Main character: Voiced or non-voiced?

[227]

Pretty good? It was absolutely fucking superb in this regard, TW2 should be the template for role playing in Cyberpunk.

For the most part, but you were still a pretty famous dude, and Loc Muinne does give you the opportunity to affect the world on a larger scale. Figured I'd give myself an out to ward against the inevitable naysayers.

Combining what The Witcher 2 does with the random-nobody-ness of the first two Fallout games (sans how you can impact large parts of the world in those games) would be glorious, though.

 

[Suhiira]

Basically, this could be a story about struggling for a personal victory instead of one where you're everyone's savior. And if you're not everyone's savior, chances are they're not going to care one whit about your dramatic cutscene poses and voice lines. It'd make no sense in a world where you're practically irrelevant.

I'm not sure about this. If the game is about the character and their personal struggles I think things that make that character a person are more important.

 

[227]

I'm not sure about this. If the game is about the character and their personal struggles I think things that make that character a person are more important.

Not about the character, but your character. You should decide who you're playing as. Otherwise what's the point?

I think when people envision voice acting for the main character, they're thinking that they're going to be a Shepard-esque somebody who impacts everyone in profound ways and is therefore of interest to many. They've already made it clear that we're not going to be saving the world, though. It's doubtful that everyone will be hanging on our every word. It'd be like if a pizza delivery person started going into their tragic back story and you just want your pizza. Sometimes you're a random person and have to do your job without vomiting exposition at everything with a face.

 

[Suhiira]

Not about the character, but your character.

Ok, I should have said "your" vice "the"

But you do make a point. A voice acted main character is just great for some one predefined like Geralt or Shepard and while it can work for a build-your-own character it seldom feels quite right.

 

[Jimbo7ron]

Ideally if they are shooting for both, CDPR would do well to scout out talents among less expensive/well known voice actors...there is surprising potential even among modding community.

Plus always listening Baker/North/Bailey/Hale/and others in every other AAA title is becoming a bit tiresome.

This, this, this! I am so, so, so, so sick of their voices. It makes games and characters all feel the same and less special. I love Geralt in TW3 because I've never heard his voice in any other video games. More unknown voice actors really are the way to go, plus I can imagine they're more eager to give it all they've got and really do a solid performance because they may feel they have more to prove. There's not one voice actor I recognised in TW3 and it felt so refreshing and the game felt more unique because of it.

With that logic, you could as well have non-visable character

You may as well go the whole hog and just play a blank screen.

 

[Azriel7]

I am in the don't voice the protagonist group. However, I agree that we should NOT use famous people for VO for NPC's. I hate hearing the exact same voices in every game, go with people we have not heard before.

 

[Zagor-Te-Nay]

For non-voiced, I could see something in style of first person similar to Far Cry but with dialogue options. It could work though there would have to be more dynamic body language to avoid npc's standing like TES billboards.
Player could have freedom to walk away or do anything he wants during dialogue, to which npc could respond, prerecorded lines, to simulate that npc is "paying attention" like in Oxenfree.

 

[Suhiira]

I am in the don't voice the protagonist group. However, I agree that we should NOT use famous people for VO for NPC's. I hate hearing the exact same voices in every game, go with people we have not heard before.

Yeah, I sincerely doubt paying someone "famous" 2 to 10 times as much for voice over work is going to result in more then a handful, literally 1 to 5, of extra sales.

I've never, ever, heard anyone say "I've gotta buy this game because <insert name> did the voice-over work!"

 

[garayba]

i think non-voiced character is better because having a voice won't be what all people imagined their to sound like BUT ... cyberpunk 2077 needs to be voiced !. why ? because it's not TES and it's not fallout . cyberpunk 2077 will be like witcher 3 having cutscenes and be like a movie . non-voiced won't allow that . so i think CDPR have i challange here , HOW TO MAKE VOICED CHARACTER FOR MALE AND FEMALE AND BOTH SOUND GREAT FOR ANY TYPE OF PERSONALITY ?.. fallout 4 failed at that , so more recording is the only option OR ...... good luck you can do it !

 

[kofeiiniturpa]

cyberpunk 2077 needs to be voiced !. why ? because it's not TES and it's not fallout

It's not Witcher, Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Risen or Fallout 4 either. So it should be non-voiced. (see what I did there)

cyberpunk 2077 will be like witcher 3 having cutscenes and be like a movie

That's my personal nightmare regarding this aspect of the game.

