I was just looking at who did the voice acting for the characters that appear in PS: Torment and I find it quite facinating when you see what these's guy's and gal's have done.
I was amazed to find out that the voice of Dak'kon was actually Assistant Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) from the X-files. And that the guy who did the voice of Morte (Rob Paulsen) was also Kivan (BGI) and Anomen (BGII). That's not even mentioning Dan (Homer) Castellaneta as Nordom!
Anyways there is no real point to this thread other than to show my respect and admiration for all the voice actors out there who do such a great job of making these games we play come to life! I don't feel they get enough recognition!
Anybody feel the same?
Voice acting
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ruscavo
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Voice acting
My torment is that there is no sequel to Torment! 
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fable
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Most of the leads are simply well-known actors brought in for their name value. (Ask yourself: was Sheena Easton really the only person who could have voiced the few lines that Annah had in PS:T?) There are literally thousands of voice actors out there that are just as good, but without that name recognition. They don't get used in games, and the big names command a considerably higher salary. Each to their own, but I'd personally prefer a developer to spend that revenue on features, rather than on big name actors and/or animated movie clips that add nothing to content. Just my POV.
To the Righteous belong the fruits of violent victory. The rest of us will have to settle for warm friends, warm lovers, and a wink from a quietly supportive universe.
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ruscavo
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Very cynical view there Fable
You're probably very correct but it still doesn't mean they don't do a great job.
And I personally have never known who does many of the voices for many of the characters until I find them on the net, and then I enjoy looking at all the other roles they've carried off without me even realising it is the same person. Therefore it does not influence me in whether I purchase the game or not.
You're probably very correct but it still doesn't mean they don't do a great job.
And I personally have never known who does many of the voices for many of the characters until I find them on the net, and then I enjoy looking at all the other roles they've carried off without me even realising it is the same person. Therefore it does not influence me in whether I purchase the game or not.
My torment is that there is no sequel to Torment!
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fable
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[QUOTE=ruscavo]Very cynical view there Fable [/quote]
Absolutely not. I'm friendly with quite a few actors and several talent agents, including one who handles David Warner (Irenicus in BG2) as a client. I've done some minor voice acting before, and I worked in radio production and management for 17 years. So my views are based on some experience and the knowledge of insiders, rather than an a priori philosophical outlook.
Do you disagree with me then?
I think we need to remember that the amount of voicing that needs to be done for a single role in most games, even a lead, is miniscule compared to the amount of work in a single animated cartoon episode, where the scripts can be on occasion dozens of pages. I happen to think that Warner is an excellent actor, but I know for a fact that he spent no time working on the BG2 script, which he considered the lightest work he'd ever been given. How can I put this...? It's a little to me like praising a furniture craftsman who turns out elegant, handcrafted armoires for whittling a toothpick. I'm not saying the craftsman doesn't deserve praise, but that the praise go to matters that require a great deal of effort, rather than toothpicks.
[/quote]Absolutely not. I'm friendly with quite a few actors and several talent agents, including one who handles David Warner (Irenicus in BG2) as a client. I've done some minor voice acting before, and I worked in radio production and management for 17 years. So my views are based on some experience and the knowledge of insiders, rather than an a priori philosophical outlook.
Do you disagree with me then?
I think we need to remember that the amount of voicing that needs to be done for a single role in most games, even a lead, is miniscule compared to the amount of work in a single animated cartoon episode, where the scripts can be on occasion dozens of pages. I happen to think that Warner is an excellent actor, but I know for a fact that he spent no time working on the BG2 script, which he considered the lightest work he'd ever been given. How can I put this...? It's a little to me like praising a furniture craftsman who turns out elegant, handcrafted armoires for whittling a toothpick. I'm not saying the craftsman doesn't deserve praise, but that the praise go to matters that require a great deal of effort, rather than toothpicks.
To the Righteous belong the fruits of violent victory. The rest of us will have to settle for warm friends, warm lovers, and a wink from a quietly supportive universe.
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ruscavo
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Ok Fable, your credentials speak very highly of you, and I hope I didn't cause any offence by my remarks, they were more tongue-in-cheek than serious.
All I meant but my orginal post was that I'm just impressed with the end result of their works, I did not mean to pass comment on the effort put in.
