Well, mostly that dialogue written by a Japanese writer often sounds awkward when translated into English and delivered by an English-speaking voice actor.Strain42 said:I play a lot of Atlus games, and one of the things I hear most often is something along the lines of "I wish Atlus would include a dual audio option. I want the original Japanese voices."
Now let me ask something. What exactly does that mean?
Thoughts? (from anyone, not just people who prefer Japanese acting)
Sometimes a skilled writing staff or very skilled voice actor can make it work, but more often than not the lines just sound... odd. Strange. Stilted. Sort of like a audio uncanny valley.
In the original Japanese, I can hear the emotional inflection of the character, but I cannot understand the actual words, and must rely on subtitles. I can infer a more natural delivery and take emotional cues from the voice actor. So for me, it's easier to be immersed in the game. Even if the Japanese voice actor isn't particularly talented, I can't actually tell because most of the 'acting' aside from general emotional state is being done in my own head.
Does that pretty much answer your question?
Oh, and for the record, Atlus is one of the few game studios where I don't have an issue with a lack of Japanese audio. The American dialogue team is really, really good at Atlus. I love most of their standard voice cast.
Certain other games... less so.
Anime... I'll take subbed, thanks. Except for Slayers and Evangelion.