Support NeoGAF

[Captain Hero]

We all know that voice acting and being involved in the scene was just bad for many old games but that doesn’t hold them from being enjoyable depends on the story and the way it plays..

But today is it all about voice acting?

for you .. will you consider this factor as an important one ?



I’d like to know your thoughts

 

[Teslerum]

We all know that voice acting and being involved in the scene was just bad for many old games but that doesn’t hold them from being enjoyable depends on the story and the way it plays..

But today is it all about voice acting?

for you .. will you consider this factor as an important one ?



I’d like to know your thoughts

Really depends on the graphical presentation if voice acting is needed or not.

 

[Captain Hero]

Really depends on the graphical presentation if voice acting is needed or not.

can you give me an example to it ?

 

[AV]

Depends what you're doing. In a game like TLOU2 that's trying to be as realistic as possible, Resident Evil tier voice acting wouldn't work.

Otherwise, whatever, if it's bad I'll pick up on it but it won't ruin a game for me.

 

[INC]

Depends what you're doing. In a game like TLOU2 that's trying to be as realistic as possible, Resident Evil tier voice acting wouldn't work.

Otherwise, whatever, if it's bad I'll pick up on it but it won't ruin a game for me.

Pretty much this

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

I wish videogames had less dialogue. Voice acting is one of the contributors to the bloated AAA budgets we see today.

However, I don't mind it. I'm not usually like "ughhh, turn this filthy gaijin voice acting off". Even bad voice acting can be a lot of fun (play co-op Castle Shikigami 2 with a buddy and be enlightened).

 

[Teslerum]

can you give me an example to it ?

The most obvious one is voice acting having less of an importance in 2d vs 3d. Or top-down versus third person.
In the end the more *cinematic* you present dialog as, the more grating will be a lack or low quality of voice acting.

 

[KiNeMz]

no. i rather read and skip when im done

 

[Naked Lunch]

The only voice acting I ever cared about is from the Metal Gear series and Final Fantasy XII.
The voices perfectly matched and enhanced the characters.

Fran's voice is a particular standout - Liquid Snake, Grey Fox, Sniper Wolf... just too many to list.

 

[supernova8]

I actually liked the terrible voice acting from stuff like Shenmue.

I do like to have voice acting in games on the whole. As long as it isn't Troy Baker.
When he doesn't change his voice he's instantly recognisable and, for me, irritating.

The epitome of generic video games dude man character voice.

 

[Fuz]

A lot.

I'm italian and I never play games dubbed in my language. It's so bad it's unbelievable. Both on the account of awkward adaptation and horrible voice acting. Feels like they're all trying to do a cool voice and comes out as a parody, fake as fuck and ridiculous. Also feels like they're always the same 3-4 actors and you hear the same fucking tones in every single game.
I always play games with their original voice acting. Subs on.

Btw, I recently tried to play FFXIV in english before switching to Jap - oh god. It's like they're completely different characters. Spotlight on Thancred.

 

[RPSleon]

Voice acting was the sole reason i stopped playing zero dawn. Hated putting it down, but couldn't deal with it. I think combined with the weird facial animation.

I think the better and more realistic a human is, the more bad voice acting and motion capture/animation stands out.

 

[GymWolf]

kinda yeah, but i never bail out from a game because of a bad VA.

 

[Forsythia]

I like voice acting, cheesy or not, but I am quite tired of the likes of Troy Baker and Laura Bailey, using the same old voices in almost every game, while I'm sure they can do much more. Developers should push voice actors to use their range.

 

[GymWolf]

Voice acting was the sole reason i stopped playing zero dawn. Hated putting it down, but couldn't deal with it. I think combined with the weird facial animation.

I think the better and more realistic a human is, the more bad voice acting and motion capture/animation stands out.

in what world horizon has a bad VA??

the digital acting was mediocre (improved a lo in the dlc) but the voices were good.

 

[mcjmetroid]

Either so good it's amazing or so bad it's funny.

I don't like middle grounds

 

[MisterBrimstone]

Voice acting is like most "non-interactive gameplay elements" in the fact that you only care if they suck and ruin some of the experience.

 

[cormack12]

I like the VA in A Plague Tale, that really worked. I also like Joel's voice as well. Arthur Morgan was fantastic as was Dutch and Sadie Adler. But yeah, I don;t think it should be a celebrity role in a game. The difference between good VA and great VA is not a gulf

 

[The Cockatrice]

Yes it does for story focused games however if I had to choose between bad voice acting and none, I'll go with none.

 

[Zimmy68]

I would say yes. Keifer did a fine job in MGS5 but it just wasn't the same without Hayter.
Troy Baker is gold in everything he does,
And of course, there is only one Sam Fischer. They pooped the bed when they changed that voice.

 

[Guileless]

If you're old enough to have played the original Resident Evil (or FMV games like Sewer Shark), you tend to be pretty forgiving of contemporary voice acting.

All I know is the guy who voiced Yangus in DQ X should be knighted by the queen.