At a certain time the effort put in to making a toothpick (not now as it would be carried out by a machine in bulk) could be appreciated if it aids you in appreciating your meal that the chef spend hours preparing. It doesn't mean that you don't give praise to the chef but you can just keep alittle aside for the provider of the toothpick aswell (This example's getting a little sereal now but neverless I hope you understand my point). I am similarly interested in finding out what the animators, artist, designers and developers have all worked on, I don't think the whole thing can succeed without any of them. Possibly less money could have been spend on the hiring of voice actors, and others could have done just as good job, but I don't believe this should take away from the work they have done making those characters come to life. They were asked to do a job and they did it, well, I think. Have you ever heard really bad voice acting???
P.S. Did David Warner act in Tron? I've always thought I recognised his voice!
All I meant but my orginal post was that I'm just impressed with the end result of their works, I did not mean to pass comment on the effort put in.
At a certain time the effort put in to making a toothpick (not now as it would be carried out by a machine in bulk) could be appreciated if it aids you in appreciating your meal that the chef spend hours preparing. It doesn't mean that you don't give praise to the chef but you can just keep alittle aside for the provider of the toothpick aswell (This example's getting a little sereal now but neverless I hope you understand my point). I am similarly interested in finding out what the animators, artist, designers and developers have all worked on, I don't think the whole thing can succeed without any of them. Possibly less money could have been spend on the hiring of voice actors, and others could have done just as good job, but I don't believe this should take away from the work they have done making those characters come to life. They were asked to do a job and they did it, well, I think. Have you ever heard really bad voice acting???
P.S. Did David Warner act in Tron? I've always thought I recognised his voice!
My torment is that there is no sequel to Torment!
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fable
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[QUOTE=ruscavo]Ok Fable, your credentials speak very highly of you, and I hope I didn't cause any offence by my remarks, they were more tongue-in-cheek than serious. All I meant but my orginal post was that I'm just impressed with the end result of their works, I did not mean to pass comment on the effort put in.[/quote]
And you're right. So am I. My opinion is completely the opposite of yours, but that doesn't mean either one of us is wrong in this matter.
I am similarly interested in finding out what the animators, artist, designers and developers have all worked on, I don't think the whole thing can succeed without any of them. Possibly less money could have been spend on the hiring of voice actors, and others could have done just as good job, but I don't believe this should take away from the work they have done making those characters come to life.
That's well put. I still disagree with it, for reasons expressed above, but you put it well.
They were asked to do a job and they did it, well, I think. Have you ever heard really bad voice acting???
Which of us that has played games hasn't? But typically, this is a result of developers' hubris: the belief that since they coded the thing, they can also speak the parts. Whenever a talent agency is involved instead, the voice work is professional, and this holds true whether the person hired is a Big Name soaking up some really good money that should go elsewhere, or just an everyday talent who's getting union scale.
P.S. Did David Warner act in Tron? I've always thought I recognised his voice!
Tron? Not sure. I saw it once, and was immensely unimpressed. I can tell you that Warner's agent has passed along that what he likes best is classical theater--Shakespeare, Jonson, Sheridan, Moliere, Congreve--and that it really gripes him that the jobs simply aren't there. I always thought his performance in Time Bandits had something of Shakespeare's Malvolio in it.
And you're right. So am I. My opinion is completely the opposite of yours, but that doesn't mean either one of us is wrong in this matter.
I am similarly interested in finding out what the animators, artist, designers and developers have all worked on, I don't think the whole thing can succeed without any of them. Possibly less money could have been spend on the hiring of voice actors, and others could have done just as good job, but I don't believe this should take away from the work they have done making those characters come to life.
That's well put. I still disagree with it, for reasons expressed above, but you put it well.
They were asked to do a job and they did it, well, I think. Have you ever heard really bad voice acting???
Which of us that has played games hasn't? But typically, this is a result of developers' hubris: the belief that since they coded the thing, they can also speak the parts. Whenever a talent agency is involved instead, the voice work is professional, and this holds true whether the person hired is a Big Name soaking up some really good money that should go elsewhere, or just an everyday talent who's getting union scale.
P.S. Did David Warner act in Tron? I've always thought I recognised his voice!
Tron? Not sure. I saw it once, and was immensely unimpressed.
I can tell you that Warner's agent has passed along that what he likes best is classical theater--Shakespeare, Jonson, Sheridan, Moliere, Congreve--and that it really gripes him that the jobs simply aren't there. I always thought his performance in Time Bandits had something of Shakespeare's Malvolio in it. To the Righteous belong the fruits of violent victory. The rest of us will have to settle for warm friends, warm lovers, and a wink from a quietly supportive universe.
