Hmm...idk. I've only dealt with the EXACT OPPOSITE of that. For example: Dante (DMC) and Nathan Drake. So I guess it would be weird.
Silent Characters
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I am perfectly fine with silent characters.
What usually takes me out of a game is when the game switches back and forth from voice to text.
Not that a game has to go all or none or anything...
I guess what I'm saying is: a good game for me isn't hinged solely on whether or not they spent time in a recording studio. Look at Bioshock. I think it would have changed the game entirely if Jack was a chatter.
What usually takes me out of a game is when the game switches back and forth from voice to text.
Not that a game has to go all or none or anything...
I guess what I'm saying is: a good game for me isn't hinged solely on whether or not they spent time in a recording studio. Look at Bioshock. I think it would have changed the game entirely if Jack was a chatter.
You do know of the term "Silent Protagonist" right? For some games, I can't see it with the protagonist speaking in, like you mentioned, Zelda. I can't imagine the main character not speaking though in games like, say, Tales of Symphonia.
Sometimes the "Silent Protagonist" thing makes the character more "badass" though, like say, Red from Pokemon. If he was anything like his imitation counterpart in the anime, he'd be a sniveling, weak, dumbass kid. Just saying.
Sometimes the "Silent Protagonist" thing makes the character more "badass" though, like say, Red from Pokemon. If he was anything like his imitation counterpart in the anime, he'd be a sniveling, weak, dumbass kid. Just saying.
They are just terrible, in my opinion. Having a half a conversation in Half Life 2 or Dead Space 1 or ANY Zelda game just breaks the immersion for me. It's even worse in games like Zelda, because other characters seems to react to what you "say."
I think if you compare Dead Space 1 to Dead Space 2, there is no comparison. When Isaac talks, and you learn more about him, he becomes someone you can care about. Talking allows the player to connect.
Even in games where there is a created player, I always connect to my character better if there is a voice to my avatar. The Godfather game for the Wii was a good example of this. You were some random schmo who could look like anything, but since he had a voice, he became interesting.
I think if you compare Dead Space 1 to Dead Space 2, there is no comparison. When Isaac talks, and you learn more about him, he becomes someone you can care about. Talking allows the player to connect.
Even in games where there is a created player, I always connect to my character better if there is a voice to my avatar. The Godfather game for the Wii was a good example of this. You were some random schmo who could look like anything, but since he had a voice, he became interesting.
I like playing a silent character, but I don't think it's the only or best way to design the protagonist. It's nice to be able to go throughout a story and in a sense be an active observer in the storyline. In Half-Life 2 for example I can focus more on what I myself think and see as I travel through the game world. It's a different kind of immersion.
At the same time though it can create a kind of emotional distance between yourself and what's going on in the game sometimes, which is why a good voice actor for your protagonist and/or conversation options are nice.
At the same time though it can create a kind of emotional distance between yourself and what's going on in the game sometimes, which is why a good voice actor for your protagonist and/or conversation options are nice.
In a 'serious' game, I can't stand them. In more light-hearted games like Crash Bandicoot I think they're charming, but I do not understand how a dev thinks an audience can care for a character like Gordon Freeman or Isaac Clarke (DS1) if they express no emotion. I could not connect to the world of Half-Life at all due to my characters inability to speak or express thoughts in any way. That's a big reason why I actually don't like the Half-Life series
But wouldn't it be better with some dialogue choices since you get the chance to speak out to NPCs.zehydra said:
I like it when it's done well. Chell from Portal is probably one of the best I've seen, since she has absolutely no back story or established personality traits, so it's entirely possible to project your own personality on her without any trouble. Isaac Clarke in the first Dead Space was probably one of the worst, since he has lots of back story and plenty of established personality traits, alongside the game's futile attempts to make us sympathize with him with the whole girlfriend thing (giving him a voice in DS2 was a much better call. A little jarring, yes, but better late than never, and the result is now one of my favourite video game characters). Gordon Freeman is somewhere in between those two extremes, with the game giving Gordon more of a back story than is necessary and assuming the player's motivations a little too freely, but doing good to compensate for the lack of an interesting lead character by giving us a cast of likable NPC's to focus our emotions on.
