As I have said before, the idea of A-list actors voice acting in games is a point of curiousity for me. I’m not sure what I’m missing when game commercials use 50 Cent or Vin Diesel or Samuel L. Jackson or some other celebrity as a selling point. Some people I talked to suggested that game-buyers might go for a game with a celebrity because of their talent as an actor, or some similar reason. I might be more inclined to believe that if there were some good actors in these games (actually, close inspection reveals there are a few exceptions, Patrick Stewart voiced a few lines in Elder Scrolls IV, and Ron Perlman did the opening for some of the Fallout games).
And yet, I am a hypocrite.
Brutal Legends is an action/adventure game made by Double Fine. The first trailer for it basically showcases Jack Black voicing the protagonist. Despite the “Look, look! We have Jack Black in this game! You guys like him, right?” feel I got from it, I was still quite excited. Yes, excited. Double Fine is led by Tim Schafer, who has made cult classic games like Pyschonauts, Grim Fandango, and The Secret of Monkey Island. Any snob who has an inflated opinion of the artistic merit of video games knows and loves this guy.
My dilemma with this game then is despite the cartoony aesthetic and overdone voice acting of Jack Black, the designer’s track record is platinum. It’s like if Steven Spielberg, immediately after recieving his Oscar for Saving Private Ryan announced he would be directing a family movie involving a cop dressing as a fat black woman.
Watch this as I have: