Sexualized Timbre and Embodied Auditory Imagination: Female Game Companions' Voice Services Labor

As the gaming economy thrives, the game companion industry has become increasingly prominent, featuring female companions as principal actors due to substantial market demand. They use their versatile voices to craft feminine personas, forming a crucial link between players and the virtual world. This study investigates the game companion industry's organizational structure and operational strategy, focusing on female companions' vocal performance dynamics. Drawing from in-depth interviews with 15 female companions and utilizing a voice-body semiotic framework, this study examines how the intangible qualities of voice interact with the material presence of the body through embodied performance. The findings reveal that the industry commodifies female voices as a primary marketing tool, transforming female bodies into marketable assets. Female companions do more than provide gaming services; they blend gendered sensory qualities with idealized vocal traits to create personas that align with role expectations and emotional needs. This construction of voice-body imagery reflects the intertwined influences of aesthetics, consumer culture, and gender stereotypes, while these hidden structures impact companions' autonomy. Within this context of commodification, female companions encounter increased gender bias and exploitation, underscoring the necessity for robust regulations to protect female labor rights and promote gender equity in this expanding sector.