I don't really care. One does not have to talk to have a personality (see: Link). Just so long as it fits the game, I am cool with it.
i honestly like the more quiet protaganist, or ones who say very few words, it lets me imagine myself in thier place better or imagine whats running through their head. Also it opens up to series like Freeman's Mind which is hilarious.
dialogue choices are good too, and I actually prefer those over a totally silent character. But I prefer either over a preset dialogue that you have no control over.Professor James said:
Ultimately though, if a game has preset dialogue with no choices, but it's done really well, I can still appreciate that.
i get so uncomfortable playing as a silent protagonist. he's obviously not me. i wouldnt shoot old ladies with a shotgun. i wouldnt fire bees out of my hand. i wouldnt fight spiders that are also skulls. i wouldnt take down russian terrorists. and i DEFINITELY would not fight an alien army with a crowbar. so the silent protagonist is just a character who takes orders from and has relationships with perfectly normal people, but never speaks himself. this sort of person makes me uncomfortable in real life and also does in video games. plus they're just boring.
I don't care for them, personally. The whole thing seems to have a very "emperor's new clothes" feel to it, as if it's trying to justify a lack of content.
My major problem is the idea that silent protagonists are the "ideal" protagonist. To me, that's like saying the "ideal" book should be written in second person so the reader can project their own emotions into a story. There are plenty of great stories that would be much better suited to having a vocal protagonist.
The only two examples I can think of for a well-executed silent protagonist are Chell from "Portal" and Jack from "Bioshock."
Chell was an effective narrative choice that allowed the real star of the show, GlaDOS, to take the spotlight. She's already been mentioned above.
In "Bioshock," the premise of the game is what to ask what morals you'd impose over an amoral society. Keeping Jack silent enhanced the choice system without breaking any walls. The character never gets the chance to talk directly to another character (one-way radios and tapes), and your character communicates entirely through his actions. After all, it was Andrew Ryan who said "We all make choices in life, but in the end, our choices make us."
If we look at "Half-Life 2" in comparison, the silence doesn't particularly enhance the game's experience. All it really does is continue the fact that Gordon Freeman doesn't speak in the original "Half-Life." In HL, it seems that this would have been more of a practical rather than aesthetic choice in order to save disc space and voice-acting money.
In contrast to Jack, Doctor Freeman has direct interaction with other characters. While this isn't a bad thing by any means, it can quickly break immersion. I always felt that the characters were talking "at" me rather than "with" me in the Half-Life series. In the original survival-action-game, this works just fine, but the style of the HL2 series isn't at all conducive to that choice. If HL2 was the first game of the series, I'd reckon the chance of having a vocal protagonist would be *much* higher.
Just my two cents on the deal.
My major problem is the idea that silent protagonists are the "ideal" protagonist. To me, that's like saying the "ideal" book should be written in second person so the reader can project their own emotions into a story. There are plenty of great stories that would be much better suited to having a vocal protagonist.
The only two examples I can think of for a well-executed silent protagonist are Chell from "Portal" and Jack from "Bioshock."
Chell was an effective narrative choice that allowed the real star of the show, GlaDOS, to take the spotlight. She's already been mentioned above.
In "Bioshock," the premise of the game is what to ask what morals you'd impose over an amoral society. Keeping Jack silent enhanced the choice system without breaking any walls. The character never gets the chance to talk directly to another character (one-way radios and tapes), and your character communicates entirely through his actions. After all, it was Andrew Ryan who said "We all make choices in life, but in the end, our choices make us."
If we look at "Half-Life 2" in comparison, the silence doesn't particularly enhance the game's experience. All it really does is continue the fact that Gordon Freeman doesn't speak in the original "Half-Life." In HL, it seems that this would have been more of a practical rather than aesthetic choice in order to save disc space and voice-acting money.
In contrast to Jack, Doctor Freeman has direct interaction with other characters. While this isn't a bad thing by any means, it can quickly break immersion. I always felt that the characters were talking "at" me rather than "with" me in the Half-Life series. In the original survival-action-game, this works just fine, but the style of the HL2 series isn't at all conducive to that choice. If HL2 was the first game of the series, I'd reckon the chance of having a vocal protagonist would be *much* higher.
Just my two cents on the deal.