The Voice Acting. : V - Skyrim

» Sat Jun 09, 2012 9:49 pm

It's the way he says his lines, like he's just reading them and putting random emphasis on things without actually trying to act. Like he's bored almost. Also, to me, he sounds as if he's trying to fake an accent by speaking through his nose.

Exactly. Not to mention the lackluster-at-best writing.

Ex: IF you got the APTitude, you should join the Mage's CollEGE in WINTARHOWLD.

Hopefully, next TES, they'll hire new writers/give them more time to write.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 10:03 am

The weird part is how they don't use the voice actors to their full potential - Take Steven Russell, the guy who voices Mercer Frey, Belethor, many Dark Elves and some others. In all of Skyrim he only uses one voice (one similar but not quite the same as Garrett from Thief, in which he voiced at least a quarter of the cast). He also voiced Harold in Fallout 3 and if you know of his other works many other characters - yet his other voices never appear.

Why not put their voice actors' talents to full use? Russell could have given at least 3 different voices for NPCs to share and this would have cost Bethesda far less than hiring 2 new voice actors. If each of their 70ish actors all did 3 or 4 voices then the variety would have increased massively. And they would be able to use the worse sounding voice actors less.

Admittedly material in some cases could also be better.

EDIT: Actually Russell does voice Clavicus and Barbas, but this is still way less voices than he is capable of and he could have done some extra ones for other NPCs rather than create a million Garrett clones.

No wonder I keep thinking of the THIEF games!

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 4:12 am

I'm going to have to bring up Bladur's Gate 2 again. It featured the amazing David Warner, perfectly cast as Irenicus, perhaps one of the best performances in a video game ever. And then there was Kath Soucie as the unbelievably annoying and whiny Aerie. Other good roles were Jaheira and Viconia, while Anomen was also a bit annoying. And of course, Kevin Michael Richardson as Sarevok in part one and Throne of Bhaal.

I remember the recent "Hoi, Oim a Dunmah" thread and I do miss the Morrowind Dunmer voices. Most of the voice acting doesnt annoy me much, but I havent spent much time with some of the characters mentioned. But hearing some of the same lines over and over is a bit tiresome.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 2:33 am

At least they didn't rehire Sunny Smiles....OMG, I wanted to eat a bullet!

But they did rehire Three Dog for Skyrim.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 3:56 am

I'm going to have to bring up Bladur's Gate 2 again. It featured the amazing David Warner, perfectly cast as Irenicus, perhaps one of the best performances in a video game ever. And then there was Kath Soucie as the unbelievably annoying and whiny Aerie. Other good roles were Jaheira and Viconia, while Anomen was also a bit annoying. And of course, Kevin Michael Richardson as Sarevok in part one and Throne of Bhaal.

I personally think the BG series is the best western cRPG game I've ever played (and still sometimes do), TES games don't even come close although they're scope is different. But to be fare BG wasn't fully voiced it involved more reading (shock!) then listening.

AAA game companies will never released a semi-voiced product ever again like BG.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 8:06 am

At least they didn't rehire Sunny Smiles....OMG, I wanted to eat a bullet!

Damm, she sounds soo bored! "Yea, you could come with me and hunt geckos, or something, Not that i give a [censored] about anything."

» Sat Jun 09, 2012 11:07 pm

That would be FONV and by far the worst in all of gamesas or Obsidian. Followed closely by Three Dog. Well TD was just the most annoying in all of the lot.

EDIT : She sounded like a 6yr old reading a bedtime story.

Oh dude! Three-Dog was great (Fallout 3), I loved him

» Sat Jun 09, 2012 11:37 pm

Voice acting is the least of this games problems.

» Sat Jun 09, 2012 11:27 pm

I actually like all the voice actors.
It would svck if they got all the voice actors who sound as if their throat is coated in honey.
This way it kinda gives more real feeling to the game and it's better that way.

