As a dedicated player who has spent countless hours exploring the Hollows, I was utterly gobsmacked when I logged in after the latest update. The voices of my beloved agents, Lucy and Soukaku, had transformed overnight, like a chameleon shedding its skin under a disco ball—completely unexpected and leaving me in a state of bewildered fascination. HoYoverse, in their signature cryptic style, dropped this bombshell with all the fanfare of a ghost whispering in an abandoned subway tunnel. Tucked away in the patch notes was a line so simple it felt almost insulting: "Changed the English voice actors for Agents 'Lucy' and 'Soukaku' and replaced the corresponding voice lines." No explanation, no tribute to the outgoing talent, not even a welcome for the new voices stepping into these iconic roles. The silence from the developers was louder than a Bangboo parade, and the community speculation began to swirl like a vortex in the Sixth Street hustle.
The Vanishing Act of Familiar Voices
The mystery deepens when you look at the pieces. For Soukaku, her original English voice actor was a ghost in the machine—never officially revealed, a secret kept closer than a Proxy's last bit of Dennies. But Lucy? Lucy was the vibrant performance of Courtney Lin. One day, she's bringing Lucy's sharp wit and Huohuo's anxious charm in Honkai: Star Rail to life; the next, she's been digitally scrubbed from the records. It was a double-whammy! On July 31, 2024, it was confirmed Lin's role as Huohuo was also recast. Talk about a career shift happening faster than a Chain Attack! The eerie synchronicity of it all felt less like a coincidence and more like a plot point ripped straight from the New Eridu's conspiracy boards.
The Community's Grand Theories 🕵️♂️
With zero official word, us players have become detectives, piecing together clues with the desperation of a Hollow Raider on their last battery. The leading theory? The SAG-AFTRA strikes. Let me break down the timeline for you:
| Date | Event | Possible Connection to ZZZ |
|---|---|---|
| July 26, 2024 | SAG-AFTRA video game voice actor strike begins. | Protesting AI use and demanding better pay. |
| Late July 2024 | ZZZ's 1.1 update drops, recasting Lucy & Soukaku. | Did the actors strike, forcing a quick replacement? |
| July 31, 2024 | Courtney Lin's role as Huohuo in HSR is recast. | Suggests a pattern, not an isolated ZZZ incident. |
But here's the twist that makes this mystery as convoluted as a Hollow's layout: the strike's terms included a grandfather clause. Games in development before August 2023 were exempt. Both Zenless Zone Zero and Honkai: Star Rail were undoubtedly in full production by then. So, legally, the strike shouldn't have forced these changes. Was it a voluntary stand by the actors? A preemptive move by HoYoverse? The plot thickens like the sludge in the Grand Eridu Pipe!
The Ripple Effect in 2026
Fast forward to now, 2026. The new voices are fully integrated. For newer players, they are Lucy and Soukaku. But for us OGs, the change remains a curious scar on the game's history. The new actors (whoever they are—seriously, HoYoverse, give them some credit!) have done a commendable job. Lucy's voice is still brilliantly sarcastic, though now it carries a slightly different timbre, like swapping a finely tuned electric guitar for one with vintage pickups. Soukaku's ethereal calmness remains, but it feels like listening to a different, equally skilled musician play the same complex symphony.
Here’s what the change has meant for the experience:
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Immersive Whiplash: The first few story missions post-change were jarring. It was as if the city of New Eridu itself had shifted its frequency overnight.
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Lost Legacy: A piece of the game's launch identity, a connection to those early hype-filled days, vanished without a memorial.
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Speculation Culture: This event fueled a permanent undercurrent of suspicion in the community. Every minor change now gets scrutinized like a suspicious Bangboo.
The whole affair feels like a perfect metaphor for New Eridu itself: glitzy and polished on the surface, but with unseen corporate currents and unspoken truths churning in the depths below. The voices changed as suddenly and inexplicably as a TV channel hijacked by a Hollow broadcast.
My Personal Take & The Lingering Questions
As a player, I've made peace with the new voices. The game is still a masterpiece of style and action. But the lack of transparency still grates. In an era where developers boast about community communication, this silent recasting felt like a relic from a less accountable time. It taught me that the worlds we love are built on foundations we don't fully see or control.
So, the mystery endures. Was it the strike? A contractual dispute? A simple creative decision? We may never know. The old voice lines are gone, replaced as seamlessly as a corrupted data file being overwritten. All we're left with is the echo of the question and the new sound of two beloved agents, fighting on in a city that never explains its secrets. The show must go on, even if some of the lead actors exit stage left without a bow.