The Significance of Darkest Dungeon’s Narrator
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- Опубликовано: 7 сен 2024
- In this video, I take a look at how the narrator of Darkest Dungeon affects the game.
Use the Amazon/Audible link below to start a 30-day free trial where you get two free audio books of your choosing, including The Dark Worlds of H. P. Lovecraft, read by Wayne June, the narrator of Darkest Dungeon:
www.amazon.com...
Thanks to Chris Bourassa, whose artwork I based the thumbnail on @BourassaArt on Twitter, Co-President of Red Hook Studios, as well as Creative Director, artist and narrative on Darkest Dungeon.
/ bourassaart
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Thanks to GDC for letting me use their conference video. Link to GDC’s Channel: / @gdconf
Love His "Remind yourself that overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer"
No one who's played the game can forget this quote. No one
We all had the time when we think the team is invincible and paid heavily for our overconfidence.
That stuck with me every time I am losing.
Time to bail!!
My favourite line is "The cost of preparedness, now measured in gold, later in blood..."
@@fred8691 me more than a few times 😅
"Monstrous size has no intrinsic merit, unless inordinate exsanguination be considered a virtue" its such a badass line
Never forget his absolutely glorious performance in the intro cutscene "Ruin has come to our family." "I beg you, return home! Claim your birthright! And deliver our family, from the ravenous, clutching shadows... Of the Darkest Dungeon." and campaign start cutscene "The Old Road, will take you to hell. But in that gaping abyss... We will find our redemption."
Bmobmo64 The game's a treasure trove of awesome dark quotes, I love it!
Drebolaskan indeed! I could quote the narrator all day, he's absolutely perfect for the role.
Bmobmo64 I still hear his voice when reading those lines. And it still gives chills down my spine. This narrator is just perfect for the game and it would never be the same without.
That's cool and all, but remember that overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
"Take up your nugatory vigil. Haunted forever by that sickening prose, echoing through the infinite blackness of space and time... Ruin has come to our family."
There can be no bravery ...
*WITHOUT MADNESS*
there is no hope in this hell,... no hope at all
Obliterated!
My favorite line is when the narrator speaks after a mercenary deals a critical hit "excecuted with impunity!"
"Many fall in face of chaos, but not this one. Not today."
My favorite is how he sounds almost bitter after you grab loot from a secret room. The inflection is beautiful
Imagine this guy GMing in D&D
Hey, I'm game for that.
I think I'll sebd the guy an email.
George Mihaila i will pay.
George Mihaila Only if I can be a transgender elf with an unhealthy obsession with jars of mayonnaise
Dunno if you're aware, but Matt Mercer and a lot of other very famous voice actors from games and animation play DnD weekly. Critical Role, at Geek and Sundry, on twitch. 30k+ viewers weekly. Can't recommend enough.
IHateNumbersOnNames yeah but Matt Mercer isn t this guy
BACK TO THE PIT!!
Gets me hype everytime
i cant even imagine this game with no narrator , i like the combat and the game overall but the presentation is what got me hooked to this game ,and the narrator is an essential part of the presentation
When we first encounter the Swine Prince, "It. is. a travesty" always gets me 🤣
He produces a voice so straightforward and gruff, yes filled with so much emotion qt the same time.
It's so good I've never considered turning him off
"They will be delivered dail-" Let me stop you there. It's weekly.
Bastion is another game that makes good use of narration. The narrator in Darkest Dungeon does a lot to set the tone, and provide additional context that's exceptionally valuable to the gameplay. As for why Dark Souls: Narration wouldn't be a good choice because the world is the main character. Everything you see and hear is the game's version of a voiced narrator. Dark Souls is a game that's open to interpretation. It prefers to show rather than tell and leave you to fill in the minor details yourself. Having a narrator dictate what's going on would undermine that design philosophy. It's the same reason Hyper Light Drifter doesn't even have text but rather telling the story through imagery.
