There will definitely be a part 2, but I think the time limit just means it's the comment section's turn. Then, the next video will include what I've learned!
I think for me personally, the reason why Roger has become the sonic voice for me has a lot to do with, of course, my attachment to that portrayal of the character, but also because of the "acting" aspect if that makes any sense. What I mean by that is like, with Ryan and Jason while the voice they do for Sonic is undeniably iconic and rightfully the voice that people associate the most with Sonic, the reason why Roger resonates with me so much more personally is because he never really sounded like he was doing a voice. Like yeah obviously he was, but what I mean is the way he enunciates his lines, the emotion he puts into them. Frontiers, in my opinion, was the first time in a long while that Sonic has ever sounded sincere to me. Most of the lines he delivered were so full of heart and feeling, it didn't feel like he was just reading off of a script. "Careful? Where's the fun in that?", as simple as it was, was the line that cemented that Roger was THE Sonic for me. Another thing to is that it finally feels like these characters are growing up with their audience. Maybe it's just me, but I never really fully subscribed to the idea to keep the cast perpetual teenagers when they've been seen behaving in ways not many teenagers do. While I don't necessarily agree that the deeper tone should be the tone going forward (and judging from the projects we've gotten since Frontiers, it definitely seems like that tone was exclusive to that game), giving Sonic that more mature edge to his voice instead of trying to keep him sounding like a 15 year old is the play in my honest opinion. Overall tho I 100% agree with you take on how it all comes down to contrast. While I personally believe that contrast is still here, it's understandable why some don't. My only real hope is to see more people get a better understanding of the industry and these actors' positions instead of constantly blaming them for things out of their control. Can't wait for part 2 man!
I feel like the voice acting that encapsulated Sonic the Hedgehog as a character really peaked in "Black Knight" with Jason Griffith. He had that serious tone but it still had the essence of freedom.
While Roger isn't my favorite Sonic voice, I've always enjoyed his performances in Colors, Generations, and even Free Riders. I felt like the pitch he had for those games was still consistent with Ryan and Jason without trying to be exactly like them. Sonic's voice in Frontiers doesn't bother me, but I do agree that just because the tone of the game is somber doesn't mean the voice pitch has to drop. I guess what I'd like to see is just consistency with the voices much like other aspects of the franchise. I don't know what the comfortable range is for any of the current actors, but if they're directed to voice the characters in that range and it leads to improvement then I'm all for it.
The current directors are Jamie Simone and Jack Fletcher at Studiopolis so all talent is from their pool . As someone who's directed people and taken classes myself I feel like for Frontiers everyone was just thrown in and they were trying to figure out what worked as the game went on. Some lines were also recorded out of order. This is normal for games but here it feels like there wasn't a solid through line.
I really like this format. It's a nice form of discussion but keeps it short and sweet. I totally agree with what you were saying about how actors should sound within their comfortable range, but for a while now, I get the feeling that the newer cast HAVE gotten more comfortable with their voice, but it sounds less and less like the characters and less contrasting. Back in the days of Sonic X, even with how many characters there were, you could tell which one was talking. There's a reason why ppl like to make funny impressions of Jason Griffith's Sonic, cuz that voice is pretty iconic and DEFINETELY contrasts with Tails, Knuckles or Shadow (even tho that was the same dude) I feel like back then, SEGA had a specific way Sonic and Co. wanted to sound like, but as time went on, it's almost like they...cared less...? I hope that doesn't sound mean, but what I mean is when Roger started out, he had to raise his voice A LOT to get that "Sonic feel" or however you'd put it. But over time, to the point where we are now, his Sonic voice is closer to his normal voice, with it being deeper and less energetic (kinda the same with Amy and Eggman, cuz their voices were deeper in Frontiers too) and personally, I'm not a fan of either way. I think if you're gonna pick someone to voice Sonic, you'd want someone who naturally has that energetic and cocky sound to it and ACT with it, y'know? (cough cough Max Mittelman cough) Like you said, some transparency from SEGA would be nice about stuff like this, especially since they have a track record of...not treating their voice actors well.
I glad this video got into something I’ve kinda been wanting to say about Sonic’s voice actors, but didn’t really know how to articulate. I think every voice actor for Sonic is super talented, and it’s why I could never say any were bad or that I dislike any. Cuz really they were all doing what the directors were asking and delivered.
I think the issue is that the current voice director for the franchise, Jack Fletcher, has never really worked on a game quite like Sonic Frontiers before. He's never really had to direct these characters for a dour and depressing mood before, aside from maybe Sonic Forces. He started with the franchise in Sonic Colors, and being told by the parent company that this game is going to be "more serious" than other games, his assumption there was that the way to make the game sound more serious was to deepen all the character voices. This is more of a black and white solution and doesn't entirely work out, as we can see in the game proper. I don't think he understood that the appeal of putting Sonic in depressing situations is that he still sounds like himself, instead of sounding way deeper for some reason. It honestly sounds like they couldn't decide on a concrete direction for Roger, as sometimes he uses his natural speaking voice and in other moments he sounds like he's trying too hard to reach a deeper register. See: "Sorry, Master King, looks like I'm going all out after all" vs "if there's even a one percent chance I can turn that despair of yours into hope..."
I get the feeling that the Modern Cast was cast on the fact that SEGA wanted to hire more well-known voice actors (like Roger as Sonic, Troy Baker as Espio and Travis Willingham as Knuckles) as a way to bring in casuals who have heard these voice actors before in hopes that they will play the games. I also get the feeling that the Modern Cast was originally cast as their respective characters to get across to the players the characters' main attributes like Sonic being 'cool', Tails being smart and Shadow being Sonic's main rival and an anti-hero with some edge. And with the writing of the 2010's games being focused on being more simplistic and apologetic, I get the feeling the Modern Voice Actors were mainly cast to be a shell of what the characters formerly were. So, when games like Frontiers try to develop these characters and use the Modern Voice cast, it just feels wrong as those Voice Actors don't fit this current style of Sonic.
Damn, you said what I said but WAY more blunt lmao Agreed that it’s a fault of casting above all else. But now they seem pretty set on keeping them as long as they can, like they’re trying to set a record. Though they’ve been slowly replacing some of them. Hell, whiny butthole Kate Higgins Tails has all but faded into obscurity.
You are 100% correct about the issue being casting and not the actors themselves. I think the same can be said about direction too. I like Roger Craig Smith’s performances in generations and colors, and he fits those game’s tones. He fits even better in Boom where Sonic is basically a different character. People forget that actors are hired and directed to fit the desires of people higher up, and incorrectly criticize the actors. They’re just doing the job they were given. Another issue I have is that most of the current cast was brought on for the big tone shift in 2010. Colors was more lighthearted and silly and they chose new voices for that new tone. Lost World, Forces, and especially Frontiers each progressively became more “serious” and it feels like these new voices are super out of place at this point. The different voice direction and writing of Frontiers doesn’t help at all, and it feels like they are forcing these actors and even characters into roles they were never meant to be in.
I think while the current voice cast are great voice actors in their own right, in the time since the current cast's tenure began we've started to see better actors come to the fore in spinoffs because the current game cast was installed at a time Sonic was embarrassed by itself, and now we're heavily shifting away from that towards Sonic being **proud** to be itself. Just look at how much better Ian Hanlin, Prime's Shadow VA, was received by fans because his voice and characterisation felt like a better follow on from David Humphrey and Jason Griffith, while Kirk Thornton was cast at a time they were trying to go for a Vegeta characterisation and now his take doesn't really suit with them going back to a better Shadow characterisation. The same goes with Amy; her Prime VA was a perfect follow on from Lisa Ortiz and Jennifer Douillard, while Cindy Robinson still feels like a Minnie Mouse impersonation that's trying to escape being Amy Rose. Even Sonic - I'd say Ben Schwartz and Deven Mack's takes feel more "Sonic" than Roger's does. I think the thing is (with the current fandom climate with how accessible these VAs are people are now), fans are averse to recasting and putting anyone out of a job. But at some point the brand needs to do what represents its characters best, rather than trying to make its characters represent other popular media because they were embarrassed to be themselves. And it's not like those VAs are going to be out of work, or that they can't voice other sonic characters in future. It's been 15 years, so I think we're overdue a bit of a refresh. Maybe after the generations remaster they'll start re-establishing some characters to move forward rather than keeping voices that don't suit the direction they're going with now.
