10 Video Game Voice Actors Who Played Multiple Characters In The Same Game

During the last 20 years or so, online game voice acting has change into fairly a various trade, even inviting a wholesome diploma of crossover from tv and movie. Whether or not it’s big-name actors or fledgling faces, it takes a variety of voices to convey an enormous manufacturing to life, together with main story characters and incidental NPCs. Even so, regardless of the dimensions of a typical sport’s voice forged, you continue to generally discover actors pulling double responsibility.

Whereas it’s commonplace to see one actor enjoying a few completely different characters throughout a whole sport collection or franchise, generally, you’ll spot the identical voice within the credit subsequent to 2 completely different characters. There are a couple of completely different causes this might occur, whether or not for meta-narrative affect or simply as a result of they felt like doing it, however it’s at all times enjoyable to understand a personality is successfully speaking to themselves, doubly so when the actor in query has robust sufficient vary that you may’t even inform.

Spoilers for many of the following video games!

10

Ella Lentini

Till Daybreak: Beth And Hannah

One of many oldest methods in movie is to have twin characters each be performed by the identical actor, like Lindsay Lohan pulling double responsibility within the 1998 remake of The Dad or mum Lure. It saves the studio a paycheck, and helps maintain the performances constant. Apparently, the identical trick works for video video games, or at the very least those who use intensive facial seize.

In Until Dawn, twin sisters Beth and Hannah Washington are each voiced and motion-captured by Ella Lentini. Whereas their talking roles within the sport are restricted to the prologue chapter, their affect on the story is important, because it’s their disappearances over a cliff that incites the spooky occasions throughout the lodge through the story correct the next 12 months, in addition to at the very least a portion of the Wendigo menace.

By the way, so far as I can discern, Lentini doesn’t present the numerous growling, shrieking, and howling noises Hannah produces as a Wendigo. I’m guessing they’re inventory sound results, although I wager it could’ve been enjoyable to do all that growling within the voice sales space.

9

Elizabeth Maxwell

Yakuza: Like A Dragon: Saeko And Nanoha

When you’re searching for one other instance of twins being performed by the identical actor in a online game, you’ll discover it in Yakuza: Like a Dragon, particularly with the most important supporting character and occasion member Saeko Mukoda. Saeko has a twin sister, Nanoha Mukoda, who’s encountered through the sport’s principal story when Ichiban and firm are requested to search for her by her boss on the soapland she works in.

In each the Japanese and English dubs of the sport, Saeko and Nanoha share a voice actor. In Japanese, each characters are voiced by Sumire Uesaka, and in English, each characters are voiced by Elizabeth Maxwell.

In comparison with Saeko, Nanoha isn’t practically as main of a plot character, so she doesn’t have as a lot dialogue to voice. Nonetheless, her efficiency is a vital a part of Saeko’s character arc, so it was positively very important to nail it down. The ol’ twin filming trick was a wise transfer on the writers’ half to make sure this.

8

Michael Shapiro

Half-Life 2: G-Man And Barney

Arguably probably the most iconic character in all the Half-Life collection is the enigmatic G-Man, the maybe-human-maybe-alien in a bland swimsuit who seems seemingly at random, guiding Gordon Freeman’s journeys via Black Mesa and past. In each the unique Half-Life and Half-Life 2, G-Man is voiced by Michael Shapiro, who additionally supplies the voice for the varied unnamed Black Mesa safety guards within the first sport.

Apparently, that additionally consists of former Black Mesa safety guard and fan-favorite Half-Life 2 character Barney Calhoun, who was additionally the protagonist of the Half-Life growth, Blue Shift. Whereas neither Barney nor G-Man seem steadily in Half-Life 2, they’re each nonetheless voiced by Michael Shapiro, who apparently has some fairly spectacular vary, as a result of their voices sound fully completely different.

So far as I do know, there’s no explicit narrative or meta-narrative significance to those characters sharing a voice actor; Barney isn’t secretly G-Man in disguise or something. He actually couldn’t be, as he encountered G-Man a number of instances in Blue Shift. I may very well be incorrect, although. Perhaps we’d know for positive if we ever received a Half-Life 3, Valve.