Chris Dodd Well said man, I agree. It was the dark, sombre atmosphere in DS that really reeled me in. A narrator would probably ruin the silent dread and shove the otherwise enigmatic lore, that you're dying to know more about, in your face and make you hate it instead
Wayne June kills it. He is, in my opinion, the best game narrator ever.
the narrator is the best part of the game
No
yes it is, it's the only part of the game that everyone praises, even the people that hate the game
Google não deixou eu colocar um nome maior que esse without its gameplay it wouldn't matter
it actually would, because the people that I said hated the game hate the gameplay, and yet, they praise the narrator
Google não deixou eu colocar um nome maior que esse So you would put on a playlist of ancestor quotes instead of playing the game
Perma-death you say? Not on my PS Vita! Ah ha ha ha- oh crap my save got corrupted.
HAHAHA
I love Wayne June's voice in this game so much, but what I find equally as unique and impactful is the hero barks, I remember reading through countless lines on every hero's wiki just going through all of their barks of every situation and it made me love all their unique personalities so much. My downright favourite example of this is the Crusader's afflicted vs virtuous barks
When afflicted he regrets his decisions of leaving his family for the crusade and damns the gods for leaving him like he left his family
When virtuous he chants and shouts blessed words commending his allies and boasting how proud he is to be on the crusade
To have such varying personalities on every single hero in the game that all have their own individual struggles, highs, lows, morals and beliefs is just amazing.
And my personal favourite kind of bark is the Come Unto Your Maker bark for all the heroes, which culminates their individuality as they face inescapable obliteration
Bit late, but I completely agree. Even more so when you also take into account the set items from the Courtyard which provides even deeper insight into some of characters. I think my favorite is the Highwayman's set with the Locket and Bloodied Neckerchief. The quote on them: "A reflex - I didn't mean to..." along with the Locket makes it clear just what he did in the past, yet I always found it interesting that gathering the set gave him a massively increased chance of getting a Virtue. I always choose to interpret it as him having already hit his lowest point and that now that he is reminded of it nothing he can experience could ever be worse than what he already faced.
Wayne June could narrate any game and it would become better.
All you say is "it adds another layer" with a bit of "it helps the atmosphere". You don't analyze, you repeat psalms. Here are questions that you did not answer :
-> How does the narrator changes the gameplay (the way the game is played) and not just the experience of the player ?
-> Why would the narrator be bad in DS ? (You said it would ruin the isolation of FTL but didn't really adapt the narration. How about a robotic voice crudely numbering the damaged systems ?)
Otherwise I would be let to think that DD is just good because they had the chance to find an awesome narrator and the game would have been Steam trash if they didn't. (It isn't and I love that game, but you brought nothing to most viewers)
1. It doesn't changes it. 2. It was shown.
What you say is true, but what you used for examples are not.
It's such a shame that ninety percent of video game essays on youtube are just people like this pointing at something and going "boy this is good. here's some examples of it being good! sure helps the atmosphere!" and that's it. Yes we know the narration is good. Of course it 'helps the atmosphere' but it also does a shit load more why aren't we talking about all that.
1: i think he explained it pretty well, added narration to events can emphasize its significance or its value. Like i can see for myself when i'm getting a critical hit, but getting critted and having its consequences narrated makes them more believable. Sure, it's idk, double the damage i'm getting, that means nothing in terms of realism, it's just a game mechanic, knowing i'm getting ringing ears and blurred vision does makes it more believable and meaningful. This is what narration does.
2: I believe the reason a narrator works for darkest dungeon is that after an event worth narrating there's always 1-2 seconds gap in which one could say anything about it. Its "slow" pace allows it. Now take dark souls, you get hit and thrown off balance, the narrator comments on it, by the time he's done telling you how much that was a problem, you rolled behind them and backstabbed them, should he narrate it as well? Or you get critically injured, he narrates your impending doom, you chug down your estus and what he said became meaningless. In short, the faster pace doesn't allow narration to be effective.
The narrator temporarily hides just how repetitive the content is. He's sort of like how a sound track adds to the experience of a movie.
And while I certainly admire the narration, the thinness and repetitiveness of the gameplay ultimately doomed the gameplay for me. The difficulty didn't serve to inspire me to continue. It just felt like it doomed me to repeating content that really wasn't worth repeating in the first place.
S Gibson ~ or even more overrun with trolls than it is now. Well said.
"Destroy, them, all"
The funny thing is that the final boss was there with you, the whole game whispering into your ear
What i remember most of the game was the emotionnal rollercoaster it was.
From narration to soundtrack, the ambience adds to the tension and the peace you find at firecamps
"TRIPLE KILL!". "MEGAKILL!", "MONSTER KILL!". I think you just proved your point that music and VOICE are extremely important.