I 1000% agree. Sonic is (for better or, for worse), an adult in Frontiers. He says to Tails things like, "That's part of growing up." Which would be insane if he didn't finish growing up. But he sounds... too old, like 40 year old old. Sonic should still sound pretty youthful and shouldn't be portrayed older than 25.
I love the time limit idea, and I fully understood you, and I understand that the pressure is helpful. Maybe it would be good to maybe have the full timer on display, but you have a paper on your desk and give yourself and outline of what you want to talk about and time stamps for each of them. So the timer starts counting down, and you’re on your intro, but at 5:30 you start in contrast, and etc. and at 2 minutes you start on what you think should be the next step for the VAs casting wise, etc. I think you’ll be able to get more thoughts across in a video that way, maybe!
Bias here but I always love Ryan as Sonic. Don't get me wrong, I love most of the Sonic voice cast after him from Jason- Deven. I feel as though it all depends on the direction they are given. You start to notice that as you play the games. Example, Ryan in heroes was a lot of more energetic, hype, etc. Jason at times when he went into Shadow The Hedgehog as Sonic feels like he was just reading a scrpit even in 06. When Unleashed came I feel as though he really gave an all out performance and understood what Sonic was all about. Roger I like his work so far, though I will have to agree that I wasn't too much of fan of making Sonic's voice go low because it was such a serious story. I honestly feel there should be a balance between making him serious without having to lower his tone of voice. I think he'll be able to find that. Just gotta keep him in the right direction. Deven Mack seems like a natural and I would to see him and the rest of the prime cast have a go at a future sonic game.
I loved the deeper/lower voice because it matched the genuine dark and somber tone of Frontiers. Sure we've had serious moments in the franchise before, but non were on the level that Frontiers did it. And thats precisely why I love Roger, because he's able to adjust his voice to match the environment and story it's used in. I've been with the franchise for well over 20 years so I have heard pretty much all voices Sonic has had in mainstream media. I like Ryan, just an overal good voice. I used to like Jason until someone pointed out a specific tone he keeps using and now I cannot unhear it and has ruined it a bit, but still quite good. Ben is also really good but not someone I'd want for the games, pretty much the same for Deven with prime. But for me personally Roger stands above all, his vocal range and energy that he brings to Sonic is something I simply adore more than any prior VA we've had!!
I just wish that Roger was directed as if he was voicing an anime and not a cartoon. The Twitter takeover after Frontiers was probably my favorite performance from Roger to date, as he sounded youthful without coming off as childish. Hopefully they can have him capture that cadence in future games. Tho if I had my way I would make Max Mittleman due to how incredible his range is as voice actor.
i feel like Rodger Craig Smith’s sonic voice can sound really good,l. In Sonic Boom and the Twitter takeovers he sounds great. I feel like in the games, his voice does often sound forced
Bro I love your freaking content dude. Also you should make a video talking about your favorite sonic portrayal in his game. My favorite is SA2 sonic, I wish he was that way in every game. He was selfless but selfish, impulsive, confident and a real light to everyone. But most importantly he was so mysterious. You never really know what he’s thinking, and I really freaking miss that being consistently in sonic.
Jason Griffith is the voice I can’t get over. I hear it in the comics and books lol. He’s the one I grew up with and he’ll always be MY personal Sonic 🦔
The fact that in that interview, even Roger was like "you've got to be kidding me..." Tells me everything. I can't take Roger seriously. I liked him for boom byt that's it for me. He just comes across as "how fo you do fellow kids". At least before he was actually doing a voice but now it just sounds like they grabbed some random guy of the street with zero acting experience and said fuck it he'll be our new Sonic because we want the game to be serious?
I respect what Roger did in Frontiers, the script is great, and the delivery is sincere. Just listen to his conversation with Knuckles or with Tails. In my opinion, Frontiers was Roger's best performance as Sonic.
With Sonic's voice, it's always an interesting discussion on who or what you want from the character to sound like, and for me, I do enjoy Roger's Sonic the most. Maybe it's from growing up with that voice, but I like to think it's because his voice has something different from previous voices, even outside of the games. That said, as much I like some of his performance in Frontiers, there is this weird consisintecy of how Sonic should sound, aka the deeper voice. Now as someone said in another comment, the casting director are Jamie Simone and Jack Fletcher, but mainly Jack is the one that I see pop up more in searching the behind the scenes in Sonic currently. I feel like he is someone that I would to know more about, wheter through social media or an attempt at a interview, it would be nice to know what goes through his mind on these games, as I feel like he isn't concisnet on his end, as by game, Sonic Dream Team, Sonic goes back to that higher pitch that Roger had before that I feel most people liked, but with Rouge, most would say that Karen's worst portrayal of the character, as she feels too squeaky or high pitch for a character like Rouge, though I feel like Rouge has more trouble with being portrayed accurateliny for a while. Nonetheless, I don't want to blame Mr. Flecther on this. As you and others have said, we don't know. With a lack of transparency from Sega, and as much as I enjoy the current cast, if they are to stick around more, then I feel like there needs to be a consistent effort in plan, either on Sega's or Studiopolis's end. At least that is how I see it, and someone may want to correct me if I am inaccurate in my opinions.
I have a different take, to me Frontiers was Roger's best take on Sonic yet! I remember that when it was announced that Jason was replaced, the excuse was that they wanted a "younger" voice for Sonic and this has bothered me since. Roger's Sonic has always sounded too high pitched for my liking, I couldn't take him seriously anymore... While in Frontiers from the first cutscene I already knew that he meant business with that voice! But well I'm not saying it's perfect as is, Roger can refine it and find a middle ground but this change wasn't a mistake, it went for the right direction imo.
There is an interesting split I am hearing in these comments between those who prefer Roger's higher pitched take, and his lower. I am, for SURE, going to explore this in part 2. Thank you for sharing your point of view, it helps make these conversations interesting for me!
0:46 The halarious part is the game starts off with a deep voice and by the end it goes back to normal 2010's voice/tone. Idk why they didn't just have Roger use the same voice he was using for a Decade if they weren't going to have him commit to it.
YES exactly this, ughhh it's such a tricky topic to talk about bc these are people just trying to do their job and the fans that grew up on them are grown and have valid attachments to them at this point. But I truly do feel that once these characters stop sounding distinct from one another is when we genuinely lose a bit of the plot It's why I stopped ragging on the voice actors themselves bc while I do have my favorites, I feel real progress right now has to come with compromise. I feel Frontiers voice direction is actually so forced, and you can hear it because every time the characters are supposed to project more OUTWARDS emotion, it falls flat. Especially when it comes to yelling, bc it feels so many times the characters are in the midst of a take, getting into it, and then the director is telling them "okay but remember, somber and lower pitched". I can feel it in Amy, Kronos and Final Horizon ESPECIALLY with the Cyber Sonic "scream" especially when I KNOW I've heard these actors portray these emotions properly AND with a more traditional Sonic sound to their performances The more narrative anime driven direction for the franchise can work, it HAS worked. But we need to also realize that these are Sonic characters and I feel that muting what makes them sound so unique removes part of WHY it was so exciting to see this more anime style approach for these characters in the first place. You take that away and it just sounds like another generic anime.
