and Viz Media are working with the Michigan-based developer Gaudium to release the "anime-inspired RPG brawler" worldwide in English (exempting East Asia). On its website, Crunchyroll Games describes the Grand Alliance game as follows:

Grand Alliance is an anime style mobile RPG that takes place in a fantasy world on the brink of war. The Imperial family has been assassinated and a tyrant has taken over the Alcyon Empire, giving rise to power struggles between five noble houses. Follow the story of Amelia, the last surviving heir to the throne, as she aims to reunite a country divided by war and strife. Journey across the continent to gather new allies, uncover hidden mysteries of the world, and unite the nation under your banner.

Control a team of three heroes in a squad-based RPG to clear dungeons and battles in real-time action combat. Customize your heroes with a variety of powerful equipment and mix-and-match your play styles with interchangeable skills that you collect throughout the game.

Anime News Network has reached out to both Gaudium and Crunchyroll Games for comment.

[Via Voice Over Casting Call Nonsense]