Could you turn the subtitles on, please?

[purplecactus]

It's about fifty/fifty for me (with films and the like as well, I have to say). Usually I have them on if it's one of those loud action, quietly voiced games, and generally because I'm half deaf. It can get irritating, but I've learned to live with it because I would rather know what's going on.

 

[saintdane05]

I try to find games in their original Japanese with english subtitles. It sounds a hell of a lot better that way.

 

[thespyisdead]

if my english skills were crappy, i would keep them on, but since i have good english skills, i see no effin point in keeping them on, because they kinda distract me. the only game that ever forced me to keep the subs on, is KoTOR

 

[Diminished Capacity]

If subtitles are on by default, I usually leave them on. Otherwise, I won't bother to turn them on unless I can't hear or understand the dialog at a reasonable volume. I really hate having to crank the volume up in the quiet scenes, because then the noisy scenes shatter my windows. (dramatization)

 

[Silver Patriot]

I do this too. Subtitles on in every game that has them.
And there's nothing wrong with my hearing (mostly).

I guess I use them so I don't miss even a single detail. For example, if there's suddenly some background noise where I am, or if the VA in the game is mumbling a bit.

I don't find them distracting, and by reading the text at the same time as hearing it, it helps cement in my mind exactly what's being said and what's going on.

Spoiler: Also, somewhat relevant, old video, but still funny

Pretty much this.

It helps me make absolutely sure I know what's going on and pick up details I might have missed otherwise.

 

[ryo02]

I allways have the subtitles on too even though there is nothing wrong with my hearing ... on a side note it really botheres me when the subtitles are the same colour as whats behind them -_-

 

[F'Angus]

I usually put subtitles on...mainly to make sure I don't miss anything.. I guess it comes from me playing Monkey Island and Morrowind in the past where the text tells you everything. I prefer to read the stuff.

 

[Platypus540]

I do this too. The main reason is that I want to be able to understand what characters are saying through the background noise of the game or the real world. The second reason is that the first game I played with large amounts of spoken dialogue that the player actually needs to hear was Ace Combat 4, and since you can't turn the subtitles off in that game I just got used to it.

 

[DustyDrB]

Absolutely not, and it drives me insane if they're on by default.

The real crime is not including adequate audio sliders. Music must be halved, effects set at three-quarters, and voices? MAXIMISED! MUAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAH.

I had to turn the music down to a quarter just to be able to understand Geralt in The Witcher 2. They seriously screwed up in equalizing the audio in that game.

 

[kasperbbs]

I keep them on so i wouldn't miss anything, sometimes you can't hear the conversation because of background noise or in rare occasions where you have to be near a certain npc to hear what hes saying and i can't be bothered to stand still and listen.

Goddamned red button..

 

[ultimateownage]

I always have them on. It makes it easier to understand what's going on, and games seem to care about the dialogue much less than other media because it's quite frequently hard to understand or hear.

 

[Woodsey]

Absolutely not, and it drives me insane if they're on by default.

The real crime is not including adequate audio sliders. Music must be halved, effects set at three-quarters, and voices? MAXIMISED! MUAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAH.

I had to turn the music down to a quarter just to be able to understand Geralt in The Witcher 2. They seriously screwed up in equalizing the audio in that game.

Virtually everything I've ever played has had the issue to some degree.

Some games are obnoxious enough to solely include a master slider, which... uh. If there are only two crimes on this Earth that should be punishable by death, it's doing that, and not including FOV and mouse acceleration options.

 

[Windcaler]

I play with subtitles too. Sometimes I get distracted or dont catch something in the speech and then I can just read what was said. Then sometimes theres the issue of accents which I dont understand and I can just read the subtitle.

 

[gideonkain]

I ALWAYS turn off subtitles if I can.

In games like Fallout or Witcher, NPCs can talk and talk which means you tend to just look at the bottom of the screen, pick out the pertinent words and than click next instead of actually watching the person and involving yourself in the conversation.

I also think that missing some of the words in a game adds more than it takes away. Sure you miss things but missing a detail while bullets are whizzing by your head enriches the immersion of the game.

 

[Muspelheim]

I do it all the time. It might be hard to hear what they're saying over the gunfire otherwise. Plus, Metro 2033 is great, but the accents can be a bit hard to understand at times...

"Thueeere et eez... H'ooor... K'hoool..."

 

[rebelscum]

I always leave them on, especially in games such as Dead Space or Bioshock, where you could easily wind up fighting while story details are coming in over the radio, leading to the dialogue being drowned out by enemy taunts and gunfire.

 

[RastaBadger]

Some games where I want to be really immersed in it I'll turn the subtitles off but usually I turn them on. It's not that my hearing is bad it's just that some stuff can get drowned out by in game noise or sounds in real life.

 

[GamerAddict7796]

I always have them on in games but never in anything else.

As some characters may say something important/funny in the background, it's hard to hear without the subtitles. Especially in GTA IV where they don't speak English and the subtitles translate it for you.

 

[RatRace123]

I off 'em. I enjoy the more cinematic experience that provides.

Plus, I often play games with a set up involving my noise dampening headphones, so I can very clearly hear most of the dialogue being spoken.