So I grew up with both “Dreamcast” and “4Kids” casts, and generally accept and like both equally (sure I have favorites for each character, but either gets the job done). In a way, I think my childhood opinion of the Colors cast somewhat mirrors Evan’s on the 4Kids cast, a rug pull of sorts. Though of course, that will always be intwined for me with the direction of Colors and other early 2010’s games -until Boom when the series reached critical mass of tired dad energy- so I will admit, my negative bias is pathological. That said, when I think of the contrast between the Colors cast and the voices from before, my big takeaway is always that they sound like -and in fact have- done the effective same voice many times before. That it’s not special for them, and their voice isn’t special. My go to example is Kirk Thornton, who according to Sonic Retro, has more voice over credits in English dubbed anime than any other male VA. And that’s great for him! That’s good business! But contrasted with Humphrey and even Griffith, there’s no chance he didn’t just audition with the same spiky antagonist voice he’s used dozens of times. It’s apparent in other voices as well. Amy is Minnie Mouse, Knuckles is some jock, Silver is Raiden, etc. is this nostalgia bias? Probably. But it’s how I feel, and I didn’t know what else to say for this lmao
Roger was representing a more laid back comedic Sonic until Frontiers which brought back the serious storytelling and the Sonic we know. Ryan and Jason were kind of like two sides of the same coin doing similar things. I can’t really think of a story where Jason did a more unserious Sonic say like what Ryan did with Sonic Heroes. Jason has always had stories that took themselves seriously and I think he nails it better than anyone else. I love Ryan’s take in SA2, Heroes and the voice clips he did for the GBA games. I love Jason’s take in Riders, Riders ZG, Secret Rings, Black Knight, Unleashed, and the two Rush games. Roger to me never really hit the same as the other 2. It’s not that I don’t like his performance, he just doesn’t really sound like Sonic to me, part of that is the writers fault for not knowing how to write the character. I think Forces was a step up in Sonic’s characterization and Roger sounds better there but I adore his Frontiers performance, it was a bit odd getting used to but I like it. It sounds like a more mature Sonic and I feel like that’s the direction Sega wants to put Sonic in
In Frontiers, sometimes Sonics voice gets LOWER the Rogers own normal voice! Rogers best performance as Sonic is either Forces or Final Horizon, simply due to the energy in his voice. He doesn’t have a lot of energy in his voice for base game Frontiers. There is a certain energy you expect from a character like Sonic and that’s absent in the game. Why is Sonic’s voice so deep? Did he forgot to drink water? Is he depressed, why? This goes for mostly everyone else too… Everyone sounds so sad, depressed, deep in thought… but no reason as to why! I think that’s really my issue… it sound off but only because I don’t know why it doesn’t sound normal… no reason other then “for style choices” is given. Final Horizon is a little better because he actually sounds full of that Sonic energy he has… maybe that’s due to the dialogue or the subtle pitch change, idk
I don't feel like Frontiers Sonic voice is so somber, but it definitely feels like Sonic kinda went through his teenhood like we went from Nathan Drake from his first three games to his more serious and contemplative fourth game A Thief's End, like Sonic is at the end of his energy being spent (exaggerating of course lolol). I think they could've done more flexible voice work with esp Sonic, allow Sonic to go deeper but when he's trying to pick others up or there are more vibrant moments, Sonic's voice COULD have pitched up a little to have the viewer and other characters pick up themselves. And leave the lower pitched voice moments to sorta have Sonic sound like he is on the same wavelength as the others, to show his understanding with Tails, Amy, and Knuckles.
You and I have higher nasally vocies similar to Sonic, at least generally. It fluctuates higher and lower. Imagine if in any actual serious or somber moment you just extremely deepened your voice? It would sound dumb. lol
Personally I've always been for the most part indifferent to the Sonic VA's, I feel they all do a serviceable job. However I still have quite a few thoughts, mainly partaining to Roger. Excuse my yapping. Roger's voice isn't terrible. In fact, it makes sense, especially the deeper portrayal in Frontiers. You have to understand that time passes in the Sonic verse, and these characters "AGE". SEGA/Sonic Team have explicitly gone on record saying that they wanted a more "mature" sounding voice for the character when recasting for him Free Riders/Colors. You don't ask for a more mature voice in a character unless you're trying to make clear said character is older than previously portrayed. Despite whatever the old Sonic manuals or official website says, he IS NOT the same age in all the games, there is a very clear passage of time. (That would also imply that every game takes place within the span of a single year, in which absolutely NOT) Hell, he literally had a birthday party in Generations. You don't have a birthday and not get older, Sonic-verse logic or not, that's not how that works. Even if he is 15 currently, despite everyone saying he sounds too old, that's wrong, he can STILL have a deep voice because guess what? Deep voice teenagers exist in real life too, respectfully go outside more if you think otherwise. It also makes sense when you look at the iterations of the character through the lens of him as a shounen protagonist. Ryan's take on Sonic is the most energetic, representing a more youthful hero still moreso in the beginning of his journey. Jason's take is a more emotional one, a hero's been though some stuff and matured just a bit, but is still is that excitable hero. Roger's take on Sonic is that of a mature, "seasoned hero." Sonic at this point has a lot of experience being hero, fought various villains (robots, monsters, aliens, gods and demigods, etc.), and has come out on top basically everytime. It's a balance of being very much unphased and used to this kid of stuff (as literally quoted in Black Knight) whilst still realizing fullly the importance of those close to him, even moreso than before. If anything the only thing that's really screwed Roger's take is poor writing/direction. The man has range, and can voice act. Just look at his performances in Dying Light, some of the Batman Arkham games, and his various roles on Regular Show.
This is a good take. I’d probably like Roger’s take more if his debut role was more “Berserk” and less “Looney Toons on Ritalin.” Hell, straight to Frontiers after Unleashed/Black Knight would kick ass!
I feel that the direction they've been taking these characters in recently years are really "anti-themselves." I want that when I hear a certain character speak, I can feel every part of their personality. Alongside with how they look, since the designs of Sonic characters also need to look like what they are. Even when the characters are just standing there, they should express who they are. They were made with this in mind! These characters don't change fundamentally, they're made to last forever, like Mickey Mouse for exemple, you know how Mickey should sound like.
I shouldn't even care so much about this since I'm Brazilian, I play the games with subtitles lol But all the Sonic media we have here in Brazil is dubbed based on the english voices instead of the original ones. And there's a very good chance that future games will start to be dubbed too, so I worry that this direction will be reflected here too. + I'm not sure, but I think that even the localization of the games dialogues in the subtitles are based on the english version, so... I guess I'm f☆cked.
The issue with Roger as Sonic comes from the fact that his voice is just too naturally deep, so in order to sound like he's got a voice like Sonic's, y'know energetic and irreverent and cocky, he's got to raise his pitch to an absurd degree. He's gotta strain himself to "do a Sonic voice", and that limits his ability to actually act, and perform the necessary emotions the character is experiencing. The one entry where he was able to actually act, and perform, and sound natural when expressing emotion, was Frontiers, and it's because he wasn't having to do a voice and speak unnaturally. But again, his voice is too deep. He has to choose between acting well, or sounding like Sonic (kinda). NONE of this is to knock on him or push him to be fired or anything like that. I love Roger, you can tell he cares about the character and the community, but this is about what's best for the character, Sonic needs a higher voice to sound properly like Sonic, and Roger PHYSICALLY CAN'T give him one while also giving a convincing acting performance. The comparison I like to make is Darth Vader. If you want to portray Darth Vader in something, you need either James Earl Jones, or someone with a voice as DEEP, as James Earl Jones. No matter how good a performer is, no matter how much he cares about and understands the character OF Darth Vader, how right his actual emotional performance is for the character, you would NEVER cast Tom Holland for the role, because his voice isn't deep enough to sound like Darth Vader. You're never going to convince an audience that the 6 foot 8 inch tyrant of pure intimidation that IS Darth Vader just HAS Tom Holland's voice. It won't sound right. I've always thought Roger would make a better Knuckles or Shadow anyway. Bit late for that transition NOW after over a decade with him as Sonic's voice, be a bit weird, but he was great as the deeper, growly voiced Ezio Auditore. Dude's PLAYED BATMAN, he has Shadow's name written all over him. Max Mittleman would be my pick for a new Sonic voice (partially because the rumors that were flying around a few years ago about that very thing, mostly because he just has a good voice for Sonic). REALLY my pick would be Ryan Drummond, but his voice has aged a lot and it probably wouldn't hit quite the same nowadays. You want someone with that kind of higher voiced scratchiness you see in other young shounen battle protagonists, or Junichi Kanemaru specifically. Richard Ian Cox would be a great Sonic too. He was the dub voice of Inuyasha, has that perfect higher growly delinquent anime punk voice, great fit.
Ben schwartz will always be my guy in anything he does but sometimes you really can say about all of the voice actor's is they really all give it their best weather it s the direction they're given or some other factor no one is not trying here i think thats something we can appreciate... but sonic schoolhouse definitely didn't try it made CD's I'm outta here look like an Oscar worthy performance😅
I think another problem is just how inconsistent the series has been since the 2010s. I can’t blame the actors for not always turning in good performances because how could they? They have no idea who these characters are because they haven’t been given a chance to actually know their characters. The Dreamcast era and the 4Kids era had their problems, but the characters were always consistent so the actors could refine their performances and embody their characters. But the modern cast can’t do that because the series can’t make up its mind. The direction is different in games like Colours, which was different from Lost World, which was different from Forces which was different from Frontiers. I end up just feeling bad for them because they’ve never been given the chance to play these characters at their most authentic.
I think this mirrors what I said in my comment: that the roles are mostly just paychecks BECAUSE of how experienced they are. Add to that the inconsistency, and all they know is what the director tells them.