» Sat Jun 09, 2012 10:23 pm

They spent allot of money on voice talent, for Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas and now for Skyrim. Really big, A-list actors, that have been nominated for Oscar's and Emmy's.

That's why some of the lesser characters all have the same voice. They already spent a butt-load on the important characters. But I like many of those. Like Farkus (and other characters) and Aela (and other characters). Whoever those 2 are.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 6:49 am

I didn't mind the voice acting the only part I hate is that each race has the same lines.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 9:57 am

... but if you've got crappy writing, the acting can't make up for that.

I don't agree: good acting always make up for that. That's what happens in 99% of the films, tv series and whatever you can think of that are released nowadays.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 11:48 am

Personally I would've preferred it if they hired a broad range of lesser known voice actors rather than them blowing their budget on big names and having a lot of NPCs sound the same.

Oh dude! Three-Dog was great (Fallout 3), I loved him :smile:

"This is Three-Dog! OWwwwwwww! And you're in the Dark Brotherhood sanctuary!"

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 12:42 am

But they did rehire Three Dog for Skyrim.

I know...That completely destroyed that character for me. From the second he opened his mouth, all I could see was some idiot trying to take advantage of a teenager, to fix his stupid radio. I almost quit that questline right then. I will never go through that again. Sad to say.

He is not a bad voice actor...I just hated Tri Pup with passion.

» Sat Jun 09, 2012 8:25 pm

well.. sadly, because of mods, i'm now forced to play this game in english and i have to say... the german voiceacting was 10times better, even though the english ones are actually the real ones. only upside is, that there seem to be more voice actors. that some of them act like they are russians doesn't make it better though....

skyrim = soviet russia?

» Sat Jun 09, 2012 9:00 pm

I like the majority of the voice actors here. Both the well known and the relatively unknown. Hell, even Farengar's actor isn't bad on other characters (he does many). It just seems like a stilted moment for him or something. Like he was reading the lines, but distracted somewhere else for a second.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 1:27 am

I think that Farengar's voice acting is deliberate. His voice comes off as somewhat pretentious, even if the writing does not. That seem to be the right attitude for this guy, in this world, at this time. The actor was probably told to play it that way. If the writing had supported the voice, people would probably not be complaining.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 10:49 am

I don't mind Farengar's voice acting at all.I don't pay enough attention to it i guess.

» Sat Jun 09, 2012 9:16 pm

I like Farengar's voice actor - He's much better VA'd than any of my Real-life brothers.

I like the majority of the voice actors here. Both the well known and the relatively unknown. Hell, even Farengar's actor isn't bad on other characters (he does many). It just seems like a stilted moment for him or something. Like he was reading the lines, but distracted somewhere else for a second.

Distracted? Like Farengar is? The voice fits the character perfectly.

» Sat Jun 09, 2012 10:02 pm

The only one that winds me up is Sheogorath's fake Irish accent. Being English myself, I hear enough genuine Irish accents to know this one is some American guy trying and failing to pull it off. But at least I don't have to listen to it for as long as I did in Shivering Isles.

Sunny Smiles never bothered me, or Farengar for that matter.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 12:18 pm

Farengar is bad... but tolerable. TBH what bugs me much more than the acting is the completely random mix of "nord" accents. Apparently Nords have IrishAustrianAmericanNorwegian accents.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 7:57 am

Now that you mention it, there is one that sounds suspiciously like Arnold.

» Sat Jun 09, 2012 10:20 pm

I'm not sure what makes the NPC's seem subpar, maybe it's the robotic animations, or the stone cut faces, or the bad writing, or the voices themselves... Or maybe a combination of all. Best case was the end of the MQ with four people shouting huzzah courtesy of robotic Gamebryo animations...

Meh.

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 12:08 pm

Why all the Sunny Smiles hate?

» Sun Jun 10, 2012 1:47 am

Why all the Sunny Smiles hate?

Because it more painful than listening to fingernails being raked across a chalk board. She is reading and not acting.