100°

Voice Acting For Link in Future Zelda Games – How it Could Work Well

Iran White writes:

"When it comes to voice acting for The Legend of Zelda series, there are mixed opinions. To such an extent, that Nintendo may never be able to take that risk.

There are those who are satisfied with the grunts, language-like sounds, bells, whistles, and exclamations. They don’t want full voice acting.

There are those who are satisfied with the above, but only for Link. They want other characters in the world to have a vocal narrative.

There are those who want the full game voice acted. Link and all. They feel it’s time for Nintendo to take the risk."

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Benjaminkno4100d ago

Make voice acting in the game optional.
Adopt a strong and confident teenage voice.
Keep his narrative rare, short, and to the point.

Just stop dragging your feet and do it right.

linkenski4100d ago

I always liked how there were no real optional settings in Zelda games. You never get to choose difficulty from the getgo and you don't get to choose between touch/buttons or motion controls/buttons and therefore all players get the same experience, when playing the game the first time.

Having additional voice acting would probably mean that cutscenes get longer because the animations have to match the voices, and then people who disable it will have to wait longer. It could have workarounds, but i don't really like the idea.

Either there should be voice acting, or there shouldn't.

And that reminds me of how i dislike the increased amount of voice grunts in both Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword. Flappy jaws looks stupid, and the grunts make the characters sound like they're... well i'd almost say retarded at times.

I would like to see a Zelda game with full voice acting, but i'm unsure about whether Nintendo does casting well enough to make it worthwhile. Kid Icarus had some great voice acting, but it still sounded like very anime generic VO's making it pretty cheesy.

Zelda with voice acting shouldn't be cheesy and that's why i fear it's eventual happening.

BullyMangler4100d ago

nope wouldn't work . . . zelda games have always been a reading adventure full of REAL gameplay. . always has . voice acting? . pff . . Leaders are Readers end of story .. .

TruthbeTold4100d ago

From the article:

'For those who desire the full game voice acted because you’re too lazy to read subtitles, well, this solution may not sound very good to you. For everyone else, please bear with me as we consider this.'

The fact that reading is an inherent part of the experience is taken into account, and part of the solution.

BullyMangler4100d ago

Subtitles? . . .nope bad idea . it would never work . its like engaging in a reading experience . say a book . like "how to win friends and influence people" . why in the earth would i want to hear the book audio, and read it at the SAME time ? . . . audio and or reading are both great, one isnt better than the other, but still . why would i want to play a zelda game/reading adventure, with the reading and the acting at the same time? . even if you could leave just the voice acting, like i said, it would'nt work . zelda games will always be rading adventures . because nothing is in harms way by reading . voice acting? . . why you cant read? take care of that

TruthbeTold4100d ago

I guess you didn't read the article? The idea was that in Japan the voice over would be in English, elsewhere it would be in Japanese. That way, you get the full effect of the acting, but you have to read as well to get the full Zelda experience. But oh well. No biggie. Either Nintendo will, or they won't. As usual, a large number of people will love it, and a large number of people will be upset.

Root4100d ago

They just need to throw in Hyrulian words when they are speaking in English, like how AC2 adds Italian words when they are speaking in English.

They have to have some voice acting...Zelda and Links relationship needs to evolve and they can't do that when Link doesn't say anything.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4100d ago
PopRocks3594100d ago

Eh, I'd prefer Link stay mute. I mean I'm all for voice acting for the characters that are actually talking, but for Link himself let's leave it alone. The TV show is more than enough damage, if you know what I mean.

linkenski4100d ago

Even if it had voice acting, i think they would retain Link's muteness. Look at Half-Life and see how well it worked there. HL2 is very character driven and characters often speak directly to you (Gordon) and then they respond as if Gordon answered them, even though he is completely mute. It's like in OoT.

TruthbeTold4100d ago

I like the idea of it being optional. But unfortunately, if Nintendo ever does this, they'll make a big deal out of it, so making it optional would defeat the purposes of doing it in the first place for them. Kind of like the controls for Skyward Sword...

zerocrossing4100d ago

I can't see it happening, don't get me wrong they could do it really well but Link is the quintessential silent protagonist, even his name refers to the fact that we are supposed to be experiencing the events he goes through as if we are in his shoes, having him talk would break that link and he would just end up being another mouthy hero instead of a of an avitar for us to have respond in the way we want.

Blank4100d ago

WELL SAID! You get a bubble from me I like this comment. The way I see this is that nobody unless your name is shigeru miyamoto can suggest this idea of link having a voice to me in my personal view this franchise epic as it is and the way it has grown in each iteration is just fine leave the evolution and drastic changes to nintendo they will never steer this franchise in the wrong way

abzdine4100d ago

another article about zelda written by an ignorant!
Link doesn't talk, it's like this and it will always be like this.