So! I do see the point with Frontiers.. but I will say the Sonic we've gotten from Roger in the past didn't feel like Sonic to me. As someone who grew up closely with Ryan and Jason.. his take on Sonic in Frontiers felt closer to Sonic than the 2010s. Roger even says he does a very "pinched" Sonic.. never got used to that. Love your opinion though bro!
Despite my criticisms of ryan drummond as sonic, and him not being my preferred sonic voice. I think he has something that a lot of other voice actors do not, and that is operatic singing ability. Drummonds regular voice is that of a booming bass prufondo but he is able to do a voice like sonic despite that and believe it or not that is an entirely technique driven thing. Drummond is a life long operatically trained singer and it shows. This is a deeper conversation we can have about the western voice acting scene. But something i've noticed in comparison to japanese voice actors is how singing ability isnt really seen as like a must and thus is not as intertwined in voice acting compared to say japan. That is not to say no american voice actors sing but just that its not as common for a voice actor to sing in america compared to say japan. Japanese voice actors Practically all of them know how to sing And this definitely does a lot more for their voices in the long run. It can keep your voice more intact due to understanding proper breath support. You Can do character, voices or voices wildly different from your own more naturally, etc, you can scream in different variations and ranges, super intensly (like metal singers lol) and that is all due to practically perfect understanding of breath support and resonance. Singing Teaches you some fundamental things about the voice that you're not gonna get from just voice acting classes or learn to do on your own. I honestly think every aspiring voice actor should learn operatic singing techniques.
@@Ogrsonic-fz8fw you sound like you’ve studied acting as well! You are absolutely right, I just tried to speak in a way most would understand. I hope you could tell I felt the same way!
@@Mardiculous not an actor lol, I'm just an aspiring singer and music producer focusing in metal music. All the screamo stuff lol, Sonic SpongeBob and a lot of cartoon character Voices have been very interesting case studies for me lol.
Honestly, to me Devon Mac is the one who has nailed it 100% as sonic for the modern day we live in. He sounds like sonic and he always does. He doesn’t have to change to almost a completely different character for the sake of tone. if he needs to do a serious voice, it’s sonic doing a serious voice having an emotional moment, but also most importantly what I think he brings his energy and swag to the character. Which is the biggest thing to me personally that has been missing from him. Sonic has no swag anymore in terms of how he speaks and a lot of the times unless they’re going out of their way to make him do something cool how he carries himself. For as many problems as prime has even in terms of how they characterize him at moments. When I close my eyes, I hear sonic
i respectfully disagree no hate to devon mack but i just dont really hear sonic from him. i feel like he trys to much to sound like all the sonics at once but ends up not sounding like any of them or sonic at all in general. hes a good voice actor hes just not sonic to me but he did have his moment u know when he tryed to sound like one sonic specifically i thought why not just do that the whole time. no hate to him he seems like a nice and cool guy just not sonic to me
I think he does a voice that sounds like all the game voices at once and depending on the moment, he’ll lean towards one or another. Which seems super hard to juggle especially if you are focused on the acting. But that said, I think he does good half the time and okay the other half. And it’s not that he’s bad. It could be the writing or directing, because it is tied to the overall portrayal of Sonic in Prime. But he just sounds too…. beggy. He’s always pleading and trying to convince people to like him, to befriend him, to work with him, to give him clarity, to act the way he expects, to stop attacking him, to hear him out, to understand him without him having to make sense. It’s gets old and annoying. And makes him come off kinda weak physically and in personality compared to the games where he’s much more strong willed.
@@Axxidous that comes down to the writing. Like I said, I like the voice, but in terms of how they have him act sometimes and what he says is a different thing.
@@awright555 I already addressed that it might be partially fault of the writing, AND directing. But that means it's also partially still the responsibility of the voice actor. It's a collaborative effort. But, regardless, that's the result we got and that's what we have to judge. So that's how I judge the voice. It produced a voice I sometimes don't like. When he portrays that writing based on what the director directed him to do, resulted in him doing a voice I didn't care for while trying to meet those needs. This was me sorta also piggybacking off of what ElliotWilbur said.
I've said it before but the current voice cast felt much better in boom than in frontiers. Not to say that they are bad actors, but the current actors were originally given the job because of the shift to a more comedic tone. Now that the current direction is in a more closer to the 2000's tone, the current cast feel off IMO. I think a new voice cast that fits the new direction would be better. Honestly I think the cast from prime would be a great fit. They sound like the characters and they were casted with a slightly more serious tone in mind, that fits the sonic games.
still doesn't bother me. frontiers had a vision which was achieved (mostly) & the voice direction was part of it. It'll probably just shift as needed. Also in terms of "contrast", I don't think its something I've made too much note of before. In the 2010 games there was a pretty uniform direction. Maybe in some of the late 2000's games I can see your point. Anyway I personally am not interested in getting recasting done unless it's absolutely needed.
i dont agree with what u mean about the tone of the game i believe that u can have the game being more serious as a reason to have characters being more mature and somber in their voices i will admit its a whiplash of sorts but still its a valid reason it conveys the fact that every thing is in dire straights and that a serious maturity is needed like u wouldnt be all goofy at a funeral would u no because it would make sense also it would be inappropriate plus sonic does still have some of that care free attitude in frontiers is just not as prevelent in frontiers but thats ok because this story is more of a serious one and thats the way they want the story to go i get what u are trying to say sorta but i respectfully disagree
I have no problem with the modern voice cast, I think they are all great voice actors for these characters, but the writing and voice direction is the problem, constantly changing direction, which causes the performances to be inconsistent Sonic Boom has the best voice direction for this voice cast in my opinion so I think they should follow that direction and continue to have Ian Flynn write for the games so these voice actors can finally have some consistency
First of all, I agree 100% with you. Sonic didn’t have to lose his cartoony voice in order to sound serious. That’s like making Goofy in A Goofy Movie not sound GOOFY in order to work with serious moments. It wouldn’t work. With brilliant VAs like Roger, (in Boom especially)you CAN have a cartoon character sound serious. The other VAs were before and after him did it. Even with short serious moments in Boom and Rise Of The Wisps Roger sounded GREAT. Also, Deven Mack is my favorite Sonic VA. Not because he sounds better than the others, but he takes what makes ALL of them great and combines them into one. Deven has so much range it’s not even funny. Also if someone told me Sonic was voiced by an actual teen here, I would’ve believed them. Hot take! Prime!Sonic sounds younger then Movie!Sonic if I’m being honest. He’s able to make Sonic have emotional moments that Sonic barely ever had before too.
@@MarioTainaka i plan to go into more specifics that I gather from these comments. It only feels like not enough time because we are just getting started..
i might be bias but... jason would of sounded way better for frontiers just listen to black knight jasons voice then put it into frontiers lines and you will understand! im not saying roger is bad im just saying i prefer jason and believe he sounds better!
There will be more parts! The topics will become more specific from the discussion that unfolds in the comments! I’m already gathering so many interesting perspectives to comment on in the next one! I like my videos to be a conversation, rather than me talking at you.
I feel like nothing and everythig was said. Let me make it simpler. Meta era is trash. Take out Roger, bring back Ryan. Bring the old voices and old writers. Done
I mean…Kirk Thornton isn’t great. He still isn’t. 14 years and he still sounds like a raspy vampire drawling out his lines. Frontiers’ voice direction wasn’t great either. Sounded like an utter parody of serious mature acting. Only Tails’ VA and Mike Pollock sounded natural. Roger and Cindy just sounded so off to me
I think we need a part 2... 😅
Maybe it's just me or the time limit, but I felt that you didn't exactly expressed yourself with clarity
There will definitely be a part 2, but I think the time limit just means it's the comment section's turn. Then, the next video will include what I've learned!
@@Mardiculous Oh, cool cool!
A SIX Minute moment???
That deep breath in the beginning LOL
I think for me personally, the reason why Roger has become the sonic voice for me has a lot to do with, of course, my attachment to that portrayal of the character, but also because of the "acting" aspect if that makes any sense.
What I mean by that is like, with Ryan and Jason while the voice they do for Sonic is undeniably iconic and rightfully the voice that people associate the most with Sonic, the reason why Roger resonates with me so much more personally is because he never really sounded like he was doing a voice. Like yeah obviously he was, but what I mean is the way he enunciates his lines, the emotion he puts into them.
Frontiers, in my opinion, was the first time in a long while that Sonic has ever sounded sincere to me. Most of the lines he delivered were so full of heart and feeling, it didn't feel like he was just reading off of a script. "Careful? Where's the fun in that?", as simple as it was, was the line that cemented that Roger was THE Sonic for me.
