Putting the 'role' back in role-playing games since 2002.
Donate to Codex
Good Old Games
  • Welcome to rpgcodex.net, a site dedicated to discussing computer based role-playing games in a free and open fashion. We're less strict than other forums, but please refer to the rules.

    "This message is awaiting moderator approval": All new users must pass through our moderation queue before they will be able to post normally. Until your account has "passed" your posts will only be visible to yourself (and moderators) until they are approved. Give us a week to get around to approving / deleting / ignoring your mundane opinion on crap before hassling us about it. Once you have passed the moderation period (think of it as a test), you will be able to post normally, just like all the other retards.

Colony Ship update #41: begun the closed beta has

Vault Dweller

Commissar, Red Star Studio
Developer
Joined
Jan 7, 2003
Messages
28,024
Forgive my forgetfulness, but are voice-overs/voice-work planned for any of the NPCs in the game?

I know it might be a big task, but giving at least the VIP NPCs a voice would be awesome, kind of like the fallouts.

Vault Dweller Elhoim
Not planned at the moment as it's an expensive, time-consuming project due to the number of notable NPCs. The Pit alone has 16 NPCs with portraits, so overall we're probably looking at 60-70 NPCs with portraits (AoD has 59 which doesn't cover all notable NPCs). That's a lot of voiceovers to manage (finding the right voices, requesting changes, etc)
 

Butter

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Oct 1, 2018
Messages
7,523
A good portrait can be just as effective as full voice acting when it comes to creating a memorable character. AoD has quite a few of those.
 

Verylittlefishes

Sacro Bosco
Patron
Joined
Sep 14, 2019
Messages
4,731
Location
Oneoropolis
A good portrait can be just as effective as full voice acting when it comes to creating a memorable character. AoD has quite a few of those.

Completely agree, good writing + portrait = instant voice in your head.
ageofdecadence_14.jpg
 

Vault Dweller

Commissar, Red Star Studio
Developer
Joined
Jan 7, 2003
Messages
28,024
what if you just make it possible to add voice rather than voice itself?
Takes time to add it, plus testing, fixing problems, etc. A lot of work for very little, possibly zero gain. Adding your own portrait, for example, is something that every player can do as finding portraits online is very easy. Adding voiceovers for 60 characters isn't.
 

Commissar Draco

Codexia Comrade Colonel Commissar
Patron
Joined
Mar 6, 2011
Messages
20,856
Location
Привислинский край
Insert Title Here Strap Yourselves In Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Divinity: Original Sin 2
Voice overs mean no changes to dialogue or easy made expansions and its only pays off when done with HUGE BUDGET too, Even Bethpizda could only afford to hire Sean Bean and Patrick Stewart for main roles and voiced everybody else by some schmucks which gave all wood elves same f...t voice. I don't see how small ITS can give all 60 NPCc full high quality voice over. Moreover I would prefer if Comrade Commissar Dwelierski would motivate his team to work on optimization of engine and general polish instead so we avoid another good game running on shit bugged engine not to mention that people who hate to read won't buy this game even if you made full voiced PCs Fallout 4 style.
 

Daedalos

Arcane
The Real Fanboy
Joined
Apr 18, 2007
Messages
5,559
Location
Denmark
Forgive my forgetfulness, but are voice-overs/voice-work planned for any of the NPCs in the game?

I know it might be a big task, but giving at least the VIP NPCs a voice would be awesome, kind of like the fallouts.

Vault Dweller Elhoim
Not planned at the moment as it's an expensive, time-consuming project due to the number of notable NPCs. The Pit alone has 16 NPCs with portraits, so overall we're probably looking at 60-70 NPCs with portraits (AoD has 59 which doesn't cover all notable NPCs). That's a lot of voiceovers to manage (finding the right voices, requesting changes, etc)

I can understand that and perfectly reasonable. But what I was talking about, was maybe just adding a very select few key and central NPCs (1 or 2 maybe 3) with having a good memorable voice, similar to something like the older RPGs that were also stuck with very tight budgets.
 

Goral

Arcane
Patron
The Real Fanboy
Joined
May 4, 2008
Messages
3,552
Location
Poland
Last edited:

Verylittlefishes

Sacro Bosco
Patron
Joined
Sep 14, 2019
Messages
4,731
Location
Oneoropolis
A good portrait can be just as effective as full voice acting when it comes to creating a memorable character. AoD has quite a few of those.
20952.jpg

Yes. I just can't imagine anyone doing justice to Miltiades. Also, good VO is very rare and way more expensive than it is worth.

Do voiceover like in Primordia or Oxenfree (the only good thing about that one tbh) or don't do it at all.
 

Infinitron

I post news
Staff Member
Joined
Jan 28, 2011
Messages
97,228
Codex Year of the Donut Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 A Beautifully Desolate Campaign Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Pathfinder: Kingmaker Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth
Iron Tower would probably need to get a publisher to do voice acting. They don't have any experience with it and they can't afford to spend any resources to gain that experience. It's not something you want to half-ass.
 