7

Keith David

Saints Row 4: Julius And Himself

Within the first two Saints Row video games, Keith David performs supporting character-turned-major antagonist Julius Little, the Third Avenue Saints chief who brings the Playa into the fold, then tries to kill them with an exploding boat. Julius reappears in a facet mission close to the top of the second sport, the place he meets his finish on the Boss’s fingers.

David would voice one other main character in Saints Row 4, particularly… himself. He performs a fictionalized model of himself who’s still a veteran actor, however can be the Vice President of the USA alongside the Saints Boss, now President. At a number of factors all through the sport, a number of Saints members remark he appears like Julius for the apparent purpose.

For the reason that sport takes place in a simulation, it has a justification to convey again characters from earlier video games who have been killed, Julius included, who could be recruited as a Homie. When you’ve got Julius and David in your occasion, they’ll have a bit of chat collectively about how everybody says they sound alike, and the way neither of them hears it. It’s fairly humorous, particularly as a result of Julius’ voice isn’t all that completely different from David’s common talking voice.

6

Bryce Papenbrook

Danganronpa 2: Nagito And Makoto

Within the unique Japanese launch of Danganronpa 2 in 2012, the infamously hope-obsessed Nagito Komaeda was voiced by Megumi Ogata, who additionally performed the primary sport’s protagonist, Makoto Naegi. Nagito is supposed to be a deliberate corruption of Makoto’s character, preaching the virtues of hope nicely previous the purpose of creepiness, so this was a thematically applicable alternative.

For the western launch in 2014, it was determined to drag the identical trick with the English forged. Bryce Papenbrook, who performed Makoto within the English launch of the primary Danganronpa, got here again on board to voice Nagito in Danganronpa 2. On the very finish of Danganronpa 2, Makoto returns to help the scholars, so Papenbrook will get to reprise his unique efficiency.

Technically, Nagito and Makoto by no means converse in Danganronpa 2, as the previous is already lifeless by the point the latter seems. Nonetheless, Papenbrook voiced the characters once more for the English dub of the Danganronpa 3 anime, and that was when he lastly received to play each characters speaking to one another, if solely briefly.

5

Darren Korb

Hades: Zagreus And Skelly

Out of the various proficient those that helped convey the unique Hades to life, arguably one of the vital is Darren Korb, and for 2 causes. First, he was the sport’s composer. All of those awesome BGM tracks? That was him, he did that. He was additionally the composer for Supergiant’s different video games, Bastion, Transistor, and Pyre, which additionally all had superior soundtracks.

Second, Korb can be the voice of the sport’s protagonist, Zagreus, who has what’s most definitely the most important quantity and number of dialogue in what’s already an exceptionally dialogue-heavy sport. He pulled double-duty as composer and lead voice actor, and but each the music and his low-key, mildly sardonic efficiency as Zag have been top-shelf.

Apparently, Korb is an overachiever, as a result of on prime of all that, he’s additionally the voice of Zag’s trusty coaching dummy, the mouthy Skelly, in a somewhat hilarious dichotomy with Zag’s extra subdued tone of voice. By the way, Korb nonetheless performs Skelly, or somewhat Schelemeus, in Hades 2. It’s humorous if you consider it; Melinoe has by no means truly met Zagreus, but she’s technically listening to his voice day by day.

4

Kevin Afghani

Tremendous Mario Bros. Marvel: Mario And Luigi

For the overwhelming majority of the character’s lifespan, Nintendo’s mascot Mario was voiced by the inimitable Charles Martinet. Not solely that, however all different plumber-adjacent characters all through the Mario franchise have been additionally voiced by Martinet, together with Luigi, Wario, and Waluigi. When Martinet retired from the function of Mario in 2023, these very important duties have been handed onto a brand new face, whom we heard for the primary time in Super Mario Bros. Wonder: Kevin Afghani.

