Poll: Voiced protagonist or silent protagonist?

[HellspawnCandy]

I've noticed many games are doing the whole silent protagonist thing, even games without dialogue options like ones Bioware and others produce. But there's also games where they have fully voiced protagonists with dialogue options to choose from(like Mass Effect), or none at all.

My question is, which do you prefer? I prefer the Mass Effect method, it seems like a pretty nice way to affect the game the way you want without being dead silent.

 

[meticadpa]

It depends on the game for me.

For Mass Effect, Shepard is supposed to be an incredibly charismatic and enchanting character, whereas Freeman is supposed to be a quiet scientist.

So both work.

 

[oplinger]

Don't care. As long as it's done well.

 

[Syrus Vikeruce]

Either one's fine for me, I've always stuck to stuff like Golden Sun but Metal Gear shows good voice acting talent as well. Depends on the individual's taste really.

 

[Azaradel]

I'd say it depends on the game.

 

[greenflash]

I like it bioware style or gordon freeman style.

 

[FirstOne617]

Depends on genre, but I honestly prefer voiced companion. I went from Mass Effect 2 to Dragon Age and just couldn't take the whole silent deal. It breaks the immersion.

 

[Estarc]

It depends on the game. For example, the Zelda games have always worked perfectly well with Link saying a word. But RPGs work better with text, I have found. To use your own example of Mass Effect, I found that in ME the shitty conversation wheel often leads to you saying things that either make no sense or that you didn't intend to say, and as a result it hurt the role playing for me. ME feels like I am watching Commander Shepard go around doing stuff, not doing it myself like in Dragon Age.

In many other games though, voice acting is a necessity. Really depends on the game, as I said. But if we were limited strictly to RPGs of the Bioware formula, I'd prefer silent protagonists.

 

[Sanguinius- The Angel]

I prefer voiced, so there's some actual characterization. That's why I don't like Gordon Freeman, he's literally a cardboard box with guns.
And not the good kind. [http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://media.gamerevolution.com/images/misc/solid_snake_box.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.gamerevolution.com/static/index.php%3Fsection%3Dsponsors%26sub%3Dbox_o_games%26page%3Dsolid_snake&usg=__rjSEzrAUPVDyZMOW3pfUFfeFodU=&h=320&w=449&sz=502&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=pBvdxveFoPIvqM:&tbnh=120&tbnw=160&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsnake%2Bin%2Bbox%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26biw%3D1152%26bih%3D683%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=595&vpy=73&dur=522&hovh=189&hovw=266&tx=129&ty=85&ei=p4zITKn8EIL6sAPX-4S4CA&oei=p4zITKn8EIL6sAPX-4S4CA&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=24&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:0]

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Depends on the game but usually I lean towards a silent protagonist. It is easier to become the character and relate to the situation than it is if the voice actor sucks or the character turns out to be a prick.

 

[Alucard832]

Silent is for failures who don't know a good story. Every game with a silent protagonist can be made better with a voiced one. The main character should never just be a looking glass.

 

[SmokingMirrors]

Depends. There's games wherein having the protagonist be silent can add to the immersion, especially when the players looking through his eyes and not over his shoulder.

The latter however tends to benefit from a vocal protagonist- atleast so long as its that way from the start, which is one of the things thats vexed me about the upcoming sequel to Dead Space.

But i'll refrain from a rant, seeing as it'll accomplish nothing.

 

[oplinger]

Silent is for failures who don't know a good story. Every game with a silent protagonist can be made better with a voiced one. The main character should never just be a looking glass.

...You know, every time someone says something like this I imagine Link with a voice actor.


......He does not get any better.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

eh it depends. for the most part, as long as i have SOME KIND of fucking output into the game, or people actually acknowledge that what im saying matters, then i wont mind too much.

however, fully voiced and dialogue options are what i prefer.

 

[RobfromtheGulag]

For me the key aspect is choice.

Final Fantasy X: Bad
Fallout: Good

Final Fantasy X straps me to Tidus and makes me watch as he says the stupidest stuff imaginable, all the while implying that as the protagonist I should be sympathetic and identify with him. Fallout simply gives me the choice of what to say.
Granted nobody comes to mind when it comes to voice acting the protagonist choices, but that might be a good thing. The silent games were (as I see it) trying to get us to identify by kind of hastily just jumping all the dialogue for you.

 

[JeanLuc761]

It depends on the game for me.

For Mass Effect, Shepard is supposed to be an incredibly charismatic and enchanting character, whereas Freeman is supposed to be a quiet scientist.

So both work.

This is almost EXACTLY what I was going to say.

Damn ninjas.

 

[satanic kitty]

silent protagonist. lets you make up what he is thinking. example: (half-life-gonarch battle)WHY THE FUCK DOES AN ALIEN HAVE A GIANT TESTICLE?

 

[skywalkerlion]

I prefer voiced, so there's some actual characterization. That's why I don't like Gordon Freeman, he's literally a cardboard box with guns.
And not the good kind. [http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://media.gamerevolution.com/images/misc/solid_snake_box.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.gamerevolution.com/static/index.php%3Fsection%3Dsponsors%26sub%3Dbox_o_games%26page%3Dsolid_snake&usg=__rjSEzrAUPVDyZMOW3pfUFfeFodU=&h=320&w=449&sz=502&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=pBvdxveFoPIvqM:&tbnh=120&tbnw=160&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsnake%2Bin%2Bbox%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26biw%3D1152%26bih%3D683%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=595&vpy=73&dur=522&hovh=189&hovw=266&tx=129&ty=85&ei=p4zITKn8EIL6sAPX-4S4CA&oei=p4zITKn8EIL6sAPX-4S4CA&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=24&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:0]

Yeah, people complain about Master Chief's characterization..but compared to Gordon Freeman? *sigh*

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

For me the key aspect is choice.

Final Fantasy X: Bad
Fallout: Good

Final Fantasy X straps me to Tidus and makes me watch as he says the stupidest stuff imaginable, all the while implying that as the protagonist I should be sympathetic and identify with him. Fallout simply gives me the choice of what to say.
Granted nobody comes to mind when it comes to voice acting the protagonist choices, but that might be a good thing. The silent games were (as I see it) trying to get us to identify by kind of hastily just jumping all the dialogue for you.

On FF X did you ever notice while playing the game that they never ever use Tidus' name once? This allowed you to change his name at the start.

OT: I think the Star Ocean Til The End of Time system was best. You had a choice whether you wanted voiced with or without subs and with just dialogue no voice. If that was in games It would be amazing.