 

[Hambi-X]

It's going to be very difficult to make created character both voiced and enough "my own" for me to feel like I'm actually role playing as well... myself. That was my tiny issue with Wittcher 3. I love Geralt dont get me wrong, but you just could never feel like it's actually "you" in this world, instead it was more of a "you as a Geralt", which isn't a bad thing, it's just a thing, thing that I dont really want in Cyberpunk 2077.

To make character both voiced and "your own" CDPR will have to build entire game and its plot around it. Mass Effect tried to do this but it all came down to being either a nice guy or an asshole, I havent played VMB yet and I'm currently still getting throu oryginal Deus Ex (and having absolute blast btw.), but the game that I actually know that did it right was Gothic series. That being said Ghotic's plot wasnt anything outstanding and strong plot is a thing that we all expect from CDPR.

Looking at all of this it simply seems impossible to make those 3 things (voiced protagonist, fully immersive role playing and strong plot) fuse all together. On the other hand that's what I thought after I heard that CDPR want to carry over Witcher 2 complex story telling and world changing consequences into the biggest open world in RPG genre, and they actually did pull it off, even if with some concessions.

 

[Suhiira]

I have to agree, I played as Geralt and, that was just fine, but I was never Gealt myself.

In spite of it's flaws at least with Fallout 4 I could pretty much "be" my character ... abet one with very VERY limited options.

 

[Zagor-Te-Nay]

I have to agree, I played as Geralt and, that was just fine, but I was never Gealt myself.

In spite of it's flaws at least with Fallout 4 I could pretty much "be" my character ... abet one with very VERY limited options.

Eh, Fallout IV is all together case in point of why NOT to go for voiced...if you're going along with wide range of customization/roleplaying options. Want to be an evil raider in Nuka Cola...too bad, you're stuck with "warm dad" voice ( It sounds downright comical).
Roleplaying as asian/black/hispanic?...too bad, you will look silly every time you open your mouth.

Voice plays a strong role in characterization...Geralt, John Marston, etc are on other side of the spectrum, CDPR's goal was completely opposite and they did it well.

It simply comes down of whether or not there will be a set protagonist background here.

 

[iCake]

In spite of it's flaws at least with Fallout 4 I could pretty much "be" my character ... abet one with very VERY limited options.

Bah! It was not long into the game when I started wondering why the hell we even have a dialogue system in that game. It would have been better off with just pre-designed cut-scenes. IMO, FO4 dialogue system is outright the worst of any RPG I've ever played, it's so bad that it's utterly pointless.

 

[Suhiira]

Bah! It was not long into the game when I started wondering why the hell we even have a dialogue system in that game. It would have been better off with just pre-designed cut-scenes. IMO, FO4 dialogue system is outright the worst of any RPG I've ever played, it's so bad that it's utterly pointless.

Bad, very bad I'll agree, but not totally pointless ... merely 90% ... since your only real choice most times was to accept the quest now or come back and accept it later. But there were a handful of times that wasn't the case.

But keep in mind Fallout 4 was really more of an action game then an RPG, lots of stuff to fight and stuff to do it with.

 

[iCake]

Bad, very bad I'll agree, but not totally pointless ... merely 90% ... since your only real choice most times was to accept the quest now or come back and accept it later. But there were a handful of times that wasn't the case.

A system that has little to no use IS pointless.

But keep in mind Fallout 4 was really more of an action game then an RPG, lots of stuff to fight and stuff to do it with.

More of a reason to have pre-designed cut-scenes in there.

 

[CyberBrett]

I am surprised by the amount of posters saying they would rather no VA for the main protagonist . To me that`s going backwards to the Nineties but lets find out .

 

[Rawls]

Voted for voiced. But probably will end up merging this with https://forums.cdprojektred.com/index.php?threads/main-character-voiced-or-non-voiced.124942/.

 

[CyberBobber]

Yes, of course. Its Story game, not RPG, its unbelievable how people cant know the difference between them even on 2019. Do you watch movies thinking you are the main character and you are role playing it? Thats some screwed up stuff, right there.

 

[sinister.sinner]

Talking about voiceed characters. I was playing Apex Legends all weekend and the voice actor of Mirage sounds exactly like male V in the E3 trailer.
He also did Ezio in the AC2 games.