Robert Englund, Mark Hamill, and Loads More Announced for Master of Orion

[Amaror]

I don't know, but everytime a company brags with the great voice-actors they have for their stuff it just feels to me like they don't know what their doing with the game.

I've been following it since it was announced, and with every bit of information they've released, it's clear they really just want to do their own thing and are going to make their own game; what made Master of Orion great in the first place be damned.

I can't get the link to work right now, but check the Steam forums and the game's announcement trailers. They turned the news report between turns into an awful failed attempt at comedy that is sure to get old fast.

I just watched the voice-actors trailer. I personally liked the part were he said we should imagine the Terran Khanate as Vikings. You know instead of an actual Mongol Khanate that makes much more sense and is the basis for the name of the faction.

 

[Abomination]

Uhm... alpha centauri was better then beyond earth because alpha centauri was a better game overall... the voice overs? Really? Those little blurbs you got when you researched a new tech or when contacting another nation? Those where the things that sold the game for you?

Note that he explicitly said "one of the things", not that it was the only thing. And you can see exactly the same problem with most recent 4X games. GalCiv, Endless Space, Star Ruler, Space Empires (not so recent), Beyond Earth, and many others are perfectly functional games, but for the most part they just feel incredibly bland and soulless. Master of Orion is remembered so fondly because it had actual personality rather than just being a spreadsheet with pretty graphics. Similarly, Alpha Centauri was certainly a good game mechanically, but it wouldn't be anywhere near as well remembered if it had cut out all the lore and flavour. If all they've done for MOO4 is simply hire a bunch of expensive names, that obviously won't be enough to make it a good game, but the fact they're putting effort in is a good indication that they actually care about making the game fun and not just functional.

Thank you, Kahani, you grasped exactly what I was getting at.

Sound design in a game can spell wonders for the atmosphere and it's foolish to look at expensive voice actors as a money sink. From the dialogue of Homeworld: Cataclysm "At least the beast doesn't pretend to be righteous!" plus it's distinctive vwuuUUuuum when you zoom out on the tactical map, to the narrator of the Dungeon Keeper games, or Bastion, HK-47 of SWToR.

Voice acting can add so much to a game. It gives it that extra level of culture and soul, it turns something from a functional game into a cult classic.

Hell, even Tidus' laugh from FFX - as horrible as it was - is still hilariously memorable.

 

[Demagogue]

Having good voice acting doesn't need to be at the expense of good game play. In fact good voice acting can very much be a sign of good game play, as it shows the studio is dedicated to the production of the game and making it top tier. Are some voice actors expensive compared to others, yes of course. However, look at the list of actors they have in there, none of these folks are 'new' actors turned voice actors. They are all people who have been doing it for a while I believe and do a very good job when they do. There is a reason people remember Mark Hamill's joker, or John de Lancie's Discord... because they do extremely good jobs at them, and they put some of themselves into those characters. I would expect nothing less from them here. Hell even the flops of a game Quantum Conundrum was, I still enjoyed it because John de Lancie was guiding me through it.

Voice Acting and Sound in general can go a long way from making a good game great, and a great game last a life time.

As someone else said, it is all a matter of personal taste, but I for one am glad to see WG Labs spending the effort to do VA well, it gives me hope for the rest of the game.

 

[The Almighty Aardvark]

I read this title three times before actually clicking on it, and every single time I could have sworn it said "Master of Onion"

 

[dohnut king]

They should sell a version for $59.99 that doesn't include MOO3. I for one, would gladly pay an extra ten dollars not to have that game on my hard drive.

 

[Vendor-Lazarus]

I hope they make it more like MoO3 than 2. MoO 2 is way too overrated.

I actually recognize a few of those names. Could be good.
Though as another poster or two already said, actual good voice actors would probably cost less.

 

[Veylon]

I'm far, FAR, more concerned about what they're gonna do about the ship combat system.
Is it going to be a tactical affair like it MoO 2, or the usual boring autocalc "cinematic" most other 4x space games use?

I sincerely hope it's the former. I don't need a deep focus on it like in XCOM or Total War (MoO has always been more about strategic aspect), but I definitely want to see it be a part of the game.

I'd actually be happy with the system from MoO 1, minus the cap on designs and plus the ability to split stacks. Space Empires ought to be able to amass fleets with hundreds or even thousands of ships in them.

 

[sneeky033]

NERF PSILONS!

 

[Zipa]

I really hope they don't screw this up and turn it into MoO3 all over again.

 

[Kahani]

I actually recognize a few of those names. Could be good.
Though as another poster or two already said, actual good voice actors would probably cost less.

OK, I didn't recognise most of the names so I just did a quick check. Every single person on that list is a well established voice actor. So I'm a bit confused why people keep complaining about getting celebrities instead of "real" voice actors. Sure, having completely unknown voice actors would be cheaper, but there's a reason people become well known and more expensive as voice actors - because they are the good ones.