 

[SuperLupeRap]

We all know that voice acting and being involved in the scene was just bad for many old games but that doesn’t hold them from being enjoyable depends on the story and the way it plays..

But today is it all about voice acting?

for you .. will you consider this factor as an important one ?



I’d like to know your thoughts

Currently half way through RDR2. So far probably the best game I've played this gen. The incredible voice acting plays a huge role in the immersion and atmosphere of the game. Absolutely top notch work.

 

[Carna]

I rather have game devs do their own voices instead of bloating the budget with troy baker/laura bailey

They, and the rest of the popular va industry can go suck it for all I care

 

[Clear]

Its important to note that voice overs are often non-disruptive to gameplay, its not necessarily a case where we take our hands off the controls while we get to admire the tremendous acting (LOL)!

So yeah, its very important as its part of overall sound design, and sound design (talking music, sfx, voice-acting the whole package) is massively impacting on the overall experience.

It helps immersion and involvement if the voice acting is good, and can utterly suck the life out of a game if its bad.

 

[Soodanim]

This is one of those things that if it's done well you sometimes don't appreciate it. The bad ones tend to stand out.

I started paying a bit more attention to VA when I started listening to Critical Role, even if it's only to do the IMDB look up certain ones and see what other work they've done.

I always thought it was weird that Nolan North was everywhere, then it was Troy Baker's turn.
And a weird realisation that Laura Bailey had been in all sorts I'd played and watched over the years.

Some people just have great voices. MGS has been mentioned already. Lori Alan as The Boss was a great one. Realising Elias Toufexis AKA Adam Jensen from Deus Ex actually sounds like that was funny.

I really enjoyed the all-star cast of the GTA3 trilogy, it's crazy how many people they could get on board back then. That'd cost trillions now.

 

[Mista]

Short answer, yes. Long answer, its a big part of the immersive experience.

Thats why a lot of people including me doesn't like the silent protagonist and it needs to vanish

 

[DrJohnGalt]

I don't mind either way. I like having the option to listen but I tend to read a lot quicker and skip thru the spoken parts. Maybe I'm a bit spoiled now, but I didn't mind the all-text format of games like Morrowwind until I played Oblivion and Skyrim then went back to replay the vanilla MW. Yikes.

But I do have friends that will not touch a game if there is more than a sentence or two of reading. Slackers.

For more serious games I like better voice actors, but for lighter (or older) games where immersion isn't high on the priority list, the corny dialogue and shitty acting is fine (and sometimes even the most memorable part of the game). I came across a copy of Shining Force Neo in the wild this weekend and hoo boy, it's cringeworthy.

 

[Birdo]

I'm still a text guy. The English voice work in FFVII Remake was some of the worst since OG Resident Evil.

 

[Vaelka]

It depends.
I am playing Pathfinder Kingmaker right now and it has some voice acting in some scenes for major characters and I am fine with it.
What bothers me is how often times the writing gets dumbed down just to make it easier on the voice actors and I also like how in a lot of text-based games you get a lot more detailed descriptions.
I mean speaking of immersion, I think that when it's text-based the writers can add a lot of details about the characters and the surroundings that makes it more immersive that you can't or is at least a lot harder without text-based.

It really depends tho, as much as I love Mass Effect I do hate the damn wheel it popularized but at the same time I thought they did a good job overall with it. Same in Dragon Age Origins.
But I personally prefer the freedom writers get when they don't have to worry about '' omfg this voice actor is going to have to read a billion novels ''.
I think that it's very noticeable when voice actors have to do that too, both of the Shepards in Mass Effect have pretty bad voice acting tbh.
Not because the voice actors are bad but probably because they had to read so many lines and keep it as neutral as possible. They both kinda sound like emotionless morons imo.

Edit: Omg Bethesda games comes to mind too.
Those poor handful of voice actors...
The voice acting is AWFUL, I really wish they'd just make it text-based instead.

Short answer, yes. Long answer, its a big part of the immersive experience.

Thats why a lot of people including me doesn't like the silent protagonist and it needs to vanish

I don't really agree with this, at least not in RPG's.
For many different reasons but one of the reasons that I can mention is how the voice acting can take you out of it completely because it contradicts your characters personality entirely.
Or it's just so totally different than how you imagine your character.

 

[SSfox]

Depends on games, in some games it matters more than others. But of course like every aspect of a game it matters.

 

[MeatSafeMurderer]

Voice acting in games is like acting in porn, it's expected to be there but it doesn't have to be good.

 

[MiguelItUp]

If the story is meant to be very compelling and moving, then acting really matters to me. If the acting is poor, then it's really hard to take seriously. Obviously in the past that wasn't really the case, but we've come a long way. In terms of voice acting quality, and with games as they practically play out like movies.

But I'll admit games like Red Dead Redemption 1/2, God of War, The Last Of Us, The Walking Dead, all would've fallen shorter if they had really poor acting.