Another thing to is that it finally feels like these characters are growing up with their audience. Maybe it's just me, but I never really fully subscribed to the idea to keep the cast perpetual teenagers when they've been seen behaving in ways not many teenagers do. While I don't necessarily agree that the deeper tone should be the tone going forward (and judging from the projects we've gotten since Frontiers, it definitely seems like that tone was exclusive to that game), giving Sonic that more mature edge to his voice instead of trying to keep him sounding like a 15 year old is the play in my honest opinion.
Overall tho I 100% agree with you take on how it all comes down to contrast. While I personally believe that contrast is still here, it's understandable why some don't. My only real hope is to see more people get a better understanding of the industry and these actors' positions instead of constantly blaming them for things out of their control. Can't wait for part 2 man!
I feel like the voice acting that encapsulated Sonic the Hedgehog as a character really peaked in "Black Knight" with Jason Griffith. He had that serious tone but it still had the essence of freedom.
While Roger isn't my favorite Sonic voice, I've always enjoyed his performances in Colors, Generations, and even Free Riders. I felt like the pitch he had for those games was still consistent with Ryan and Jason without trying to be exactly like them. Sonic's voice in Frontiers doesn't bother me, but I do agree that just because the tone of the game is somber doesn't mean the voice pitch has to drop. I guess what I'd like to see is just consistency with the voices much like other aspects of the franchise. I don't know what the comfortable range is for any of the current actors, but if they're directed to voice the characters in that range and it leads to improvement then I'm all for it.
The current directors are Jamie Simone and Jack Fletcher at Studiopolis so all talent is from their pool .
As someone who's directed people and taken classes myself I feel like for Frontiers everyone was just thrown in and they were trying to figure out what worked as the game went on. Some lines were also recorded out of order. This is normal for games but here it feels like there wasn't a solid through line.
I really like this format. It's a nice form of discussion but keeps it short and sweet.
I totally agree with what you were saying about how actors should sound within their comfortable range, but for a while now, I get the feeling that the newer cast HAVE gotten more comfortable with their voice, but it sounds less and less like the characters and less contrasting.
Back in the days of Sonic X, even with how many characters there were, you could tell which one was talking. There's a reason why ppl like to make funny impressions of Jason Griffith's Sonic, cuz that voice is pretty iconic and DEFINETELY contrasts with Tails, Knuckles or Shadow (even tho that was the same dude)
I feel like back then, SEGA had a specific way Sonic and Co. wanted to sound like, but as time went on, it's almost like they...cared less...?
I hope that doesn't sound mean, but what I mean is when Roger started out, he had to raise his voice A LOT to get that "Sonic feel" or however you'd put it. But over time, to the point where we are now, his Sonic voice is closer to his normal voice, with it being deeper and less energetic (kinda the same with Amy and Eggman, cuz their voices were deeper in Frontiers too) and personally, I'm not a fan of either way. I think if you're gonna pick someone to voice Sonic, you'd want someone who naturally has that energetic and cocky sound to it and ACT with it, y'know? (cough cough Max Mittelman cough)
Like you said, some transparency from SEGA would be nice about stuff like this, especially since they have a track record of...not treating their voice actors well.
I glad this video got into something I’ve kinda been wanting to say about Sonic’s voice actors, but didn’t really know how to articulate. I think every voice actor for Sonic is super talented, and it’s why I could never say any were bad or that I dislike any. Cuz really they were all doing what the directors were asking and delivered.
I think the issue is that the current voice director for the franchise, Jack Fletcher, has never really worked on a game quite like Sonic Frontiers before. He's never really had to direct these characters for a dour and depressing mood before, aside from maybe Sonic Forces. He started with the franchise in Sonic Colors, and being told by the parent company that this game is going to be "more serious" than other games, his assumption there was that the way to make the game sound more serious was to deepen all the character voices. This is more of a black and white solution and doesn't entirely work out, as we can see in the game proper. I don't think he understood that the appeal of putting Sonic in depressing situations is that he still sounds like himself, instead of sounding way deeper for some reason.
It honestly sounds like they couldn't decide on a concrete direction for Roger, as sometimes he uses his natural speaking voice and in other moments he sounds like he's trying too hard to reach a deeper register. See: "Sorry, Master King, looks like I'm going all out after all" vs "if there's even a one percent chance I can turn that despair of yours into hope..."
I get the feeling that the Modern Cast was cast on the fact that SEGA wanted to hire more well-known voice actors (like Roger as Sonic, Troy Baker as Espio and Travis Willingham as Knuckles) as a way to bring in casuals who have heard these voice actors before in hopes that they will play the games.
I also get the feeling that the Modern Cast was originally cast as their respective characters to get across to the players the characters' main attributes like Sonic being 'cool', Tails being smart and Shadow being Sonic's main rival and an anti-hero with some edge. And with the writing of the 2010's games being focused on being more simplistic and apologetic, I get the feeling the Modern Voice Actors were mainly cast to be a shell of what the characters formerly were. So, when games like Frontiers try to develop these characters and use the Modern Voice cast, it just feels wrong as those Voice Actors don't fit this current style of Sonic.
Damn, you said what I said but WAY more blunt lmao
Agreed that it’s a fault of casting above all else. But now they seem pretty set on keeping them as long as they can, like they’re trying to set a record. Though they’ve been slowly replacing some of them. Hell, whiny butthole Kate Higgins Tails has all but faded into obscurity.
Cream has the same voice actress since Free Riders yet the direction they gave her in Sonic Dream Team is just dreadful
You are 100% correct about the issue being casting and not the actors themselves. I think the same can be said about direction too. I like Roger Craig Smith’s performances in generations and colors, and he fits those game’s tones. He fits even better in Boom where Sonic is basically a different character. People forget that actors are hired and directed to fit the desires of people higher up, and incorrectly criticize the actors. They’re just doing the job they were given.
Another issue I have is that most of the current cast was brought on for the big tone shift in 2010. Colors was more lighthearted and silly and they chose new voices for that new tone. Lost World, Forces, and especially Frontiers each progressively became more “serious” and it feels like these new voices are super out of place at this point. The different voice direction and writing of Frontiers doesn’t help at all, and it feels like they are forcing these actors and even characters into roles they were never meant to be in.
As someone who wishes Ai was dead, I respect any VA that works on this franchise and wish them the best
I think while the current voice cast are great voice actors in their own right, in the time since the current cast's tenure began we've started to see better actors come to the fore in spinoffs because the current game cast was installed at a time Sonic was embarrassed by itself, and now we're heavily shifting away from that towards Sonic being **proud** to be itself.
Just look at how much better Ian Hanlin, Prime's Shadow VA, was received by fans because his voice and characterisation felt like a better follow on from David Humphrey and Jason Griffith, while Kirk Thornton was cast at a time they were trying to go for a Vegeta characterisation and now his take doesn't really suit with them going back to a better Shadow characterisation.
The same goes with Amy; her Prime VA was a perfect follow on from Lisa Ortiz and Jennifer Douillard, while Cindy Robinson still feels like a Minnie Mouse impersonation that's trying to escape being Amy Rose.
Even Sonic - I'd say Ben Schwartz and Deven Mack's takes feel more "Sonic" than Roger's does.
I think the thing is (with the current fandom climate with how accessible these VAs are people are now), fans are averse to recasting and putting anyone out of a job. But at some point the brand needs to do what represents its characters best, rather than trying to make its characters represent other popular media because they were embarrassed to be themselves. And it's not like those VAs are going to be out of work, or that they can't voice other sonic characters in future.
It's been 15 years, so I think we're overdue a bit of a refresh. Maybe after the generations remaster they'll start re-establishing some characters to move forward rather than keeping voices that don't suit the direction they're going with now.
I 1000% agree. Sonic is (for better or, for worse), an adult in Frontiers. He says to Tails things like, "That's part of growing up." Which would be insane if he didn't finish growing up. But he sounds... too old, like 40 year old old. Sonic should still sound pretty youthful and shouldn't be portrayed older than 25.
I love the time limit idea, and I fully understood you, and I understand that the pressure is helpful. Maybe it would be good to maybe have the full timer on display, but you have a paper on your desk and give yourself and outline of what you want to talk about and time stamps for each of them. So the timer starts counting down, and you’re on your intro, but at 5:30 you start in contrast, and etc. and at 2 minutes you start on what you think should be the next step for the VAs casting wise, etc. I think you’ll be able to get more thoughts across in a video that way, maybe!
