As we move closer to the release of one of the year’s most anticipated games, Fallout 4, I’ve been thinking about how much energy goes into audio production for these triple-A games.
https://twitter.com/BethesdaStudios/status/639485780805578752
It took two years and over 13,000 lines of dialogue, before the two leads could get through their voice acting contract for the game. Which just makes these voices behind the scenes all kinds of awesome. That’s some dedication.
Let’s look at some other men and women who have pleased our ears, and hearts, with their unique voice talents.
1. James Earl Jones: Darth Vader, Mufasa
Mr Jones is perhaps the most beloved voice actor on this list, voicing two iconic characters of the 70s and 80s. The bass of his voice, the way it commands attention, the tempo. Everything about this man’s voice screams epic. I mean, can you imagine anyone else saying, “Luke, I am your father!”? (Extra points for being Hakeem’s dad in Coming to America, a classic that never gets old).
2. Susan Bennett: Siri
Her identity stayed under wraps for a long time, almost two years, before Susan Bennett came out and owned up to the fact that she voiced Siri. And even though Siri still sounds robotic (and nothing like the OS in that Her movie, which Siri apparently hates), her popularity makes her the one of the most iconic AI personalities of the 21st century.
I was going to mention Jen Taylor who voiced Cortana as well as Princess Peach in the Mario games but I’m still pissed over how many times I was told, “Sorry Mario, but our princess is in another castle”.
3. David Hayter: Solid Snake
Anyone who’s played Metal Gear Solid (or any of its sequels) will recognise this man’s voice. The rustling, grizzly, world worn voice of a genetically formulated soldier, David Hayter nailed the role. It’s hard to think of a more prominent video game voice. Nolan North is doing a great job though.
4. Nancy Cartwright: Bart Simpson, Chuckie Finster
A lot of people didn’t know this. But yes, Bart Simpson is voiced by a woman. Shocker, right? Nancy has voiced Bart since 1989 when she was 32. She’s now 58. In one of life’s funny twists, she showed up at the audition for the role of Lisa Simpson but found the Bart character more interesting and after giving it a shot, she got offered the job on the spot. The rest as they say…. She also voiced Chuckie from the Rugrats cartoon.
By the way, Naruto Uzumaki was also voiced by a woman – Junko Takeuchi. You knew that right?
5. Mark Hamill: The Joker
The actor who played Luke Skywalker (and is reprising the role next month) voiced The Joker in almost every appearance of the iconic villain, from the popular Batman Animated Series (which is still the best portrayal of The Bat on screen) to all the Warner Brothers licensed games. The disparity between the Luke character and the Joker persona is so much, I didn’t believe it when I first discovered it was the same guy.
When Heath Ledger was preparing to play the character, I’m sure he took notes from Hamill. Still can’t get that eerie cackle out of my head.
6. Mel Blanc: Too many to name
Saved the best for last. This is one of those super, multi-talented people that visits our universe once in a century. Mr Blanc would voice Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmo Ford, Porky Pig, Tweety Bird, Sylvester the Cat, Yosemite Sam, Pepé Le Pew (the skunk), Speedy Gonzales, Wile E. Coyote, the Tasmanian Devil and a bunch of other Looney Tunes characters, sometimes all in the same episode.
Respect.
Photo Credit: Who2, Bradguice, Philly, Giantbomb, Thesoundla, Dorksideoftheforce and aewells13 via Compfight cc