Something that's not often mentioned when talking about Darkest Dungeon are the gameplay configurations. In there, you can truly make the game play as you want.
You think the corpse mechanic is stupid? Remove it. Want less *A DEVASTATING BLOW* crits? Just make them do max damage instead of multiplying it. You don't have the time to grind heroes each time one dies? Toggle the "always escape" fam, now you're golden. Deathdoor debuff is bullshit? Click that box and it's off.
I honestly wish more games did this.
I kept the Corpses due to modded Classes like the Arsonist and Exorcist having abilites that benefit with Corpses laying around
also so my Raaged Units could take potshots at them
@@John-Stark That and the corpses cause issues for the enemy as well.
This is amazing, I can't even imagine DD without narration. Loved the vid, ty
I like to imagine the Stanley parable narrater and the darkest dungeon narrator going out for tea together
7:05 this quote is just too good
personally, the ending cutscene probably amplifies the best about the narrator's added tone. But every tiny detail amplified with that voice is a boon
I want Wayne June to do my eulogy
I think the reason a narrator wouldn’t work for Dark Souls is because the tension in Dark Souls comes from the combat. It’s brutal, and you need to focus to survive it. Adding some guy talking about the massive hit you just took, which you can already see, just distracts you.
In Darkest Dungeon, the tension comes from the atmosphere, and the narrator helps accentuate the despair or triumph your heroes are feeling. You need someone to describe the massive blow that just bisected you, because onscreen it’s just two still images and some numbers.
Wayne June's performance is truly outstanding. I'd just like to point out that the writing is also phenomenal, and I think it's gets overlooked a lot. The Narrator's incredible voice delivering such harrowing words is a wonderful one-two punch. They support each other perfectly.
I was listening Wayne June before I knew Darkest Dungeon existed, so it's a special treat.
A majority of a game potencial is about how immersed the player is, if the player is disinterested, the whole game loses its meaning. The narrator boosts the player immersion, modifing also his choises. After a while , the games becomes repetitve and grindy, as soon as the player realizes its true nature, but game difficulty, learn curve and the narrator are elements that slow down that process.
In my opinion the 3 pillars that sustain this game are: Turn-Based RPG fans being masoquist, the narrator and easy modding
We aren't masoquists! We're just... Ummm... We all have stockholm!
Never in my life have I had a game have me feel every emotion possible with its narrator.
Bastion also has a very good narrator
Probably wouldn't finished that game if it wasn't for the narrator.
"Overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer."
I will NEVER forget when one of my heros got crit for the first time and almost died and the narrator said "Mortality clarified in a single strike"
when i first heard the narrator i inmediatly thought this is just like dungeon keeper the amazing narrator just makes the game
I got the game just based on Wayne June's voice.
Wayne June is one of the nuggets from the good timelines that shine through into ours.
I dont agree. FTL with DD narrator sounds awesome XD. I require this mod at instance.
Don’t forget how good the music is too - breathtaking!
6:20 I remember the first time I tried:
"Cornered! Trapped! And forced to fight on..."
Found this on the DD subreddit, its a pretty good video.
I love the narrator’s voice. Goes well with the gameplay.
8:55 was enough to make this video worth watching alone. Good work!
Between him and Stuart Chatwood, this game is easily the most atmospheric game I've ever played, since Morrowind.
Nobody talking about how he got the enemies surprised at the torch level 0
I love this game, thank you for making an awesome video about it, I learned a lot! Can't wait to see what more games you will analyse!
Dude I remember that I hand three runs in a row where my whole team got virtual.
The valor and despair comments are most memorable.
He's a great hype man.
Love this analytic approach to games
"And now darkness holds dominion"
Normally I prefer to read my own books but a reading of lovecrafts works by Wayne June sign me up.
"B A C K T O T H E P I T T"
Succinctly, you have described why I keep returning to this game.
Thank you for this analysis.
Awesome video. Keep up the good work.
This is an awesome video! Brilliant content and information. Hat's off to you sir!
Great video brother. this really shed some light on things I didn't know or hadn't noticed before
This was the game I always was playing on my vita
*BACK TO THE PIT!!*
I personally think a narrator for dark souls even if it just touched on the descriptions would be appreciated. Even if it was approached like the player character subconscious, if done right I don't believe it would take away from most games
Bastion and The Stanley Parable are also great at this, and I wish I could see the alternate realities where those narrators shuffled games.
