Text vs. Voice Acting

This is a fairly simple question:

Should future Zelda games have voice acting, or should they keep the text, or both?

I know they already have some voice actors (for Link's grunts and the Postman's 'HEEEEYYY!' in TP etc.), but should it be done all out?


Personally, I think they should keep the text and not add any voices for the characters. It'll be awfully weird to have Link talking back to his companion or other characters (because it's only fair, that if other characters have voices, Link has to have one, too). And most likely, some things he says, or other what people say *will* sound annoying. Throughout the Zelda games, Link is mostly seen as the 'strong, silent type' and I think that helped earn the hearts of most gamers, breaking that might be bad <<.

Also, if something is hard to understand, text can be read over. However, voices will make you have to play most of the conversation over. Might be a waste of time. You can read and understand faster than you can listen and understand.

I totally agree with the point on keeping the text messages instead of voice acting, the thing about not knowing a charachters voice makes you be able to see yourself a bit in the charachter and that raises the gameplay really much I think.

They could do something like Oblivion. Have your character remain silent except for the grunts and stuff and have all the NPCs have voices.

Originally Posted by Skeletonband

They could do something like Oblivion. Have your character remain silent except for the grunts and stuff and have all the NPCs have voices.

I would like more that everyone is quiet for exampel, I don't want to hear navis voice in OoT, I mean how should it sound?
And who will translate all the speeching in the game?
I mean I don't want it to end up like in some animes that some english guy talking in a very silly tone.

In my opinion, voice acting would be horrible in any of the Zelda games. Maybe because I'm used to and like the text, I just think that voices will ruin the game. Zelda is a text kind of game, and I like it just the way it is.

I think this shows that Zelda is nearly perfect. People wouldn't like, or at least the people I know, changes to Zelda.

Originally Posted by Goran

I would like more that everyone is quiet for exampel, I don't want to hear navis voice in OoT, I mean how should it sound?
And who will translate all the speeching in the game?
I mean I don't want it to end up like in some animes that some english guy talking in a very silly tone.

True. It would sound weird if Link had some whiny nasaly voice or a real deep voice. Ha ha. Possibly Nintendo themselves would pick out the speakers for the English versions.

Originally Posted by Goran

I would like more that everyone is quiet for exampel, I don't want to hear navis voice in OoT, I mean how should it sound?
And who will translate all the speeching in the game?
I mean I don't want it to end up like in some animes that some english guy talking in a very silly tone.

They can solve the Navi issue by never having another Navi again. Likey? I think everyone would like that.

Translation... They just have different voice actors for different languages, silly. =P

I'd like to see some good voice actors, with different accents of course. We don't want any Sonic Adventure 2: Battle voiceovers, and no Battallion Wars 2 voices either. They were horrible imitations of different accents of different cultures.

Sure, you're going to have your silly Englishman, but he'll probably be a scientist or alchemist. I want Russian accents, Scottish accents, African accents, Asian accents, and so on.

Link can stay silent, for being the Strong, silent type and letting people feel that they are Link as well. (I feel I resemble Link pretty well, for I'm formidable while fighting and I don't talk a whole lot, instead I mind my own business and stay out of trouble.

I still don't like the idea to hear any kind of english voice acting in Zelda.
How will a goron sound?
How will a zora sound?
And how about the "bad guys" ?
Shall we just take them away like with Navi?

I still don't want to hear someone with a deep voice voice act for a goron or somebody with very evil and dark tone act for Ganon or any other main bosses, I don't care about their accents I think it still will sound silly if any with a scottish accent or maybe asian accent talks.

And how would it sound if there where voice acting for OoT?
Should you want to hear the Kokiri people talk with a children like voice?
I know there isn't any voice acting in OoT but in future zelda games maybe some Kokiri look alike will appear.
And the voice acting still has to be done good, becuse I don't think anyone sits in the chair and says, let's do some bad voice acting for Sonic or Battallion Wars 2, no they try to do some good voice acting and they fail what says same thing wont happen to the zelda games?

Originally Posted by Grumble Guru

Link can stay silent, for being the Strong, silent type and letting people feel that they are Link as well. (I feel I resemble Link pretty well, for I'm formidable while fighting and I don't talk a whole lot, instead I mind my own business and stay out of trouble.

I agree with you on that point though, one who never shall talk is Link, also kinda feel like I resemble to Link in that way, not that I ever do any fighting though.

INteresting topic. I would greatly perfer they keep using text as the main means of information/communication travel between the characters and Link ... mainly because Link is more of a character that YOU "roleplay" as, and if he was given some sort of distinct voice, it would take away from the authenticity of it being unique to you. It just gives it a more personal feel. And hey, it's working well, so why change it? It also gives it a more story-esque feel.

Not to mention ... it's fun to enter obscene file names, and see something like "Booger just got the light arrows!"

But then my sense of humor is unique, so my opinion may not always apply to the general gamer populous.

Why there aro so much people that as soon as they hear voice acting for Zelda they say "NO! Link should never talk!"? If the game has voice acting it can perfectly have a non-talking Link, and why mention games that have horrible voice acting? if you haven't got a chance to give voice acting to Zelda? (don't start on the CD-i now, because Nintendo didn't made that) There are many games that succeeded in voice acting, do you think Nintendo would get lame voice actors to speak in their games? Voice acting worked nice in Metroid, why can't the same happen in Zelda?
I think the best choice is to keep text, but have voice acting at the same time.