[QUOTE=ruscavo]
P.S. Did David Warner act in Tron? I've always thought I recognised his voice![/QUOTE]
If you are talking about the movie from 82 IMDB list him as partaking.
P.S. Did David Warner act in Tron? I've always thought I recognised his voice![/QUOTE]
If you are talking about the movie from 82 IMDB list him as partaking.
While others climb the mountains High, beneath the tree I love to lie
And watch the snails go whizzing by, It's foolish but it's fun
And watch the snails go whizzing by, It's foolish but it's fun
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Stilgar
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[QUOTE=fable]...My opinion is completely the opposite of yours, but that doesn't mean either one of us is wrong in this matter. .....[/QUOTE]
That's one of the wisest things I heared today (and this has been a long day...)
But back on topic,
I think voice actors are a very important part of a game.
They can ruin a game completely for me.
In the good old days where there were no voiceactors or only the first line was spoken this wasn't such a big problem, but nowadays where the entire dialogue is spoken it is important that the acting is good and convincing.
For me personally it isn't necessary that all dialogue is spoken, but when you do do it (and all games seem to) you better do it good.
Spellforce for example had realy bad voiceacting, and this realy ruined the game for me.
I don't think they hire known actors to promote the game (maybe Sean Connery for the latest James Bond game) else they would promote it on the cover of the box.
And I can't see anyone buying a game cause of a voiceactor, but thats just me.
And before I forget, [url="http://www.imdb.com"]IMDB[/url] is a good site to see who did the dialoge in most games.
.....[/QUOTE]That's one of the wisest things I heared today (and this has been a long day...)
But back on topic,
I think voice actors are a very important part of a game.
They can ruin a game completely for me.
In the good old days where there were no voiceactors or only the first line was spoken this wasn't such a big problem, but nowadays where the entire dialogue is spoken it is important that the acting is good and convincing.
For me personally it isn't necessary that all dialogue is spoken, but when you do do it (and all games seem to) you better do it good.
Spellforce for example had realy bad voiceacting, and this realy ruined the game for me.
I don't think they hire known actors to promote the game (maybe Sean Connery for the latest James Bond game) else they would promote it on the cover of the box.
And I can't see anyone buying a game cause of a voiceactor, but thats just me.
And before I forget, [url="http://www.imdb.com"]IMDB[/url] is a good site to see who did the dialoge in most games.
I do not have the touch, nor do I have the power.
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Stilgar
- Posts: 4079
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- Location: The Netherlands - Sietch Tabr
- Contact:
[QUOTE=fable]...My opinion is completely the opposite of yours, but that doesn't mean either one of us is wrong in this matter. .....[/QUOTE]
That's one of the wisest things I heared today (and this has been a long day...)
But back on topic,
I think voice actors are a very important part of a game.
They can ruin a game completely for me.
In the good old days where there were no voiceactors or only the first line was spoken this wasn't such a big problem, but nowadays where the entire dialogue is spoken it is important that the acting is good and convincing.
For me personally it isn't necessary that all dialogue is spoken, but when you do do it (and all games seem to) you better do it good.
Spellforce for example had realy bad voiceacting, and this realy ruined the game for me.
I don't think they hire known actors to promote the game (maybe Sean Connery for the latest James Bond game) else they would promote it on the cover of the box.
And I can't see anyone buying a game cause of a voiceactor, but thats just me.
And before I forget, [url="http://www.imdb.com"]IMDB[/url] is a good site to see who did the dialoge in most games.
.....[/QUOTE]That's one of the wisest things I heared today (and this has been a long day...)
But back on topic,
I think voice actors are a very important part of a game.
They can ruin a game completely for me.
In the good old days where there were no voiceactors or only the first line was spoken this wasn't such a big problem, but nowadays where the entire dialogue is spoken it is important that the acting is good and convincing.
For me personally it isn't necessary that all dialogue is spoken, but when you do do it (and all games seem to) you better do it good.
Spellforce for example had realy bad voiceacting, and this realy ruined the game for me.
I don't think they hire known actors to promote the game (maybe Sean Connery for the latest James Bond game) else they would promote it on the cover of the box.
And I can't see anyone buying a game cause of a voiceactor, but thats just me.
And before I forget, [url="http://www.imdb.com"]IMDB[/url] is a good site to see who did the dialoge in most games.
I do not have the touch, nor do I have the power.