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80°

Nintendo's Massacre Of The 3DS And Wii U Is Finally Complete, Regrettably

Hanzala from eXputer: "The cruel hammer of Nintendo has fallen. Farewell, 3DS and Wii U, you surely brightened my life and many others; you won't be forgotten."

280°

Xbox's Preservation Step Sets A Much-Needed Example, Especially For Nintendo

Hanzla from eXputer inquires: "If Xbox can care about preserving its games and legacy, what exactly is wrong with Nintendo, trying to kill game preservation single-handedly?"

purple1016d ago

Ahh yes the good old game preservation of saving all your games to a removable hhd on the Xbox 360, taking it round your mates house, setting up multiple tvs to
Be met with “save data corrupted, please re download”

Or how about removing 360 games
From the store
, download them now or else, and, better hope to god that save data doesn’t corrupt, or it’s lost for ever

Nice one ☝️

Zeref5d ago

It's better than what Nintendo and Playstation is doing. It might not be perfect but at least they are TRYING. Unlike the others.

DarXyde5d ago

Trying? Take off the blinders for a moment, mate.

1. A failure to preserve games is just that: a failure to preserve games. Don't try to sugarcoat it: NO ONE is doing it properly. Better than awful is nothing to write home about.

2. At the time of this comment, isn't it the case that you need an internet connection to play Xbox games even if you buy physical discs that are hardly in circulation anymore? I don't have a Series X and I can't verify, but I think that is correct. I'm fairly certain you can at least play PS5 games at version 1.0 (not much of a win really when many games require day one patches). I think Microsoft's all digital, licensing approach is by far more aggressive than anyone else's. They really try to push you to game pass where you lose your entire library by umm.... Skipping a month of payments.

I don't think anyone is doing it right whatsoever. Don't get me started on Nintendo, who goes after anyone looking to preserve their games better than they ever would with extreme litigation.

Don't be a simp for any of these companies. Get it together.

PhillyDonJawn5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

@DarX never speak on Xbox again. You lost all credibility with your internet connection comment. Smh you have 0 clue and misinformed yet speaking on something you don't no squat about.

Einhander19725d ago

What has Sony done exactly? You guys keep deflecting to Sony but I am not actually seeing any results, and ai am certain nothing that you can come up with even comes close to what Microsoft has done and what they have tried and failed to do, like tie all your disks to your account on xbone.

Microsoft removed their whole indie section when they moved to the xbone because they were going to only allow games on the service that came from a publisher, id@xbox started after xbone launched and it only exists because Sony embraced indie and Microsoft was forced to cancel their plans and reverse course.

And every single game that was part of games for windows live including disk games (I have gta 4 on disk that won't work) so hundreds of games that use that DRM no longer work unless the company themselves patched it out which of course very few did.

MrBaskerville5d ago

Not trying. Tried. they killed of the backcomp program years ago. They set something up again, but sounds like it's more of an attempt to save the current library on whatever they are planning next. With luck they save everything and more, but let's see. I could see them killing off parts of the OG xbox and 360 libraries. Can't imagine that they would allow us to play Forza 5-7 in the future.

With that said, I do like what they've done and really wish they could have done more.

shinoff21835d ago

Zeref

So killing off physical media is trying what exactly. Ms don't really give a fk if you think they do your kidding yourself.

Profchaos5d ago

They are not trying this team is established for forward compatability the team is. It interested in preserving Xbox or 360 games.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 5d ago
isarai6d ago

Is that why Hellblade 2 is digital only?

Zeref5d ago

Just because it's digital only doesn't mean you can't preserve it. Just put it on an external and you have the exact same functionality of what a disc does.

MrNinosan5d ago

Guess you're trolling, but if you actually think that's how it works, I'd recommend buying some braincells.

mkis0074d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Volitile vs nonvolitile data. A disc will not corrupt either. A drive can be corrupted.

Einhander19726d ago

This is just a scammy PR move to distract from the fact they are going digital only and trying to push streaming and subscriptions only.

No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft.

Without discs there is no preservation, preservation can't be done by the rights holders it can only be done by the consumers, anything else is a lie.

6d ago Replies(3)
Einhander19726d ago

Anyone remember xblig which Microsoft removed their whole 360 indie section removing hundreds of games from people?

6d ago
6d ago
Zeref5d ago

Do you know you can put your games on an external and preserve them that way? There are no benefits to discs. ZERO. Idk why some of you are still obsessed with them.

DarXyde5d ago

Because games like Persona 5 exist. It's STILL V1.00. On Playstation, that's a win because 1.00 is installed on the disc—no need to download anything.

If a game does not require any updates, it's all on the disc.

Extremely low bar in the modern era, of course. It's not much of a win by any stretch.