I’m going to try that, off screen! I just think showing it will over complicate things visually.
@@Mardiculous yes I agree, if you do something like that or have any other kind of notes I don’t think we should see it!
i'm glad this isn't just a video of you doing impressions
Bias here but I always love Ryan as Sonic. Don't get me wrong, I love most of the Sonic voice cast after him from Jason- Deven. I feel as though it all depends on the direction they are given. You start to notice that as you play the games. Example, Ryan in heroes was a lot of more energetic, hype, etc. Jason at times when he went into Shadow The Hedgehog as Sonic feels like he was just reading a scrpit even in 06. When Unleashed came I feel as though he really gave an all out performance and understood what Sonic was all about. Roger I like his work so far, though I will have to agree that I wasn't too much of fan of making Sonic's voice go low because it was such a serious story. I honestly feel there should be a balance between making him serious without having to lower his tone of voice. I think he'll be able to find that. Just gotta keep him in the right direction. Deven Mack seems like a natural and I would to see him and the rest of the prime cast have a go at a future sonic game.
I loved the deeper/lower voice because it matched the genuine dark and somber tone of Frontiers. Sure we've had serious moments in the franchise before, but non were on the level that Frontiers did it. And thats precisely why I love Roger, because he's able to adjust his voice to match the environment and story it's used in.
I've been with the franchise for well over 20 years so I have heard pretty much all voices Sonic has had in mainstream media. I like Ryan, just an overal good voice. I used to like Jason until someone pointed out a specific tone he keeps using and now I cannot unhear it and has ruined it a bit, but still quite good. Ben is also really good but not someone I'd want for the games, pretty much the same for Deven with prime.
But for me personally Roger stands above all, his vocal range and energy that he brings to Sonic is something I simply adore more than any prior VA we've had!!
I just wish that Roger was directed as if he was voicing an anime and not a cartoon. The Twitter takeover after Frontiers was probably my favorite performance from Roger to date, as he sounded youthful without coming off as childish. Hopefully they can have him capture that cadence in future games.
Tho if I had my way I would make Max Mittleman due to how incredible his range is as voice actor.
i feel like Rodger Craig Smith’s sonic voice can sound really good,l. In Sonic Boom and the Twitter takeovers he sounds great. I feel like in the games, his voice does often sound forced
Shadow's current voice actor is just doing a Mr.Burns from the Simpsons impression...
You aren't wrong lol
Aw man, but I'm so happy to see more of your videos! I've never clicked on a video so quickly before
I got used to frontiers sonic voice but then went back to lost world and the difference hit me like a truck
Bro I love your freaking content dude. Also you should make a video talking about your favorite sonic portrayal in his game. My favorite is SA2 sonic, I wish he was that way in every game. He was selfless but selfish, impulsive, confident and a real light to everyone. But most importantly he was so mysterious. You never really know what he’s thinking, and I really freaking miss that being consistently in sonic.
Jason Griffith is the voice I can’t get over. I hear it in the comics and books lol. He’s the one I grew up with and he’ll always be MY personal Sonic 🦔
The fact that in that interview, even Roger was like "you've got to be kidding me..." Tells me everything.
I can't take Roger seriously. I liked him for boom byt that's it for me. He just comes across as "how fo you do fellow kids". At least before he was actually doing a voice but now it just sounds like they grabbed some random guy of the street with zero acting experience and said fuck it he'll be our new Sonic because we want the game to be serious?
I respect what Roger did in Frontiers, the script is great, and the delivery is sincere. Just listen to his conversation with Knuckles or with Tails. In my opinion, Frontiers was Roger's best performance as Sonic.
With Sonic's voice, it's always an interesting discussion on who or what you want from the character to sound like, and for me, I do enjoy Roger's Sonic the most. Maybe it's from growing up with that voice, but I like to think it's because his voice has something different from previous voices, even outside of the games. That said, as much I like some of his performance in Frontiers, there is this weird consisintecy of how Sonic should sound, aka the deeper voice. Now as someone said in another comment, the casting director are Jamie Simone and Jack Fletcher, but mainly Jack is the one that I see pop up more in searching the behind the scenes in Sonic currently.
I feel like he is someone that I would to know more about, wheter through social media or an attempt at a interview, it would be nice to know what goes through his mind on these games, as I feel like he isn't concisnet on his end, as by game, Sonic Dream Team, Sonic goes back to that higher pitch that Roger had before that I feel most people liked, but with Rouge, most would say that Karen's worst portrayal of the character, as she feels too squeaky or high pitch for a character like Rouge, though I feel like Rouge has more trouble with being portrayed accurateliny for a while.
Nonetheless, I don't want to blame Mr. Flecther on this. As you and others have said, we don't know. With a lack of transparency from Sega, and as much as I enjoy the current cast, if they are to stick around more, then I feel like there needs to be a consistent effort in plan, either on Sega's or Studiopolis's end. At least that is how I see it, and someone may want to correct me if I am inaccurate in my opinions.
I have a different take, to me Frontiers was Roger's best take on Sonic yet! I remember that when it was announced that Jason was replaced, the excuse was that they wanted a "younger" voice for Sonic and this has bothered me since.
Roger's Sonic has always sounded too high pitched for my liking, I couldn't take him seriously anymore... While in Frontiers from the first cutscene I already knew that he meant business with that voice! But well I'm not saying it's perfect as is, Roger can refine it and find a middle ground but this change wasn't a mistake, it went for the right direction imo.
There is an interesting split I am hearing in these comments between those who prefer Roger's higher pitched take, and his lower.
I am, for SURE, going to explore this in part 2.
Thank you for sharing your point of view, it helps make these conversations interesting for me!
0:46 The halarious part is the game starts off with a deep voice and by the end it goes back to normal 2010's voice/tone.
Idk why they didn't just have Roger use the same voice he was using for a Decade if they weren't going to have him commit to it.
YES exactly this, ughhh it's such a tricky topic to talk about bc these are people just trying to do their job and the fans that grew up on them are grown and have valid attachments to them at this point. But I truly do feel that once these characters stop sounding distinct from one another is when we genuinely lose a bit of the plot
It's why I stopped ragging on the voice actors themselves bc while I do have my favorites, I feel real progress right now has to come with compromise.
I feel Frontiers voice direction is actually so forced, and you can hear it because every time the characters are supposed to project more OUTWARDS emotion, it falls flat. Especially when it comes to yelling, bc it feels so many times the characters are in the midst of a take, getting into it, and then the director is telling them "okay but remember, somber and lower pitched". I can feel it in Amy, Kronos and Final Horizon ESPECIALLY with the Cyber Sonic "scream" especially when I KNOW I've heard these actors portray these emotions properly AND with a more traditional Sonic sound to their performances
The more narrative anime driven direction for the franchise can work, it HAS worked. But we need to also realize that these are Sonic characters and I feel that muting what makes them sound so unique removes part of WHY it was so exciting to see this more anime style approach for these characters in the first place. You take that away and it just sounds like another generic anime.
So I grew up with both “Dreamcast” and “4Kids” casts, and generally accept and like both equally (sure I have favorites for each character, but either gets the job done). In a way, I think my childhood opinion of the Colors cast somewhat mirrors Evan’s on the 4Kids cast, a rug pull of sorts. Though of course, that will always be intwined for me with the direction of Colors and other early 2010’s games -until Boom when the series reached critical mass of tired dad energy- so I will admit, my negative bias is pathological.
That said, when I think of the contrast between the Colors cast and the voices from before, my big takeaway is always that they sound like -and in fact have- done the effective same voice many times before. That it’s not special for them, and their voice isn’t special. My go to example is Kirk Thornton, who according to Sonic Retro, has more voice over credits in English dubbed anime than any other male VA. And that’s great for him! That’s good business! But contrasted with Humphrey and even Griffith, there’s no chance he didn’t just audition with the same spiky antagonist voice he’s used dozens of times.
