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Aonuma: Link Should Keep Quiet

14.08.2010

Aonuma: Link Should Keep Quiet on Nintendo gaming news, videos and discussion

Legend of Zelda protagonist Link has always been near enough mute, and aside from a few grunts and giggles it likely won't change.

Whilst the Hylian has always embraced a world where fellow non-playable-characters speak through text, there hasn't been voice acting in a mainline Zelda game until now. Upcoming Wii game Skyward Sword isn't going to set a new trend, says series producer Eiji Aonuma in an interview with Nintendo Power.

Personally, I don't want to have Link speak in the game. We haven't had him talk at all up to this point. It's part of the series history. It would just, to me, break the image of Link to have him speak.

In terms of other characters, if Link never talks and everybody else in the game is chatting and whatnot I also think that's sort of an off mixture, so it's not something that, to be honest, I've really thought I want to be superactive about or I've really pressed for it. It just hasn't come up to me personally.

Whilst Link has been ruled out, could supporting characters have a little more personality? Bad voice acting can dent a gameplay experience, but good can add a whole new layer of depth and emotion.

For now though, it looks like our peepers will be doing the taking in the next Zelda game.

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JoshSL 14.08.2010#1

Aonuma has never played Persona.

Or any decent modern RPG with a silent protagonist.

All of these games still manage to have an abundance of quality voice acting that works perfectly, even with the silent protag.
He seriously doesn't get it. People aren't asking for Link to talk, not ever. People just want Zelda to have voice acting now.

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Marzeee 14.08.2010#2

I agree with him.

Squidboy 14.08.2010#3

Link should forever remain silent [.] However, Aonuma's comments regarding others talking while Link doesn't, are very annoying as well as disappointing.

The Zelda franchise has been stagnating, and this new game doesn't look fresh at all in my eyes. It may be using Motion Plus in clever ways, but that should be deemed standard especially given how Wii owners were cheated out of a game built around Wii's controls.

So where are the dramatic changes that many Nintendo fans were led to believe this game would implement?

If this game fails, Nintendo fails. If that should happen due to an overriding feeling of "been here done that, so many times", Nintendo need to seriously consider repositioning Eiiji Aonuma within the company.

Anyone who fails with this game given it's importance, is not the right man to front Zelda Team, and certainly not a appropriate successor to Miyamoto.

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Sukisan-Ed 14.08.2010#4

Never Break What Link Is Period change is good

" Sometimes "

but a Change like that would not be a good thing for Link

Sure Voice action for the Other Supporting Characters

but Link shall forever and always be.... Silent Smilie

JoshSL 14.08.2010#5

Squidboy said:
Nintendo need to seriously consider repositioning Eiiji Aonuma within the company.
Anyone who fails with this game given it's importance, is not the right man to front Zelda Team, and certainly not a appropriate successor to Miyamoto.

I agree with your post, except for this.

Miyamoto is the one holding his franchises back, not Aonuma.
Aonuma is the one who is pushing for the Zelda series to have a more interesting plot, and we all know how Miyamoto feels about games having depth.

Miyamoto even hesitated and is seriously considering not orchestrating the music for this game. If he heard people talking about voice acting, he would surely laugh it off entirely.

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Darkflame 14.08.2010#6

Big no to any voiceacting to me.

All of these games still manage to have an abundance of quality voice acting that works perfectly,

Nope, always felt akward to me.

I've played games where voiceacting works, but its normally either in voice over (Sands of Time) or kept mostly to mostly short cut-scenes (Eternal Darkness).

Works well in Comedy games too (Monkey Island 3, Sam and Max)

But big blocks of serious text in game dialogs? No. I just hear two or three words, have all ready read the the whole sentence, and skip to the next.
I read far too fast for voice-acting to ever be of benefit. Its just annoying.

The Zelda franchise has been stagnating, and this new game doesn't look fresh at all in my eyes.

