Accents and languages in game VO

[Slowtrain]

Um. You do realize that you're not the only person in the thread, right?

 

 

Sorry. I thought we were kind of going back and forth with each other, so in lack of a quote context I took it as mostly applying to what I was saying.

 

Anyway, I don't intend to come across as hostile in any way towards you. SO I hope you aren't taking it that way.

 

Like I said it is just my pet peeve of the moment that I have wanted to see the Spanish REC for quite some time but instead have been only allowed to see Quarantine. WHich I don't want to see. It's annoying.

 

ALthough, I haven't checked on REC's domestic availability for some time. Perhaps I should do so now. Quarantine has, I believe, finished its incredibly brief theatrical run.

 

 

btw, Gorth is totally awesome. So don't get too down on him. Actually most of the regulars on this board are great.

[Slowtrain]

Here's sort of a general question for non US gamers who play US developed games:

 

Do you prefer to play the original English speaking US versions of games? Or do you prefer to go with a language localized version? Also how much choice do you have in which versions you can get?

 

I'm curious because obviously all of you speak and read English better than many Americans do, so the actual language used would not in and of itself be a barrier.

[Hassat Hunter]

Well, as I already mentioned here in Holland we only have the english versions (localised versions won't sell, so producers don't even try. They usually sell UK-versions in the stores).

[Gorth]

Do you prefer to play the original English speaking US versions of games? Or do you prefer to go with a language localized version? Also how much choice do you have in which versions you can get?

This one prefer games (just like movies) in their original language. If the original language is English, then yes, the English version is the preferred one. I played The Witcher in it's original language (with English subtitles) too.

[Slowtrain]

Well, as I already mentioned here in Holland we only have the english versions (localised versions won't sell, so producers don't even try. They usually sell UK-versions in the stores).

 

 

DO you mean that localised versions won't sell because people prefer the English version if given a choice? Or that producers don't think they are going to make back the money they would have to spend on localising the game because it won't sell enough, so they don't even bother?

[Hassat Hunter]

The first. As mentioned any attempt to release something translated to Dutch usually gets heavy resistance from gamers.

 

What are deemed "Children movies" (Animation, Harry Potter) are usually the only thing that get released here subbed and in the original version, and the original versions lasts lots longer in the cinema. For DVD's every language is included, so plenty of choice there.

[Gorth]

The first. As mentioned any attempt to release something translated to Dutch usually gets heavy resistance from gamers.

 

What are deemed "Children movies" (Animation, Harry Potter) are usually the only thing that get released here subbed and in the original version, and the original versions lasts lots longer in the cinema. For DVD's every language is included, so plenty of choice there.

Same thing in Denmark. Stuff aimed at kids too young to have learned a second (and sometimes third) language yet results in dubbed versions being released. Both movies and games. I think most aimed at "teen" and upwards gets original language with optional subtitle versions.

[Aristes]

Sorry, must have been something you said, Gorth. I'll go through and find it later, but this big ol' American is going to go eat some Mexican food. Mmm, since I'm part Mexican, I'll go fifty-fifty on this remake.

[Darth InSidious]

Thrusting my oar where it's not wanted, being British, there is no sound so horrible as an American straining to sound English. Except possibly the sound of cats being drawn and quartered. **** van Dyke ought to be picked up for crimes against humanity for his attempts to perform this feat in certain childrens' films...

 

Does it make a difference to the game experience to have some jarringly bad accent foisted upon me? Hell yes. Just as a bad voice-actor can ruin immersiveness, a bad accent can do the same, for similar reasons. Frankly, someone pretending to be English can't do a very good job of voice-acting at the same time, IMO - they're rather busy not slipping into their actual accent.

 

Was it worth hiring Sara Kestelman to voice Kreia in KotOR II? Hell yes. For starters, she's bloody brilliant, but also, had it been someone pretending to be English, I don't think the character would have succeeded. It would have jarred too much. (There are one or two areas where the choice of construction even jars a little, because it's American enough to put the feel a little off-kilter. But they're few and far between enough that this isn't really a significant problem.)

 

By contrast, was it worth not getting someone with a genuine Scots, Irish or Welsh accent (not sure what was being gone for there) to play Khelgar? What comes off is Van Dyke Syndrome again. You may not hear it, but you can be sure that it's obvious to a UK citizen.

 

Basically, it's about attention to detail. The little things really do make all the difference. It's no good writing reams of dialogue highlighting that the setting is Oxford in 1771 if Lord Wimplesby is wearing a digital wristwatch. Would Bioshock have suffered unduly if the voice actors had been less well-chosen in terms of the periodicity? Probably not, but something would have been off, and it's a nice touch, for example, that Ryan sounds like he belongs in the period, as much as he looks or acts the part.

 

Or maybe I pay way too much attention to voice-overs.

Edited December 6, 2008 by Darth InSidious

[Tigranes]

Just a quick note;

 

As another example, no matter how hard I try, I'll never understand Anime

 

You'd think so, Anime being the archetypical "weird out-there stuff", but actually, anime was being Americanised as early as the 70's. Here;

 

Celebrated Turkish writer Orhan Pamuk recently said that a European critic described one of his novels as a depiction of

[Hell Kitty]

What I find funny is when people claim that a game sounds so much better in a language they don't understand. Of course it sounds better, because you can't tell if the actor is doing a good or bad job.

 

As for remakes, I'm more likely to take the positive stance that Aristes has, that those involved with the remake enjoyed the story so much they want to retell it, rather than negatively assume it's seen as an easy way to make money. Neither is really more or less likely. I also think labeling remakes as pointless to be pretty ridiculous. If an American remake of a Japanese horror movie is pointless, then what's the original? High art? Is it pointless for a parent to tell their kids a bedtime story that was first told to them by their own parents when they were a child?