Ngl
Ftl with the ancestor narrating needs to be a mod.
Sometimes, stress gains positive effects, like Vigor, Brave etc.
1:30 I will give a quick rundown of the game and its elements...
Me: in a resume is dark souls in 2D but a million times more hardcore cause differently from 99.999% of any story ever told you are NOT THE CHOSEN ONE, in fact, you are the total OPPOSITE of it, just a group of 4 regular humans ho are either mercenaries, bandits or the scum of the earth people looking for treasure while having to fight Lovecraftian horrors in every corner while at the same time being constantly roasted by ''The Ancestor'' (voiced by Wayne June), who is basically the man BORN to narrate anything related to horror, you will suffer, you will scream, you will ragequit but in the end, we all shall face The Darkest Dungeon and honestly it feels damn good to beat a game ho was specifically designed to obliterate your mental sanity.
9:14 yet the line was still hard as fuck
Wasn't Hastur supposed to be Nyarlathothep's half-brother, and not Cthulhu's?
"BACK TO THE PIT!"
its a fact , the narration hits harder than crits
I agree. You did a good job analyzing it.
He does add to the atmosphere. I think there are two reasons you didn't cover.
First, is the art style. This somewhat "Hellboy" style of art lends itself well to narration. Especially with the Lovecraftian overtones (which Hellboy also has). If you've ever listened to or read any of Lovecraft's work, you know he relies heavily on narration. Most of the experiences are told either after the fact or written so that the narration continues till the end. So, a narrator fits the game thematically.
The other is the minimalist animation style. While the visual cues do good to indicate your party's condition, it doesn't have the weight by itself that Wayne June's narration adds. Darkest Dungeon greatly benefits from a narrator. DD's minimal animation style makes it hard for the damage to have as much impact as Dark Souls where its VERY obvious your character is having their ass kicked. Another game, Dead Space, likewise doesn't need a narrator for the same reason.
I would add the affliction system is what benefits the most from the narration. Without the narration the affliction, even with the excellent sound design and music, would not have been as clear. It removes any ambiguity about how bad your party member is hurt on the emotional level.
If you combine Mr. June's narration with the music and visual cues, the complete package hits like a truck. It carries more weight than any of the elements carry on their own.
be careful,triumphant pride precipitates a dizzying fall
This is so good. love it. Came from DD reddit and im loving this. After taking a look at your channel it looks like you are taking a new direction and a new start with your channel. Lets just say im your 504th sub.
"BACK TO THE PIT"
Do don’t forget the awesome music!
I would pay $$ for him to narrate a ringtone and voice mail message!
BACK TO THE PIT
The narrator sounds identical to Michael Ansara.
Massive Difference!
many fall in the face of chaos... but not this one... not today
2:51 lmao that was the most norweigian pronunciation of hastur ever
So about those audio books?
Cosmic shambler is also based on a monster from lovecraft
FUCKING CHILLS M8
But the purple prose does throw me off at times. I get its a style they are going for but I dont understand why.
Darkest dungeon is one of the top 3 best games in my opinion, just beneath Terraria and above Minecraft.
Wayne carries
The Narrator reminds me of Treguard from Knightmare.
He didnt go to the secret room before he fought the boss -.- on the first example
The narration's good even though it feels a bit too frequent.
But I muted the narration, because : I just really fucking hate the "soothe... sedated" line.
Maybe I have a misophonia or something, but the way he says the line just irritates the fuck out of me like hearing someone chew with their mouth open.
I think a narrator like in darkest dungeon in ftl would be cool
The narrator 'deadpool' the hell out ..well, basically everything.
I turned off the narrato'r's voice only after I heard EVERY fucking lines there is, many, many times. Only to turn it back on after a failed run :')
Great video 👍🏾
I disagree about the Dark Souls to an extend - the fans actually did put the guy in trailers for all Dark Souls games and Bloodborne and he works pretty well.
So great.
8:56 fly lol
You do know what "breaking down" mean right?
1:20 the spiders. Not the narrator.
the narrator was like 60% of the game atmosphere ...i dont think the game would work without him and i have 300+ hours in darkest dungeon