Amentallica
Unconfirmed Member
Hardly qualifies as a main character. He's never starred in a game, right?
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Why was Resident Evil 1's voice acting so damn bad?
- Thread starter Amentallica
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Hardly qualifies as a main character. He's never starred in a game, right?
Gunslinger
Member
This game came out almost 20 years ago at a time when most games story was told by text. Look at the FF games. Massive games for those days but barely any voice acting. But come on it had its charm otherwise they would have been forgotten. Heck even with amazing voice acting these days I can't recall a single one with memorable lines like these.
Amentallica
Unconfirmed Member
Look, RE1's voice acting is certainly entertaining. I can laugh at it for days on end. But just because it's entertaining does not make it quality. In reality it's absolute shit.
Gunslinger
Member
Of course it is really bad. That's what makes it memorable.
Except it wasn't. A fair few games were getting voiced at that point. High profile ones too, with Tomb Raider and Legacy of Kain around that time. FF games didnt get properly voiced until six years later but comparing a dialogue heavy RPG to RE is a bit unfair.
Any Questions
Member
What is this?
I remember 1997, a student loan wisely wasted and heard this particular one liner in the original house of horrors. Good times.... Then realised I needed a memory card to save my progress. Had to get off my sofa and down to Dixons.
I remember 1997, a student loan wisely wasted and heard this particular one liner in the original house of horrors. Good times.... Then realised I needed a memory card to save my progress. Had to get off my sofa and down to Dixons.
Gunslinger
Member
I am aware of that but I should have been clear most Japanese devs still didn't voice their game at 96. Western devs sure. They began voicing their games even earlier like Lucas games as far I remember. An actors performance has lot to do with the director. And obviously mikami and others weren't proficient enough to direct actors for this game. But the end result is still one of the most memorable performance in gaming.
Razgriz-Specter
Member
But still ended up being the best of the series LOL.
Tidus_Great
Banned
because it was meant to parody the horror genre IMO.
MGS and soul reaver both came out at that time and had brilliant VA. RE could have had better voice work they chose to go with something cheesier to make it liek b level zombie feel IMO.
MGS and soul reaver both came out at that time and had brilliant VA. RE could have had better voice work they chose to go with something cheesier to make it liek b level zombie feel IMO.
-MD-
Member
The real reasons are listed on the previous page.
Comparison of the PS1 original to the GameCube remake:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyWEXATZFwM
I like Jill's voice in the Remastered version and Resident Evil 5.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyWEXATZFwM
I like Jill's voice in the Remastered version and Resident Evil 5.
Morrigan Stark
Arrogant Smirk
Ahem:
1996. Small Canadian developer and fairly low budget. No "famous" actor (e.g. Tim Curry) in the cast.
And yet, better VA than most 2010's games. So yeah... the "it was 1996" excuse doesn't really fly.
And of course you have MGS (1998), Panzer Dragoon Saga (1998), Soul Reaver (1999), not that many years later, and with excellent VA too. Plus the PC adventure games previously mentioned from the mid-90's.
Really interesting (and hilarious), thanks for sharing these tidbits. The Mikami interview posted a few posts below yours seems to corroborate all that, too. It makes more sense to me than the "1996" excuse, honestly.
So how would one properly translate the phrase "master of unlocking" from the original Japanese?
Or my new favorite line "It's really powerful......especially against living things!"?
Unions and guilds for actors are notoriously expensive. Why spend 8k on an actor plus royalties in perpetuity when you can spend 500 flat?
Also, last I read, the voice actors were also the live action actors in the intro and outro. I think they were random non-union actors who happened to live in Japan at the time.
Also, last I read, the voice actors were also the live action actors in the intro and outro. I think they were random non-union actors who happened to live in Japan at the time.
ShinMaruku
Member
You made my day. XD
MrCunningham
Member
This was released on the Sega CD in 1994:
Code:
[IMG]http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/snatcher/snatcher-front.jpg[/IMG]and the localization and voice acting put almost every other Japanese translated game to shame throughout the 32bit era. Snatcher was a real gold standard for me back in the day, and in my opinion it wasn't really topped until the Metal Gear Solid localization on the PS1.
Working Designs also had some noteworthy voice acting for their games as well, though they took a lot of liberties with the English dialogue.