It’s apparent in other voices as well. Amy is Minnie Mouse, Knuckles is some jock, Silver is Raiden, etc. is this nostalgia bias? Probably. But it’s how I feel, and I didn’t know what else to say for this lmao
Roger was representing a more laid back comedic Sonic until Frontiers which brought back the serious storytelling and the Sonic we know. Ryan and Jason were kind of like two sides of the same coin doing similar things. I can’t really think of a story where Jason did a more unserious Sonic say like what Ryan did with Sonic Heroes. Jason has always had stories that took themselves seriously and I think he nails it better than anyone else. I love Ryan’s take in SA2, Heroes and the voice clips he did for the GBA games. I love Jason’s take in Riders, Riders ZG, Secret Rings, Black Knight, Unleashed, and the two Rush games. Roger to me never really hit the same as the other 2. It’s not that I don’t like his performance, he just doesn’t really sound like Sonic to me, part of that is the writers fault for not knowing how to write the character. I think Forces was a step up in Sonic’s characterization and Roger sounds better there but I adore his Frontiers performance, it was a bit odd getting used to but I like it. It sounds like a more mature Sonic and I feel like that’s the direction Sega wants to put Sonic in
Great video!
In Frontiers, sometimes Sonics voice gets LOWER the Rogers own normal voice!
Rogers best performance as Sonic is either Forces or Final Horizon, simply due to the energy in his voice.
He doesn’t have a lot of energy in his voice for base game Frontiers. There is a certain energy you expect from a character like Sonic and that’s absent in the game.
Why is Sonic’s voice so deep? Did he forgot to drink water? Is he depressed, why?
This goes for mostly everyone else too…
Everyone sounds so sad, depressed, deep in thought… but no reason as to why!
I think that’s really my issue… it sound off but only because I don’t know why it doesn’t sound normal… no reason other then “for style choices” is given.
Final Horizon is a little better because he actually sounds full of that Sonic energy he has… maybe that’s due to the dialogue or the subtle pitch change, idk
I need this but an hour longer I love this topic
You KNOW I will continue, its hard not to since I love acting, and Sonic. Even separately!
I don't feel like Frontiers Sonic voice is so somber, but it definitely feels like Sonic kinda went through his teenhood like we went from Nathan Drake from his first three games to his more serious and contemplative fourth game A Thief's End, like Sonic is at the end of his energy being spent (exaggerating of course lolol).
I think they could've done more flexible voice work with esp Sonic, allow Sonic to go deeper but when he's trying to pick others up or there are more vibrant moments, Sonic's voice COULD have pitched up a little to have the viewer and other characters pick up themselves. And leave the lower pitched voice moments to sorta have Sonic sound like he is on the same wavelength as the others, to show his understanding with Tails, Amy, and Knuckles.
You and I have higher nasally vocies similar to Sonic, at least generally. It fluctuates higher and lower.
Imagine if in any actual serious or somber moment you just extremely deepened your voice? It would sound dumb. lol
Best take I’ve seen so far. 👍
Personally I've always been for the most part indifferent to the Sonic VA's, I feel they all do a serviceable job. However I still have quite a few thoughts, mainly partaining to Roger. Excuse my yapping.
Roger's voice isn't terrible. In fact, it makes sense, especially the deeper portrayal in Frontiers. You have to understand that time passes in the Sonic verse, and these characters "AGE". SEGA/Sonic Team have explicitly gone on record saying that they wanted a more "mature" sounding voice for the character when recasting for him Free Riders/Colors. You don't ask for a more mature voice in a character unless you're trying to make clear said character is older than previously portrayed. Despite whatever the old Sonic manuals or official website says, he IS NOT the same age in all the games, there is a very clear passage of time. (That would also imply that every game takes place within the span of a single year, in which absolutely NOT) Hell, he literally had a birthday party in Generations. You don't have a birthday and not get older, Sonic-verse logic or not, that's not how that works. Even if he is 15 currently, despite everyone saying he sounds too old, that's wrong, he can STILL have a deep voice because guess what? Deep voice teenagers exist in real life too, respectfully go outside more if you think otherwise.
It also makes sense when you look at the iterations of the character through the lens of him as a shounen protagonist. Ryan's take on Sonic is the most energetic, representing a more youthful hero still moreso in the beginning of his journey. Jason's take is a more emotional one, a hero's been though some stuff and matured just a bit, but is still is that excitable hero. Roger's take on Sonic is that of a mature, "seasoned hero." Sonic at this point has a lot of experience being hero, fought various villains (robots, monsters, aliens, gods and demigods, etc.), and has come out on top basically everytime. It's a balance of being very much unphased and used to this kid of stuff (as literally quoted in Black Knight) whilst still realizing fullly the importance of those close to him, even moreso than before.
If anything the only thing that's really screwed Roger's take is poor writing/direction. The man has range, and can voice act. Just look at his performances in Dying Light, some of the Batman Arkham games, and his various roles on Regular Show.
This is a good take. I’d probably like Roger’s take more if his debut role was more “Berserk” and less “Looney Toons on Ritalin.” Hell, straight to Frontiers after Unleashed/Black Knight would kick ass!
I feel that the direction they've been taking these characters in recently years are really "anti-themselves."
I want that when I hear a certain character speak, I can feel every part of their personality.
Alongside with how they look, since the designs of Sonic characters also need to look like what they are. Even when the characters are just standing there, they should express who they are. They were made with this in mind!
These characters don't change fundamentally, they're made to last forever, like Mickey Mouse for exemple, you know how Mickey should sound like.
I shouldn't even care so much about this since I'm Brazilian, I play the games with subtitles lol
But all the Sonic media we have here in Brazil is dubbed based on the english voices instead of the original ones.
And there's a very good chance that future games will start to be dubbed too, so I worry that this direction will be reflected here too.
+ I'm not sure, but I think that even the localization of the games dialogues in the subtitles are based on the english version, so...
I guess I'm f☆cked.
Honestly, the first time I heard it I felt weird, but you can improve that, that's undeniable
A middle ground is needed, neither very comical nor very serious in my opinion.
The issue with Roger as Sonic comes from the fact that his voice is just too naturally deep, so in order to sound like he's got a voice like Sonic's, y'know energetic and irreverent and cocky, he's got to raise his pitch to an absurd degree. He's gotta strain himself to "do a Sonic voice", and that limits his ability to actually act, and perform the necessary emotions the character is experiencing. The one entry where he was able to actually act, and perform, and sound natural when expressing emotion, was Frontiers, and it's because he wasn't having to do a voice and speak unnaturally. But again, his voice is too deep. He has to choose between acting well, or sounding like Sonic (kinda).
NONE of this is to knock on him or push him to be fired or anything like that. I love Roger, you can tell he cares about the character and the community, but this is about what's best for the character, Sonic needs a higher voice to sound properly like Sonic, and Roger PHYSICALLY CAN'T give him one while also giving a convincing acting performance. The comparison I like to make is Darth Vader. If you want to portray Darth Vader in something, you need either James Earl Jones, or someone with a voice as DEEP, as James Earl Jones. No matter how good a performer is, no matter how much he cares about and understands the character OF Darth Vader, how right his actual emotional performance is for the character, you would NEVER cast Tom Holland for the role, because his voice isn't deep enough to sound like Darth Vader. You're never going to convince an audience that the 6 foot 8 inch tyrant of pure intimidation that IS Darth Vader just HAS Tom Holland's voice. It won't sound right.
I've always thought Roger would make a better Knuckles or Shadow anyway. Bit late for that transition NOW after over a decade with him as Sonic's voice, be a bit weird, but he was great as the deeper, growly voiced Ezio Auditore. Dude's PLAYED BATMAN, he has Shadow's name written all over him.
Max Mittleman would be my pick for a new Sonic voice (partially because the rumors that were flying around a few years ago about that very thing, mostly because he just has a good voice for Sonic). REALLY my pick would be Ryan Drummond, but his voice has aged a lot and it probably wouldn't hit quite the same nowadays. You want someone with that kind of higher voiced scratchiness you see in other young shounen battle protagonists, or Junichi Kanemaru specifically. Richard Ian Cox would be a great Sonic too. He was the dub voice of Inuyasha, has that perfect higher growly delinquent anime punk voice, great fit.
@@hereforonereason5820 absolutely agree! Incredible analysis. This is very close to the direction I want to go in, in part 2 of this video!
Ben schwartz will always be my guy in anything he does but sometimes you really can say about all of the voice actor's is they really all give it their best weather it s the direction they're given or some other factor no one is not trying here i think thats something we can appreciate... but sonic schoolhouse definitely didn't try it made CD's I'm outta here look like an Oscar worthy performance😅
I think another problem is just how inconsistent the series has been since the 2010s. I can’t blame the actors for not always turning in good performances because how could they? They have no idea who these characters are because they haven’t been given a chance to actually know their characters. The Dreamcast era and the 4Kids era had their problems, but the characters were always consistent so the actors could refine their performances and embody their characters.