If thats the case voice-acting wont change it at all.

New -gameplay- is needed,or at least a breaking of the predictable play order. We saw this in some small ways in TP, but we need it vastly more.

Adding voice-acting just is "me too" slamming some extra media layer into the game without really adding anything to the game itself.

We do need a big shake-up. They nicely vary the graphics, imho. And the controls look exactly what we want. (and NO we wern't cheated out of it with TP, the technology wasn't affordable back then).

But what we need is a game where we dont know whats around the next corner. We need to not know when theres a boss, when or where theres a massive dungeon.
Zelda needs more of the *unexpected*

( Edited 14.08.2010 13:41 by Darkflame )

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jump_button (guest) 14.08.2010#7

he right but maybe anyone around him maybe not same should happen with FF games rpgs are not what they use to be from

JoshSL 14.08.2010#8

Darkflame said:

Nope, always felt akward to me.

That's just you. Either you haven't played any RPGs with decent voice acting, or voice acting just isn't for you.

I love voice acting in my games, and my opinion is just as valid as yours. As long as there's an option to turn voice acting off, why are you so against it? What about the large number of fans who find that the experience would benefit from it?

( Edited 14.08.2010 13:53 by SuperLink )

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Angus 14.08.2010#9

If I want an interesting plot I will watch a film or read a book. In a game I just want something basic to link exciting pieces of gameplay together. The stories and dialogue of both the DMC and MGS series are abysmal yet they do a good job of linking me from one stage to the next so I'm fine with it. Even Resident Evil is terrible in that department, but they;re some of my favourite games. In most games (with the exception of good RPGs) I consider an entertaining story as a bonus (like in NMH), and couldn't really care less about the quality.

Marzeee 14.08.2010#10

Everyone's opinions are valid here. Smilie

There is no wrong or right. It's just a preference. I also wouldn't like to see voice acting in a Zelda game. Ultimately, it's up to the developers to decide on whether or not to do it.

( Edited 14.08.2010 14:08 by Marzy )

Cheesing It Up 14.08.2010#11

Hmm, it sounds like they're trying too hard to keep the Zelda games consistent, but really it just leads to them being outdated.

The Zelda games used to be pioneers for the new, but they really need another reinvention now. Skyward Sword was supposed to be the reinvention, but I guess we'll just have to wait and see how it turns out.

Angus 14.08.2010#12

Cheesing it up said:
The Zelda games used to be pioneers for the new, but they really need another reinvention now. Skyward Sword was supposed to be the reinvention, but I guess we'll just have to wait and see how it turns out.

If it controls as well as the sword games in Wii Sports Resort then I can see this being a really refreshing experience. The whole "Hah, hah, Hyah!" combo has dominated Zelda games for the past while now, this looks like it will shake up sword fighting at least.

crackedthesky 14.08.2010#13

Doesn't "there's never been voice acting in a Zelda game, until now" imply that Skyward Sword has voice acting? Because Aonuma clearly says it doesn't...

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JoshSL 14.08.2010#14

justonesp00lturn said:
Doesn't "there's never been voice acting in a Zelda game, until now" imply that Skyward Sword has voice acting? Because Aonuma clearly says it doesn't...

Ness.

Up until now means nothing.
(That is all)

( Edited 14.08.2010 15:32 by SuperLink )

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Martin_ 14.08.2010#15

There should be a 'dislike' button for developer quotes. Way to keep on keepin' on, Aonuma!

Satoshi 14.08.2010#16

I agree with SuperLink, Link shouldn't have a voice but I don't see why everyone else can't have a voice, it makes the game seem much more epic if all the characters talk.

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Sheena 14.08.2010#17

It's been too long for Link to suddenly have a voice, yus. I've always dreaded that the day would come when they change that. But I wouldn't mind if other characters had voices. I mean... it's not like Link talks even in text, so it wouldn't be THAT much of a difference. Not to me anyways. It'd be nice to have voices in the coming LoZ games, yes, but not for Link.
I even cringe everytime there's a trailer for a fake LoZ movie, for that exact reason. It's too late to change it, keep him mute plx.