Like his predecessor, Afghani is tasked with voicing each Mario and Luigi in Tremendous Mario Bros. Marvel. Whereas his performances are distinct from Martinet’s, he did a great job of capturing the distinct essences of each characters, from Mario’s common excitability to Luigi’s barely extra toned-down vibe.

Since getting his begin in Marvel, Afghani has additionally taken on the mantles of Wario and Waluigi, the previous beginning in WarioWare: Transfer It and the latter beginning in Tremendous Mario Occasion Jamboree. He’s received some large sneakers to fill, however I’d say he’s doing a fairly strong job of it.

3

Roger Craig Smith

Crew Sonic Racing: Sonic And Omega

Since 2010, Roger Craig Smith has been the official online game voice of Sonic the Hedgehog, having taken over the function from Jason Griffith with the discharge of Sonic Free Riders. In comparison with Griffith’s distinctive “you’re too gradual” portrayal, Smith has given the character a bit extra of a balanced vibe, making him appear a bit of extra laid again and snarky whereas nonetheless being his amiable self.

Moreover Sonic, Smith solely had some incidental roles in Sonic video games for some time, such because the announcer that speaks in Sonic Colours while you use Wisp talents. Beginning with the discharge of Crew Sonic Racing in 2019, although, he picked up one other mainstay function: that of the weapon-toting, Eggman-hating E-123 Omega.

Omega has had a couple of completely different voices over time, with the longest-serving being Vic Mignogna from 2010 to 2019. Since Crew Sonic Racing, Smith has voiced Omega at any time when he seems, significantly in Sonic x Shadow Generations and Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, at all times with a particular robotic filter over his voice. Omega’s a fairly simple character, and it’s fairly arduous to mess him up, so I can’t think about doing his traces on prime of Sonic’s is way additional work for Smith.

2

Haley Joel Osment

Kingdom Hearts 3: Sora And Vanitas

Haley Joel Osment has been the only real voice of Kingdom Hearts protagonist Sora within the first sport’s launch in 2002. He was solely 14 on the time, so it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he’s grown up alongside the character, which can be why Sora’s voice is a lot deeper in Kingdom Hearts 2.

For many of the collection, Osment was solely on Sora responsibility, however that modified with the discharge of Delivery By Sleep in 2010. On this sport, Osment performed Vanitas, the darkish counterpart to one of many sport’s protagonists, Ventus, who additionally occurred to bear a putting resemblance to Sora when his masks was knocked off. You may hear the similarity to Sora in Osment’s efficiency, however Vanitas’ voice has a deeper, edgier high quality to it.

Vanitas had a split-second voice line in Kingdom Hearts 3D, however a extra distinctive instance of Osment’s double-duty as him and Sora can be in Kingdom Hearts 3 in 2019. This was the primary time Osment received to play either side of a full dialog between the 2 of them. Additionally, there’s apparently an in-universe purpose Vanitas seems to be like Sora, however it’s all Hearts and Darkness and stuff, and I don’t fully perceive it.

1

Johnny Younger Bosch

Persona 4: Yu Narukami And Tohru Adachi

Johnny Younger Bosch is certainly one of my favourite voice actors in the gaming and anime industries. A part of that’s as a result of, as Adam in Mighty Morphin’ Energy Rangers, his presence was a formative a part of my childhood. As well as, although, he additionally performs each the protagonist and antagonist of certainly one of my favourite JRPGs, Persona 4.

Bosch supplies what little voice performing there’s for the sport’s protagonist, together with his assorted grunts and Persona calls. He’s additionally the voice of bumbling detective, then supernatural serial killer Tohru Adachi, displaying off a powerful vary between good-natured slacker and unhinged maniac. Bosch would voice each characters once more within the English dub of the Persona 4 anime, which can be the place the protagonist acquired his canon identify of Yu Narukami.

Enjoyable reality, within the unique Japanese dub of the sport, Yu and Adachi had two completely different voice actors. I’m undecided if there was a selected purpose Bosch was chosen to voice each for the English launch, although contemplating the characters are speculated to be diametrically opposed in Izanami’s little scheme for humanity, it makes for an attention-grabbing dichotomy.