I hate the fact that we don't hear Link talk.

I think there should be both, kinda like MP3.

Originally Posted by Khao

Why there aro so much people that as soon as they hear voice acting for Zelda they say "NO! Link should never talk!"? If the game has voice acting it can perfectly have a non-talking Link, and why mention games that have horrible voice acting? if you haven't got a chance to give voice acting to Zelda? (don't start on the CD-i now, because Nintendo didn't made that) There are many games that succeeded in voice acting, do you think Nintendo would get lame voice actors to speak in their games? Voice acting worked nice in Metroid, why can't the same happen in Zelda?
I think the best choice is to keep text, but have voice acting at the same time.

Yeah, the voice acting in Corruption was faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnntabulous.
They handled the voices very well, and Samus still didn't talk, the way we like her. I feel like Samus when I play Metroid since she doesn't talk, and I'm a dude.

Alright, I'm hearing a lotta people complaining about how the next Zelda game should be different, and why can't character voice acting be the first step? Link will never need to talk in his adventures, but with voice acting I'd feel more emotion coming out of the game, making me want to keep on keepin' on.

I don't know why Goran refers to OoT, I mean, why does it matter? It's not like they're doing any kind of remake of OoT.

The other races... Hmm.
I'd like to see:
Gerudos with African voiceovers
Kokiri with child voiceovers (obviously)
Gorons with a deeper American voice (and proud-sounding)
Zoras with... I dunno, I'll think of something
Hylians with many varied European voices
Link with no voice (since he won't be talking)
Monsters just continue on howling and whatnot, I mean monsters don't really talk, save for TP's King Bulbin.
Ganondorf... I dunno

If somebody would help me out here... that would be great.

I think it would be better to have voice acting for the significant cut-scenes. Nintendo likes going over-the-top visually in dramatic cutscenes, but then they have you awkwardly reading chunks of text. The epic quality Nintendo wants to achieve would work better with that extra bit of polish.

But what would really make the biggest difference would be if Nintendo starts writing decent scripts for a change.

Originally Posted by scrooge07

In my opinion, voice acting would be horrible in any of the Zelda games. Maybe because I'm used to and like the text, I just think that voices will ruin the game. Zelda is a text kind of game, and I like it just the way it is.

I think this shows that Zelda is nearly perfect. People wouldn't like, or at least the people I know, changes to Zelda.

On what basis do you know or think voice-acting would ruin the game? You've never heard Zelda voice-acted before. And don't give me some stupid link to youtube saying "this is how awful Zelda would be with voice-acting."

Seriously, Zelda needs voice-acting. Otherwise, the next Zelda might be twice as good as OoT, but if it hasn't got VA, it'll never score more than a 9.0 from a modern reviewer.

For the slow ones, note that I said "modern" and that implies we aren't in the NES, SNES, N64 gaming era any longer.

The ending battles with Ganondorf in TP were so dramatic that I started to imagine that I was hearing Zelda calling the light spirits. I imagined how here voice might sound etc. If that scene had been voice-acted, it would have been so much more powerful.

I also agree with Hylian Dan, it might be better if only the cutscenes have the VA. But there should be more cutscenes than in TP. Everything apart from that should just have text. Also, while the cutscenes are playing, there should be NO TEXT.

One last thing - we aren't deaf.

You said that you could almost imagine that Zelda was calling the light spirits, you also could imagine how she would sound and that and it would be more powerful if that scene had voice-acting.
But again, the voice you imagined is just your imagination, what say that the developers think the same on how they all sound? They maybe use completley diffrent voice acting than the you imagined.
Sure it could go as it went with metroid, but what says it will go the same with zelda? Will the voice-acting be good with zelda just becuse it's a good game?
Still the answer is no, if they tried voice-acting and it actually will work then it's very good, but what if it's tottaly messed up?
Then will my imagination of all zelda games be forever lost and my gaming experience will be decreased in future zelda games.

I also have imagination how everyone in the zelda games sound and I don't want any voice-acting spoil that imagination for me.

I think it was released by Nintendo that they decided to make it text so that the character's voice would be represented by the players. I think that if they kept his name Link instead of changing it around, they would feel a little different about that, but I think that Nintendo would definitely keep it as text, and I don't think they'd do justice giving him a voice.

Originally Posted by Aeffles

I think it was released by Nintendo that they decided to make it text so that the character's voice would be represented by the players. I think that if they kept his name Link instead of changing it around, they would feel a little different about that, but I think that Nintendo would definitely keep it as text, and I don't think they'd do justice giving him a voice.

I honestly couldn't say it better myself.

Originally Posted by Goran

I honestly couldn't say it better myself.

I honestly know. ;D

Seriously though, *does research*

Can't find it, but I promise you it exists somewhere.

Originally Posted by Ganon the King

I also agree with Hylian Dan, it might be better if only the cutscenes have the VA. But there should be more cutscenes than in TP. Everything apart from that should just have text. Also, while the cutscenes are playing, there should be NO TEXT.

One last thing - we aren't deaf.

No, there needs to be text. I often can't hear what people say in games/movies and have to read it.

Personally, I'm fine with subtitles. The voice acting in Super Mario Sunshine made me wish no Zelda game ever had voice acting.

Also, I've thought up of what each character sounds like. It'd probably really hurt my enjoyment of the game if they are given a totally different voice.