[J.E. Sawyer]

Here's sort of a general question for non US gamers who play US developed games:

 

Do you prefer to play the original English speaking US versions of games?

We are dealing with a biased group though, since everyone here reads and writes English pretty well. Many Europeans speak some English, but not all do. I was in France earlier this year. In Paris and Orl

[Darth InSidious]

Unfortunately, while positive, that position can be hard to justify when the original can't really be improved upon. As with, say, the original of The Ladykillers. And if you know you can't improve the story with your retelling, frankly, why do it?

 

We recently had quite a row (lol) over "disorientated" as spoken by a person of British colonial descent. It was resolved in your nation's favor. Native speakers often will correct minor errors when the find them, even if it's just a case of word choice. And although the ignorant would obviously never know the difference, those who would care, do care.

Interesting. I didn't know there were that many ways to pronounce the word.

 

It's nice to know that developer's do notice, pick up on and care these things. It's nitpicky and probably largely unimportant, but it can really alter the mood, I think.

 

I love learning languages and learning about languages. Knowing construction conventions can even give insights into how people make errors and adaptations in other languages. Z.B., auf Deutsch, prepositions typically appear at the end of interrogative clauses ("Kommst du mit?"/"Kommen Sie mit?" = literally "Come you with?"). Polite requests end in the softening particle "mal", which literally means "once". E.g. "Hilfst du mir, mal." In the regions of the Midwest heavily settled by Germans, English speakers still carry over those constructions despite the fact that they don't make any sense. This is why older Wisconsinites tend to say, "You coming with?", "Come here once.", usw.

 

Good times.

Again, an interesting local dialectal difference. Similarly, in odd corners over here, you find either unusual older forms (such as using 'sit down' as a reflexive verb), or local syntactical quirks (in the North, particularly - such as the Birmingham habit of using the verb 'hark' derisively - 'ooh, hark at him!', etc. Of course, these things are becoming more homogenised, but they still linger...)

 

It reminds me of a story concerning Winston Churchill. Supposedly he was once criticised for ending sentences with prepositions, and replied with a letter in the papers the next day, complaining that this was an insult 'up with which I shall not put.'

Edited December 6, 2008 by Darth InSidious

[CoM_Solaufein]

Everyone knows dwarves speak with a Scottish accent.

 

I thought Easton did a fine job in her VO in PST.

[Hell Kitty]

Unfortunately, while positive, that position can be hard to justify when the original can't really be improved upon. As with, say, the original of The Ladykillers. And if you know you can't improve the story with your retelling, frankly, why do it?

 

Because whether or not something can be improved upon is entirely a matter of opinion. Also, one can want to retell a story without thinking the original needed improving.

[Maria Caliban]

I guess there's a perception that the United States market is very intolerant of subtitles in the cinema, as indeed are the British. I don't know if that necessarily applies to games, though, but perhaps the industry assumes it would. What do our US forumites think of that? On the other hand, many Japanese dislike going to see English movies dubbed, or at least most I know do, and prefer subtitles. So ideally, local tastes would also be considered before making a decision over which language to use and whether and how to 'localise'.

 

 

I love subtitles.

 

But crash girl is right. Americans, in general, dislike anything other than English, color films. I like foreign films. I'll occasionally suggest foreign horror or martial art films to people and it's seen as too

Edited December 6, 2008 by Maria Caliban

[Hell Kitty]

In Australia, the majority view is that if a film is Australian it probably sucks, and "foreign" (not American/British) films are only good because you're more likely to see some nudity.

[Maria Caliban]

Everyone knows dwarves speak with a Scottish accent.

 

I thought Easton did a fine job in her VO in PST.

 

Really, she did. If you'd asked me when I first played the game, I'd have said the Scottish accent was a bit too strong. It sounded like an American trying to do a Scottish accent and working too hard at it because I'm not used to real Scottish accents.

[J.E. Sawyer]

In Australia, the majority view is that if a film is Australian it probably sucks, and "foreign" (not American/British) films are only good because you're more likely to see some nudity.

So what is the Australian view of the Australian film "Australia", made by Australian director Baz Luhrman starring Australian actor Hugh Jackman and Australian/Hawaiian actress Nicole Kidman?

[Hell Kitty]

In Australia, the majority view is that if a film is Australian it probably sucks, and "foreign" (not American/British) films are only good because you're more likely to see some nudity.

So what is the Australian view of the Australian film "Australia", made by Australian director Baz Luhrman starring Australian actor Hugh Jackman and Australian/Hawaiian actress Nicole Kidman?

 

It hasn't been out long enough yet, but even while in production it was seen as somewhat embarrassing and expected to flop. Reviews range from "It's okay but not the epic the Aussie film industry hoped for" to "Nicole Kidman and her stupid face ruin everything."

[Pop]

Nobody likes Nicole Kidman.

 

Less people like Baz Luhrmann.

[Oerwinde]

Its annoying when spell checks think I spell colour, armour, centre, theatre, etc. wrong.

[Dark_Raven]

Khelgars dwarf acent shoulda been a lil thicker in the Scotish accent. he sounds like an american tryin to imitate the accent.

[Maria Caliban]

Its annoying when spell checks think I spell colour, armour, centre, theatre, etc. wrong.

 

The English language has evolved. It's sleeker, more efficient. If only you Europeans could keep up with the times!

[Oerwinde]

Its annoying when spell checks think I spell colour, armour, centre, theatre, etc. wrong.

 

The English language has evolved. It's sleeker, more efficient. If only you Europeans could keep up with the times!

 

I'm Canadian