But the modern cast can’t do that because the series can’t make up its mind. The direction is different in games like Colours, which was different from Lost World, which was different from Forces which was different from Frontiers. I end up just feeling bad for them because they’ve never been given the chance to play these characters at their most authentic.
I think this mirrors what I said in my comment: that the roles are mostly just paychecks BECAUSE of how experienced they are. Add to that the inconsistency, and all they know is what the director tells them.
So! I do see the point with Frontiers.. but I will say the Sonic we've gotten from Roger in the past didn't feel like Sonic to me. As someone who grew up closely with Ryan and Jason.. his take on Sonic in Frontiers felt closer to Sonic than the 2010s. Roger even says he does a very "pinched" Sonic.. never got used to that. Love your opinion though bro!
Despite my criticisms of ryan drummond as sonic, and him not being my preferred sonic voice. I think he has something that a lot of other voice actors do not, and that is operatic singing ability. Drummonds regular voice is that of a booming bass prufondo but he is able to do a voice like sonic despite that and believe it or not that is an entirely technique driven thing. Drummond is a life long operatically trained singer and it shows.
This is a deeper conversation we can have about the western voice acting scene. But something i've noticed in comparison to japanese voice actors is how singing ability isnt really seen as like a must and thus is not as intertwined in voice acting compared to say japan. That is not to say no american voice actors sing but just that its not as common for a voice actor to sing in america compared to say japan.
Japanese voice actors Practically all of them know how to sing And this definitely does a lot more for their voices in the long run. It can keep your voice more intact due to understanding proper breath support. You Can do character, voices or voices wildly different from your own more naturally, etc, you can scream in different variations and ranges, super intensly (like metal singers lol) and that is all due to practically perfect understanding of breath support and resonance. Singing Teaches you some fundamental things about the voice that you're not gonna get from just voice acting classes or learn to do on your own. I honestly think every aspiring voice actor should learn operatic singing techniques.
@@Ogrsonic-fz8fw you sound like you’ve studied acting as well!
You are absolutely right, I just tried to speak in a way most would understand. I hope you could tell I felt the same way!
@@Mardiculous not an actor lol, I'm just an aspiring singer and music producer focusing in metal music. All the screamo stuff lol, Sonic SpongeBob and a lot of cartoon character Voices have been very interesting case studies for me lol.
@@Ogrsonic-fz8fw ooooh that explains it! You need REALLY great technique to pull that off without destroying your vocal cords.. lolol
Honestly, to me Devon Mac is the one who has nailed it 100% as sonic for the modern day we live in. He sounds like sonic and he always does. He doesn’t have to change to almost a completely different character for the sake of tone. if he needs to do a serious voice, it’s sonic doing a serious voice having an emotional moment, but also most importantly what I think he brings his energy and swag to the character. Which is the biggest thing to me personally that has been missing from him. Sonic has no swag anymore in terms of how he speaks and a lot of the times unless they’re going out of their way to make him do something cool how he carries himself. For as many problems as prime has even in terms of how they characterize him at moments. When I close my eyes, I hear sonic
Remember first time I hear Deven as Sonic, I though: "Yes, that's him! '
i respectfully disagree no hate to devon mack but i just dont really hear sonic from him. i feel like he trys to much to sound like all the sonics at once but ends up not sounding like any of them or sonic at all in general. hes a good voice actor hes just not sonic to me but he did have his moment u know when he tryed to sound like one sonic specifically i thought why not just do that the whole time. no hate to him he seems like a nice and cool guy just not sonic to me
I think he does a voice that sounds like all the game voices at once and depending on the moment, he’ll lean towards one or another. Which seems super hard to juggle especially if you are focused on the acting.
But that said, I think he does good half the time and okay the other half. And it’s not that he’s bad. It could be the writing or directing, because it is tied to the overall portrayal of Sonic in Prime. But he just sounds too…. beggy.
He’s always pleading and trying to convince people to like him, to befriend him, to work with him, to give him clarity, to act the way he expects, to stop attacking him, to hear him out, to understand him without him having to make sense. It’s gets old and annoying. And makes him come off kinda weak physically and in personality compared to the games where he’s much more strong willed.
@@Axxidous that comes down to the writing. Like I said, I like the voice, but in terms of how they have him act sometimes and what he says is a different thing.
@@awright555 I already addressed that it might be partially fault of the writing, AND directing. But that means it's also partially still the responsibility of the voice actor. It's a collaborative effort. But, regardless, that's the result we got and that's what we have to judge. So that's how I judge the voice. It produced a voice I sometimes don't like. When he portrays that writing based on what the director directed him to do, resulted in him doing a voice I didn't care for while trying to meet those needs.
This was me sorta also piggybacking off of what ElliotWilbur said.
Part 2 plz
I've said it before but the current voice cast felt much better in boom than in frontiers. Not to say that they are bad actors, but the current actors were originally given the job because of the shift to a more comedic tone. Now that the current direction is in a more closer to the 2000's tone, the current cast feel off IMO. I think a new voice cast that fits the new direction would be better. Honestly I think the cast from prime would be a great fit. They sound like the characters and they were casted with a slightly more serious tone in mind, that fits the sonic games.
still doesn't bother me. frontiers had a vision which was achieved (mostly) & the voice direction was part of it. It'll probably just shift as needed. Also in terms of "contrast", I don't think its something I've made too much note of before. In the 2010 games there was a pretty uniform direction. Maybe in some of the late 2000's games I can see your point. Anyway I personally am not interested in getting recasting done unless it's absolutely needed.
i dont agree with what u mean about the tone of the game i believe that u can have the game being more serious as a reason to have characters being more mature and somber in their voices i will admit its a whiplash of sorts but still its a valid reason it conveys the fact that every thing is in dire straights and that a serious maturity is needed like u wouldnt be all goofy at a funeral would u no because it would make sense also it would be inappropriate plus sonic does still have some of that care free attitude in frontiers is just not as prevelent in frontiers but thats ok because this story is more of a serious one and thats the way they want the story to go i get what u are trying to say sorta but i respectfully disagree
I have no problem with the modern voice cast, I think they are all great voice actors for these characters, but the writing and voice direction is the problem, constantly changing direction, which causes the performances to be inconsistent
Sonic Boom has the best voice direction for this voice cast in my opinion so I think they should follow that direction and continue to have Ian Flynn write for the games so these voice actors can finally have some consistency
You sound like sonic
First of all, I agree 100% with you. Sonic didn’t have to lose his cartoony voice in order to sound serious. That’s like making Goofy in A Goofy Movie not sound GOOFY in order to work with serious moments. It wouldn’t work. With brilliant VAs like Roger, (in Boom especially)you CAN have a cartoon character sound serious. The other VAs were before and after him did it. Even with short serious moments in Boom and Rise Of The Wisps Roger sounded GREAT.
Also, Deven Mack is my favorite Sonic VA. Not because he sounds better than the others, but he takes what makes ALL of them great and combines them into one. Deven has so much range it’s not even funny. Also if someone told me Sonic was voiced by an actual teen here, I would’ve believed them. Hot take! Prime!Sonic sounds younger then Movie!Sonic if I’m being honest. He’s able to make Sonic have emotional moments that Sonic barely ever had before too.
Devin Mack and Jason Griffith are the best
Can I offer a quick opinion.. these should be streams or be longer. Five minutes isn't enough.
@@MarioTainaka i plan to go into more specifics that I gather from these comments. It only feels like not enough time because we are just getting started..
Sounds like you said a lot without saying much of anything. Some examples on screen with notes on why they suck or are good would be great.
i might be bias but...
jason would of sounded way better for frontiers just listen to black knight jasons voice then put it into frontiers lines and you will understand! im not saying roger is bad im just saying i prefer jason and believe he sounds better!
also i like ryan he great
I would prefer the video not to be timed.
There will be more parts! The topics will become more specific from the discussion that unfolds in the comments! I’m already gathering so many interesting perspectives to comment on in the next one!
I like my videos to be a conversation, rather than me talking at you.
I feel like nothing and everythig was said. Let me make it simpler. Meta era is trash. Take out Roger, bring back Ryan. Bring the old voices and old writers. Done
i too, like to stay in the past /s
It's amusing how hard you missed the point in this video
I mean…Kirk Thornton isn’t great. He still isn’t. 14 years and he still sounds like a raspy vampire drawling out his lines.
Frontiers’ voice direction wasn’t great either. Sounded like an utter parody of serious mature acting. Only Tails’ VA and Mike Pollock sounded natural. Roger and Cindy just sounded so off to me