 

[Mista]

I don't really agree with this, at least not in RPG's.
For many different reasons but one of the reasons that I can mention is how the voice acting can take you out of it completely because it contradicts your characters personality entirely.
Or it's just so totally different than how you imagine your character.

Fair enough.

 

[captain_cabbage]

I wish there were more unique voices in gaming, not just Troy Baker and Nolan North. I love recognizable characters, like Rob Wiethoff as John Marston, David Hayter as Snake, David Bateson as Agent 47 etc.

 

[Captain Hero]

For me voice acting is something I really look up for but even if a game sucks in it still I find something to hold into like a great storyline .. but for me voice acting can shape that game into a great one .. just like MGS

 

[Kerotan Frog]

Yes, I really hate when Japanese games (looking at the Yakuza series in particular) only have voice acting for a portion of the dialogue. The rest of it is just a tsunami of text you have to read. Even if the voice is generic, I appreciate the Assassin's Creed series for giving every npc voice work. Its jarring going from voice acting to none.

I get it is a budget thing, but games in 2020 looking to hit a certain level of realistic immersion shouldn't be sacrificing voice work.

 

[Bogey]

I mostly play RPGs and RTS.

In the former, it's absolutely crucial for me. Great voice actors immensely add to the overall immersion.
Witcher 3 for example was bang on, was blown away by their voice acting - actually even ended up watching youtube videos of the voice actors behind that with some samples.
Also, having all dialogues being voiced tends to force the writers to crisp up their writing a little. Personally, I'm not a big fan of RPGs in which you're presented with dozens of pages of text by every single NPC, I've never had the patience for that.

For RTS, I don't really care much, by nature of things, there's usually not much in terms of dialogue anyway.

 

[LaughingStock]

Depends on the game. Is it story driven? Can you ignore the story and just enjoy the gameplay?

Resident Evil 4 doesn't have the best story or VA. But it has great gameplay.

Now that i think about it one of the reasons i disliked Splinter Cell Blacklist was the abscence of Michael Ironside as Sam Fisher. I switched voiced language to brazilian portuguese because i couldn't stand not having Michael as Sam.

 

[nkarafo]

Portal and Stafox 64 are the only games that i cared about the voice acting. In most other games i would rather not have it at all.

 

[synchronicity]

I am really sensitive to bad voice work, so in most cases I'd rather there be none. The exceptions are few, but if it's great, sure I love it, and if it's campy/ridiculous like in RE, I'm fine with it.

But games don't need voice in order to be immersive, for me anyway.

 

[wolywood]

I'm still a text guy. The English voice work in FFVII Remake was some of the worst since OG Resident Evil.

Really? The NPCs were bad but I thought the main cast did a great job.

 

[Birdo]

Really? The NPCs were bad but I thought the main cast did a great job.

I thought they were a little too early-2000s anime for my liking.

 

[Matsuchezz]

Ever since voice over was introduced, we were presented with horrible voice actors like in Shenmue, which is god awful, and the ones presented in MGS or the Last of US, which are top notch, I guess performance capture with good actors makes all the difference in the world against booth recording VO, I do not like performance capture done in Japan, it is kind of ridiculous how they move and react like they are very shy looking down and taking baby steps.
I like my games with great voice over, it enhances the game experience altogether. I do not expect great VO in Mario or Nintendo games. They are not going to spend that money if they can charge as much without it. Nintendo games have really no vision regarding many things that enhances the experience, their games are designed based on costs and the most profit they can make. I have Breath of the Wild collecting dust it just not immersive. Long gone are the days when Nintendo used to compete technically with other companies, they are very profitable but their games left a lot to be desired.

 

[lastmessiah]

If you're going to do it, go all the way with it. It was weird in BOTW when NPCs would just have grunting and laughing soundbites and then suddenly you trigger a cutscene with voice acting that felt like it was from another game.

 

[BigBooper]

I can do without it just as well. Better to not have it than have bad VA.

 

[supernova8]

If you're old enough to have played the original Resident Evil (or FMV games like Sewer Shark), you tend to be pretty forgiving of contemporary voice acting.

All I know is the guy who voiced Yangus in DQ X should be knighted by the queen.

Come on the voice acting is RE1 and RE2 is so bad that it's actually good.

 

[CatLady]

I think voice acting is very important. Bad voice acting can ruin the immersion and thus ruin the game for me. It's one of the reasons I personally don't care for most Japanese games - the voice acting is usually terrible.

If a game is really good in other important aspects and not super dependent on the story I can sometimes put up with mediocre VA. Great voice acting won't make me enjoy a game I don't like (looking at you RDR2), but overall VA is a very important component in the games I like best.

Edit: I want to echo what some others have said. I'd rather have NO VA than bad VA.

 

[SantaC]

Yes it does

 

[makaveli60]

Yes, it's very important IMO. Of course in smaller games less so, but in AAA games good VA is a must.

 

[Barnabot]

most of the games i loved they barely had any voice acting. and when they did i remember them having a voice acting so bad it was good like it was a strong point about that game.