34 replies to this topic

[AnnabelleRose]

I voted optional for many reasons.

The first, there are some who play mods that consider themselves "purists". May sound silly since they are playing a modded game, but that is what they enjoy, so more power fun to them.

Secondly, I am on one of the crappiest dialup severs ever. I also do not have a mega system like alot of people here have (with the new job, I may be upgrading). So I like mods like the "light" version of the Yasarna (I think I spell her diffrent every time) mod. Granted I downloaded and installed the larger version, but not everyone can do that.

Thirdly, options are always good imo. It lets the player have more power over what they want and don't want in their games (even with mods).

[Dunxco]

Redo his voice set, but try not to make it change too much. I really can't see Aran Linvail going all gruff-voiced. Keep him slick like a snake oil salesman.

[NiGHTMARE]

Secondly, I am on one of the crappiest dialup severs ever. I also do not have a mega system like alot of people here have (with the new job, I may be upgrading). So I like mods like the "light" version of the Yasarna (I think I spell her diffrent every time) mod. Granted I downloaded and installed the larger version, but not everyone can do that.

Like I said, the files involved in this really shouldn't be particularly large. The BG1NPC music package contains something like 30-35 minutes of audio, and yet is under 10 megabytes. I'd hardly call 10 megs a major amount even for dial-up users (unless your modem is a 14.4 rather than 28.8 or 56, in which case "WHY???" )

I doubt the Khadion NPC mod will have anywhere near that amount of audio, so there really ought to be no problem in this regards.

[SConrad]

I voted optional for many reasons.

The first, there are some who play mods that consider themselves "purists". May sound silly since they are playing a modded game, but that is what they enjoy, so more power fun to them.

One of the main aims of this mod is to try to make everything (and I mean every single aspect of the mod) fit seamlessly in the game. Granted, it may not happen, but we're sure going to try.

This naturally include audio, so the new audio will be as good in quality as possible - so that players won't notice the difference.

Secondly, I am on one of the crappiest dialup severs ever. I also do not have a mega system like alot of people here have (with the new job, I may be upgrading). So I like mods like the "light" version of the Yasarna (I think I spell her diffrent every time) mod. Granted I downloaded and installed the larger version, but not everyone can do that.

We'll definitely try to be nice to the dial-up users, but it isn't first priority. This mod is bound to be large in any case; we've got at least four characters needing to be voiced, we'll have new areas, etc. So it's going to be big, but not in league of the insanely huge mods out there.

Thirdly, options are always good imo. It lets the player have more power over what they want and don't want in their games (even with mods).

Options are good, yes. As are opinions, which is why I put out this poll.

Redo his voice set, but try not to make it change too much. I really can't see Aran Linvail going all gruff-voiced. Keep him slick like a snake oil salesman.

First priority is definitely to have the new voice fit his character. Anything else is out of the question.

I doubt the Khadion NPC mod will have anywhere near that amount of audio, so there  really ought to be no problem in this regards.

I wouldn't make any bets on that. When I say extensive voicing, I mean extensive voicing. Also, if there's a possibility for good quality music for his romance or other parts of the mod as well, I won't hesitate.

[jcompton]

Actors don't like being told "You'll be doing all this work... oh, but it's optional, so people may not hear it." You won't get the best available performance with that kind of meager inducement.

The existing Aran performance is hardly gripping, which makes it not too tragic to want to replace. I would argue in fact that he doesn't sound slick like a snake-oil salesman, he sounds rather too earnest and forthright. Maybe that's the brilliance of the treatment, but my guess is that the actor missed an edge that should have been requested.

That said, yeah, if suddenly he became a thug with a thick Hungarian accent, that would probably be non-ideal.

[SConrad]

Actors don't like being told "You'll be doing all this work... oh, but it's optional, so people may not hear it." You won't get the best available performance with that kind of meager inducement.

The existing Aran performance is hardly gripping, which makes it not too tragic to want to replace. I would argue in fact that he doesn't sound slick like a snake-oil salesman, he sounds rather too earnest and forthright. Maybe that's the brilliance of the treatment, but my guess is that the actor missed an edge that should have been requested.

That said, yeah, if suddenly he became a thug with a thick Hungarian accent, that would probably be non-ideal.

JC's got a point in the voice-acting thing.

So you're all for it then, Jason?

[jcompton]

If I was working on a project with this premise, yes, I would remorselessly recast the Linvail voice.

[khay]

Optional, although if there`s something worse than a Hungarian accent, it`s definitely a Romanian Dracula accent. -- in which case I`d rather see Aran as it is now.

[SConrad]

No Dracula-accent. I *promise*.

[jcompton]

This is some serious necromancy. But, it allows me to make an evergreen point!

A well-motivated voice actor can do hundreds of lines in a single day. It's not realistic to be "on" for every waking hour, but a good rule of thumb is to budget about one minute per line. So a character with 120 lines will require about two hours of studio time.

Of course, most of us have some appreciable setup/teardown time required in assembling our "studios", but Severn for IWD NPC was roughly 120 lines and I was able to do it in about the time I mentioned above, spread out over two days.

[jcompton]

I typically do anywhere between 4 and 10 readings of a line, depending on how confident I am in how the line is supposed to be read and how good I feel about the readings--for some very long lines, obviously, that can add up to more than a minute, while saying "What is it?" or "Ow!" or whatever simple soundset lines adds up to far less than a minute even if you do it a dozen times.

Anyway, I know mileage varies and some actors tend to be perfectionists about what they will even send in to the client, wanting to make sure they have the One Golden Take and redoing it over and over until they do. But I'm just saying, if you get somebody sufficiently motivated, they can easily knock through 100+ lines in a day, provided you're both on the same page about the character.

So, anyway, how about it, Cronbad? You gonna revoice Linvail or what?

[SConrad]

So, anyway, how about it, Cronbad? You gonna revoice Linvail or what?

If I find a suitable voice actor, yes. It would probably be optional for the player to install, though.

[Dharker]

I think -- and I'm quite passionate about this -- that in Baldur's Gate, NPCs should only be re-voiced if it really is of the highest possible standard, i.e., done in a studio (home or otherwise) with a decent microphone. I wouldn't want any one in my game to have voice acting recorded on a home computer microphone. It just sounds tinny and cheap and is profoundly immersion-ruining.