AdolfSatan

Arcane
Joined
Dec 27, 2017
Messages
1,871
20952.jpg

Excuse me, but did I hear you mention voice-acting? You see, I'm a promoter, and I deal with the finest voice actors of the market. Unfortunately, due to how much of a bargain our organization represents for our customers, powerful entrepreneurs at the Actor's Guild have been straining to keep us outside of the loop. I could solve this by pleading to the higher-ups, but in order to do so I'd need some money to accommodate ourselves, and to get said money we need to get paid.

Thus, we're offering our work on the side at a reduced rate to those kind enough to give us an opportunity. You won't find a better price for such a quality nor eagerness to take your project to the next level. So what do you say if you let me introduce you to these lovely and talented people? We're all currently hanging out at a nearby house.
 

Goral

Arcane
Patron
The Real Fanboy
Joined
May 4, 2008
Messages
3,552
Location
Poland
Vault Dweller
Will we get a cool manual like for Grimoire or at least in-game-help (F1) like in AoD? Also, I hope you will add those cool skill descriptions, e.g. for spears at level 1 it was "you cooked a chicken on a spit once".
 

Daedalos

Arcane
The Real Fanboy
Joined
Apr 18, 2007
Messages
5,559
Location
Denmark
Iron Tower would probably need to get a publisher to do voice acting. They don't have any experience with it and they can't afford to spend any resources to gain that experience. It's not something you want to half-ass.

You're probably right. Even if it was pro-bono freelancer quality stuff. A man can dream, though.
 
Joined
Nov 3, 2016
Messages
425
Location
Georgie's shitter
Vault Dweller - I would like to apply for the beta, if possible at this point. I'm probably the oldest shithead on this forum (70), same age as that piece of ass Joyce DeWitt in fact, God Bless her tail. I'd be the ideal candidate to take an objective look at Colony Ship.
 

Verylittlefishes

Sacro Bosco
Patron
Joined
Sep 14, 2019
Messages
4,731
Location
Oneoropolis
Vault Dweller - I would like to apply for the beta, if possible at this point. I'm probably the oldest shithead on this forum (70), same age as that piece of ass Joyce DeWitt in fact, God Bless her tail. I'd be the ideal candidate to take an objective look at Colony Ship.

What's your story, mr. Oldfag, sir? Do you remember Woodstock?
 

Vault Dweller

Commissar, Red Star Studio
Developer
Joined
Jan 7, 2003
Messages
28,024
Vault Dweller
Will we get a cool manual like for Grimoire or at least in-game-help (F1) like in AoD? Also, I hope you will add those cool skill descriptions, e.g. for spears at level 1 it was "you cooked a chicken on a spit once".
We haven't given it any thought yet as right now we're focused on the demo (mechanics and balance; I think you'd enjoy the next update). Now that you asked though, Grimoire manual is fantastic but such things take time and if I'm working on a manual, I'm not working on the extra content. In-game help AoD-style is much faster to do but is it really necessary? We went to great length to explain mechanics via tooltips as you play the game, so I'm not sure what else can we explain in a help file.

Vault Dweller - I would like to apply for the beta, if possible at this point. I'm probably the oldest shithead on this forum (70), same age as that piece of ass Joyce DeWitt in fact, God Bless her tail. I'd be the ideal candidate to take an objective look at Colony Ship.
May I inquire as to why you're even interested in the game? If I recall correctly, you absolutely hated AoD and Dungeon Rats. While I'm overjoyed to see such rare open-mindedness about Colony Ship, I'm afraid you will end up being disappointed again.
 

Mortmal

Arcane
Joined
Jun 15, 2009
Messages
9,158
May I inquire as to why you're even interested in the game? If I recall correctly, you absolutely hated AoD and Dungeon Rats. While I'm overjoyed to see such rare open-mindedness about Colony Ship, I'm afraid you will end up being disappointed again.

It's obvious, an interface clearly similar to new xcom, and with all those fancy new graphics you went the way of bethesda or bioware, the dark path, so your game attract graphic whores and console players now…Joke apart it looks a hell lot more professional now.
 

Deleted Member 22431

Guest
voice acting is death of dialogue reactivity.
The only positive thing I can say about voice overs is that they increase immersion by making the NPCs more alive if done properly. But even they should be used with moderation, e.g., during incantations, a banter, or in a few sentences of an important character. Baldur’s Gate 2, Fallout 2 and Mask of the Betrayer did it right, but even the last one went overboard with it. It’s pointless to do the voice-over of a wall of text because it is more practical to read the dam thing. It’s also confusing to read a text that is being said by a NPC at the same time. Maybe developers could improve this feature by imitating a subtitled film in the sense that the text you can read pops up while the character is saying things, but I have my doubts.
 

As an Amazon Associate, rpgcodex.net earns from qualifying purchases.
Back
Top Bottom