Why do Men fail at acting?

[WorldCritic]

It's a known fact that Male Shepard completely lacks emotion. For some reason there's one particular line in the first game that sticks out in my mind. At one point early on Shepard says "I'll find some way to take him down." When Female Shepard says it, it sounds badass, but when Male Shep says it he kind of sounds like a douche.

 

[Sanguich]

While the generalization about men/women is retarded, if you said "women sound better than men IN GAMES WITH A CHOICE OF MALE/FEMALE LEAD CHARACTER", then yah, I tend to agree.

I don't think it says anything important about actors of any genders, I just default to female lead when given a choice.

I probably don't have a huge experience to draw from, but in Tony Hawk's Underground, Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Academy, Saints Row 2, and Mass Effect 1/2, I found the female lead actresses to be much better.

It could have something to do with my being male, thus the female voices are slightly more alien to me and their flaws less obvious. Or maybe I can just imagine they sound sexy.

Or maybe both Jedi and ME feature Jennifer Hale, who I've had the most MASSIVE crush on since Knights of the Old Republic. She unbalances this whole thing by being my favorite voice actor period.

On a related note, I will never forgive Team Ninja for not having her in Other M. She was Samus in Metroid Prime! I have numerous problems with M, but missing that obvious choice was the worst.

 

[Kiju]

I admit, a lot of male voice actors aren't so good.

But not all of them. The problem is voice actors are just that...actors. If they're not good actors, then they can't do voice acting either. At least, the majority anyway. I can't act worth shit, but I can pitch my voice to cover several emotions if I wanted to. Often thought of getting into voice acting as a career...

 

[Gabriel Xollan]

Billy Zane is the lord of all things good voice acting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MspKqPTlTY if you also want a comparison of good male voice acting and ameture.

 

[Cheesus333]

Go play Saint's Row 2, or at least listen to the male voice with the English accent.

His acting kicked ass. Or was it just his accent..?

"You look different, playa. You done something with-"
"I AIN'T DONE SHIT TO MY HAIR!"

It was both. You can't fail when you're an east London gangster in an American metropolis ;D

 

[JeanLuc761]

I don't understand why people have this notion that the female Shepard voice is doing a wonderfully fantastic job. Adequate would be the word I'd use. Pretty much the same way I'd describe the talent of the male voice actor.

In fact, I'd even go so far as to say that the female Shepard does a worse job in my view as any of her attempts to be "A renegade" just remind me of women I knew in the Army who often presented a similar face as a front. I hear some of those lines and I can't help but feel like it's just a little girl playing at being a tough guy because it's expected.

I fully agree. Jennifer Hale is a fantastic voice actress in a lot of her work, but in Mass Effect I thought she was merely competent. My problem with FemShep is exactly the same as yours in that Hale doesn't sound the slightest bit natural when she's putting on that "tough chick" voice. Meer, while more stoic, at least has a voice that feels natural.

Uhm.. We do? You're picking a horrible example. Mass Effect isn't known for it's godly voice acting, y'know.
And honestly, Male Shepard is fucking hilarious.

Uh, Mass Effect IS known for its godly voice acting.