Martin_ 14.08.2010#18

To be fair, they could very easily make everyone else talk. If they didn't do a bad job of it, then it wouldn't sound 'off'. Valve did that exact thing, what, 12 years ago? To this day Gordon Freeman hasn't spoken a single word. He probably even has less panting sounds and whatnot, too. That game also has a much more detailed plot.

It just seems like a mix of backwardness, laziness, and stubbornness that keeps Zelda following all the tried and tested Zelda criteria. Do dungeons, collect small keys, collect mostly all the same weapons you used in every other Zelda, fight very familiar bosses, and don't forget those heart pieces, y'all!

No voices was excusable on cartridge media. Ever since they switched to discs they've been struggling and failing to come up with a decent reason. Didn't TP even still just use a MIDI soundtrack? Get with the times, you fools. There are SNES games that have Dolby Pro Logic soundtracks in MIDI.

Azuardo 15.08.2010#19

The Zelda series needs a MASSIVE kick up the arse and from what I've seen of SS, it doesn't really look to be creating anything mind blowing. It was said to be something that really changes Zelda, but the whole motion plus thing isn't really that amazing. It's great, but I just hope they reveal something else that shakes it up because Zelda has become too samey, predictable and easy. One to one sword swinging action will make it fun, but it needs more than that.

A free roaming world, non-linear gameplay, lots of interesting characters that you can build relationships with, lots of minigames and sidequests. Zelda has this, but it could be expanded on so much more, and then new things need to be brought in.

Voice acting I think should be given a try. It's clearly not necessary to make the player relate to the characters or feel what they're feeling, but with good quality voice acting, it can really bring Zelda up to date and give it a freshness. I really thought the voice acting was great in Persona 4 which SL mentioned, and the way you could build relationships with characters was something that should be in more games. If Zelda had features like that, it could really be something. To be able to give Link the choice to do certain things and be friends with you you want him to be friends with, and get different rewards for it, or end up having a different safe house. Just random ideas that I think could work well in Zelda.

And of course a fresh new story that really makes the player want to save the land and the people in it, like MM.

I know it's early days, but I hope there's more to SS than what we've seen so far.

TAG 15.08.2010#20

I want the Zelda games to have voice acting, but I'm terrified Nintendo will mess it up. It seems like half the time Nintendo peek out of their old man shell, they screw something up. The Wii's online service is mostly sub par and in some areas almost unusable (Smash Bros?). Samus's voice and personality seem like it will be a hindrance to "Other M", rather than enhancing it (I hope I'm wrong). Orchestrating Mario Galaxy 2 had to be fought for because Miyamoto didn't really want to fuss with it.

I want good voice acting in Zelda games. Not from Link himself, but from the world around him. Nintendo have the resources easily, and they are almost guaranteed to make their money back. Just do it right!

And now, dialog done right in a game featuring a silent protagonist (no need to watch the whole thing if you don't want to. Skip around a bit if you're short on time or have a short attention span):

( Edited 15.08.2010 07:53 by TAG )

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meeto_0 15.08.2010#21

Well I have written on these post several times that the zelda franchise has been stalling for a while.
Its weird with zelda games because Im more critical of this then with other sequels like RE, MGS.

But RE 4 was a perfect example of refinement making a huge difference. The over the shoulder camera and other tweaks made the game so enjoyable. Especially with the wii controls.

Zelda needs refinement. Town need to feel like big complex communities (like final fantasy towns, not overworld) Bosses needed to move and attack organically.

Secret treasures and side missions need to offer upgrades not ruppees.

Voice acting would be good but only if there was an interesting story and dialogue to match. Nintendo have no experience in this so I cant see it being executed well.
If it isnt exectuted well you end up with two scenarios: OKAMI or Trauma center where your skipping (or unable to) the boring childish dialogue. Or rolling your eyes at the trite MGS puts together. Hours of shit dialogue.

