Your thoughts on 'mute' protaganists

[Elonas]

In honesty, I really don't mind it when they don't make it blatently obvious the protagonis is mute. For example if the said protagonist is in a conversation with someone, and the other person in the diologue is talking, pausing looking at you blankly, then continues talking as if you have said something. But if the whole 'mute' thing is done well, then I have no problems with it.

 

[Christopher Waldron]

In some areas of the game silence annoys me, boss fights mostly, I'd at least expect some terrified screams and pants wetting.

That must be some pretty extreme pant wetting if it actually makes noise. hehe

Imagine a steaming kettle situation xD

 

[ntnimara]

Link is a great example.. I hope they never give him a voice (besides the grunts and yells)

Likewise similar is Samus Aran's case I believe, although in the latest game apparently they changed that...

But if you look at other games such as Morrowind and Oblivion, they have essentially "silent heros"... then again, your hero's have no character really, while Link or Gordon do have


I haven't really played all through the Half-Life series, so I don't know bout Freeman much, but in Link's case, though the guy never really says anything except grunts and yells, there is a lot of body language and facial expressions.. this has traditionally given Link character.. Also the music score helps... for example when link opens his chests and gains new items.. the music conveys some emotions to you, much like his facial expressions..

dunno.. I love mute characters..

Or even the Nameless hero from Gothic.. he certainly isn't mute, but he's got a fairly blank personality that is possible for you to fill in with your own attitudes.. He's a likeable guy on the overall.. and with the gameplay you fill in his character the way you like it.

 

[Galad]

A good topic.

If the game pulls you in well, like Half-Life, it's a plus to have a mute protagonist. It lets you stay more immersed in the game athmosphere. There's not that many games that pull off the "talkative protagonist" bit well, only Max Payne comes to mind immediately.

While if the game is a generic shooter/RPG, the silent protagonist will only make me quit it faster.

 

[The Fork of Truth]

"That mute shit was gettin' old." - The Saints Leader, Saints Row 2.

I don't personally care for silent protagonists, at least not in RPGs. I like what Mass Effect does - you choose the general sentiment of what you want Shepard to say, rather his/her exact words. It makes the response less predictable. I think a system where you choose where you want the conversation to go is immeasurably better than selecting from a list like this:

1. Of course I'll help you find your wedding ring. Would you like to eat this cake I baked while you wait?
2. Hmmm...I'll get back to you on that.
3. No, now give me all your money before I kill your dog, you worthless piece of dirt.
4.

 

[Christopher Waldron]

A good topic.

If the game pulls you in well, like Half-Life, it's a plus to have a mute protagonist. It lets you stay more immersed in the game athmosphere. There's not that many games that pull off the "talkative protagonist" bit well, only Max Payne comes to mind immediately.

While if the game is a generic shooter/RPG, the silent protagonist will only make me quit it faster.

I agree completely about how much the game pulls in you as a player effects how you feel about this. For example, being a skateboarder I found that the silent protaganist thing worked wonderfully in the 'Skate' series as I instantly tried to project as much as myself on to character as possible.