But for many Japanese games, good English localization really wasn't a huge priority, unfortunately.
But there were quite a few PC point and click adventures with great voice acting though. Like a lot of the Lucas Arts stuff.
DirgeExtinction
Member
I dunno...voice acting was pretty shit back then...
House of the dead 2
House of the dead 2
Couldn't find any voice acting vids for the first game
TheRedSnifit
Member
I don't know whether or not News Bot has jumped on you for this yet, but RE4 is the only one that's deliberately campy. All the others are supposed to be serious.
"Hahaha! Seems like my advice had no effect! Suffer LIKE G DID?!"
BigTnaples
Todd Howard's Secret GAF Account
Why is RE4 like that?
Uncle Rupee
Banned
I think I read in a Gamefan interview or something Capcom said the director asked the voice actors to speak slowly and clearly because they were afraid that players might miss an important clue. That, mixed with the fact they didn't have an ear for natural-sounding English is what lead to the weird voice acting.
TheRedSnifit
Member
Because Mikami write it to be some goofy parody of past RE games. It's basically Resident Evil's equivalent to House of the Dead: Overkill.
TV Tropes says it best:
This isn't even really true from all I've read of the Japaneese version of RE4.
From what most importers of said RE4J is played ridiculously straight and the majority of,Mikami's supposed greatness (storyline wise) is a dub he deserves no credit for.
entremet
Member
I agree. I just mentioned it to show how far we've come in terms of VA production.
Apparently you can hear background noise in some of the original PS1 voice work since it wasn't in a sound proof recording studio.
encephalon
Member
Mikami's comment is interesting, but it might not make sense unless you're aware that Japanese media is often subtitled. In games, the default is to have subtitles on (even with spoken Japanese).
So his comment seems to read something like "well there were no subtitles for the west, so we had the voice actors speak more slowly" (for the west).
Lol.
So his comment seems to read something like "well there were no subtitles for the west, so we had the voice actors speak more slowly" (for the west).
Lol.
TheRedSnifit
Member
No, it's still campy as hell, Leon's just less of a snarker and the dialogue is less jingoistic. The translator wasn't the one who came up with stuff like "Your right hand comes off?", a squeaky-voiced midget Napoleon, and being chased across a bridge by a giant statue of said midget. The translator did add even more goofy stuff, but that's because Mikami can't write and there wasn't much plot to fuck up.
To Far Away Times
Member
I wouldnt have it any other way.
"Jill sandwich"
"Master of unlocking"
Better to be terrible and memorable than average and forgettable.
"Jill sandwich"
"Master of unlocking"
Better to be terrible and memorable than average and forgettable.
skLaFarebear
Member
OP doesn't like Jill Sandiwches.
BumblebeeCody
Member
Yep same.
TsunamiOfSwagger
Member
I think his voice breaks at 0:35. "to protect the life cycle"
Yes, but the voice acting in House of the Dead 2 was bad on purpose to make it feel like a B Movie.
So you think Mikami actually wanted a realistic and believable story? You gotta be kidding.
That's actually what RE4 got perfectly right and the Resident Evils after that got perfectly wrong.
Just take a look at the game itself. It's a rollercoaster ride of fun.
TAJ
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
I call bullshit. No native English speaker would say "Beats me, too." the way Barry does in the video linked to the article unless they were acting, badly.
There's no way anyone could make "master of unlocking" sound good, though, so writing does factor heavily.
MagnoSauce
Member
I can't believe anything other than RE1 was intentionally campy. It doesn't matter that it was 1996 or that voice acting in video games was still new. There's no way someone performs like they do in RE1 and considers that acceptable, context given or not. The delivery is so unnatural, it just doesn't seem possible that they were native speakers. It just goes beyond bad acting.
Of course, I'm aware I'm denying reality.
Of course, I'm aware I'm denying reality.
Hyrule Warrior
Member
What do you mean bad voice acting? Resident Evil 1 had some of the best voice acting done by an all porn star cast I've heard in a long time. lol https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUxO_fBF6lo
sixteen-bit
Member
I feel like SotN is another victim of this
It didn't come out before acting was invented.
Of course it's a combination of a Japanese-written English script, bilnd takes with no context, and the final approval left to a Japanese dude that liked the rhythm of certain phrases. That article sums it up nicely.
Razgriz-Specter
Member
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