But for now, physical media does have a purpose, at least on Playstation.

Einhander19725d ago

That is factually not how game licensing works, try plugging your hard drive into someone else xbox, It's not going to work, and it won't work if the licensing servers ever go down.

Einhander19725d ago

Anyone remember games for windows live.

I have around a dozen games, some on Steam itself that will not work because Microsoft shut off the licensing servers.

BehindTheRows5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

I do. I STILL have games (Gears of War being the big one) I cannot access because Games for Windows LIVE is total garbage and no one has held Microsoft accountable.

Zeref5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership.

Chevalier5d ago

"You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership."

Damn how many times do people got to explain your idiocy to you? You can take a copy of Persona 5 like someone used as an example and play that game on ANY console WITHOUT logging in which means I can lend the game to a friend without internet and they can play my game. Can you lend your hard drive to anyone without logging in for them to play? NOPE. That is a huge difference and if you think otherwise then sorry you're an idiot.

Tacoboto5d ago

"No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft."

Ubisoft is literally erasing games people bought from their libraries... My PS1-3 discs are useless on modern hardware. Nintendo's re-published and resold almost their entire Wii U library, and the eShop is completely dead with no BC mechanism in the Switch software. Microsoft publishes everything they make today day one on Steam and Xbox/Windows. Sony only brings to PC the titles they think you might want some years later and Nintendo won't even design a functional long-lasting joystick.

You're absolutely trolling and not serious if you think Microsoft today is the worst offender.

shinoff21835d ago

Yay steam

Not everyone fks with computers though. The disc is still the best way as a console player. Period.

Tacoboto5d ago

How do Sony and Nintendo feel about these discs from 2001-2013?

Don't be stupid, you know Xbox is the best at this today.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 5d ago
Hofstaderman5d ago

Nobody wants this. Sales or the lack of it in the case of XBOX is very telling. I wonder how the adorably all digital series X will fare. Adorably dismal perhaps?

crazyCoconuts5d ago

Only time will tell, but for from someone like me suspecting that Xbox is trying to gracefully exit the console market, that "forward compatibility" team is trying to get Xbox games playing on Windows PCs. I mean, it's nice that they're not planning on exiting with a "enjoy your games while the hardware still works" message, so that's nice. They still have a brand to protect via Microsoft so probably feel obligated to have a better exit strategy.

Xeofate5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

That is not their plan, their plan is to transfer users accounts to the cloud.

Phil Spencer himself said as much a few months back, plans could have changed but I think people are reading way too much into one statement where Phil said he would allow Epic on xbox because he wants to be able to sell xbox games directly on other platforms. Aka, instead of selling Sea of Thives through PSN he wants to have an xbox store to sell his games on PlayStation without giving PlayStation any money.

Again, it's extremely unlikely that Phil plans to put PC on xbox and licensing would prevent them from just giving out other publishers games purchased on xbox copies of thier games on PC, Microsoft does not own their games.

crazyCoconuts4d ago

The thing that doesn't align with the cloud strategy is the giving up on exclusives. You'd still need strong exclusives for cloud streaming - it's still a "platform" , just with a lower upfront hardware investment. I feel like they've learned what PS learned with PSNow long ago. We're not ready to stream games and it's only gonna lose them money to try at this point

FinalFantasyFanatic5d ago

I would love that, I'd buy up some of the Xbox games if they could run on PC, like the Rare Replay, Lost Odyssey and Dead or Alive Ultimate, probably a pipe dream though.

Show all comments (43)
90°

Nintendo's War Against Player-Made Content Will Hurt The Company In The End

Danish from eXputer: "Nintendo has historically gone against player-made content and emulation of its games. This has done much to harm the company's image."

XiNatsuDragnel12d ago

I agree nintendo hire some these folks to help in your games it'll help imo.

banger8811d ago

They need to stop announcing these mods and fan remakes until they're finished. Finish it, upload it, and then if Nintendo dmca's it tough shit. Once it's online, people can share it around, even if the original download gets taken down.

Jingsing11d ago

True, but most modders need constant admiration during the process to motivate them.

PRIMORDUS11d ago

Yup, once it's a torrent nothing can be done Nintendo is helpless at that point. But it would be wise if they just had a site on the dark web, it's also easy to use with Tor and no one will bother you.

mastershredder11d ago

This is all coming from the mouth of short-sighted fandom and grifting madness.
No.... it wont. There is a clear defined reason why they don't. This is nothing new. Make your own shi7 from your own original ideas especially if you are trying to capitalize of it it. Duh.

Yeah, hire people that have zero respect or understanding for an established process. Wow. Yep. Totally makes sense.

shinoff218311d ago

Those guys that made that sonic game got a gig from sega or something along those lines and that game was dope as hell. One of the best sonics as of late.