As for the above poster. Valve are a rare company that really know how to put together dialogue.

( Edited 15.08.2010 12:03 by meeto_0 )

Azuardo 15.08.2010#22

Yeah, I don't think there'd be any point to adding voice acting if we're gonna get the same Link/Ganon/Zelda shit we've had for years.

That's why I think we need another Majora's Mask type game where there's a different sort of evil that can truly turn the land into pure darkness and the people being transformed into monsters or something. The player should feel for these people losing their loved ones and actually want to try to save them.

Maybe I love MM too much, but but for me, there hasn't been a Zelda game quite like it for the longest time. It was different to what we usually got in the franchise, and the story was brilliant. It's proof that Nintendo really can come up with a great story in a fantastic game if they're given the freedom to do it.

Wind Waker is another that turned the tables a bit and brought a whole new freshness to Zelda. And of course, the Oracles games are probably the best 2D Zelda games made.

It makes me think that perhaps Capcom should be hired for helping make a 3D Zelda. I would certainly be all for a completely different sort of Zelda to what we're used to, with a dark deep storyline.

It's one of Nintendo's pride and joy series, so I can understand why they probably wouldn't want to mess about with it, but I think the sales of Twilight Princess in Japan show that people are getting fed up of the same old, same old now. But if they want to change things, then they might aswell go all out on it and bring in top developers with experience in creating quality storylines, with quality music and voice acting, and quality gameplay. The Zelda series deserves that.

crackedthesky 16.08.2010#23

I'm not sure how I feel about Link talking. I mean, he already makes a ton of noises, and has sounded consistent throughout the series, despite being played by numerous people. I don't think having him talk would be too big of a deal.
The issue I foresee is that it means a lot of extra work going into the game on a lot of levels. There's also the fact that Link would sound different instantly to the English-speaking audiences, because the guy who plays him is Japanese. They'd have to get an American counterpart, make essentially two scripts for the game and do dubbing for different locations, etc. It's nothing too huge, but I guarantee a lot of people would be disappointed, either by the acting or the scripting or what have you.
Having everyone but Link talk might also be strange. It has worked in the past, but it has also failed. In Halo, for example, Master Chief's silence was meant to help the character feel like they're in his shoes. A lot of people, myself included, didn't get that feeling. Instead, he just felt cold and unresponsive; during cutscenes, he felt more like a part of the background than the main character of the game.
Meanwhile, I think the system they have now is fine. Voice acting can work very well for a game series. But so can text.
I don't know. The Zelda series is becoming dated, and there are a few things Nintendo could do to break the mold a little bit. Voice acting is an option that should always be on the table.

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Lynk 16.08.2010#24

Link should never talk. The silent hero role fits him too well, and I have no problem with that, but trying to make excuses for reading text instead of having optional VO is like fighting to keep driving a Robin Reliant when we have hover cars. It is the future: look at Half-Life, Mass Effect and countless others that have pulled it off perfectly.

I can just imagine what Link would say in this situation though: "But, but Samus did it Smilie "

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crackedthesky 16.08.2010#25

Sometimes text is perfect for games, though. It's not archaic; if anything, it can bring a sense of literature to a game. Especially a lot of RPGs; when it really comes down to it, nearly every RPG owes a lot to things like Dungeons and Dragons and Tolkein, and the literary aspect that comes with the game being text-based just plain works for the scenario. Voice acting is great if you're going for a cinematic effect. But text is great if you're going for a literary one. Saying that one is dated or not as good rather than just looking at them as two different approaches isn't right, in my opinion.

Besides, no modern game ever got Resident Evil'd because of text. Bad voice acting can destroy a game. Text rarely has that effect (with the rare exceptions, and most of them being very old. "Congraturation, this is happy end!")

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