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Thoughts on the narrator

Started by robertk2, July 31, 2006, 02:24:30 PM

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robertk2

Ok, so I played the demo.  Loved it, and left my suggestions on another thread already.  But I have a question for everyone?  What was your thoughts on the narrator?  Now, I don't want to start a bash session, as that is against the rules of the forum, but I just wanted to know what people thought about her.

Honestly, I thought she was good, she read everything fine and was clear.  However, it seems to me that the role of narrator while playing a guy (such as Graham in the demo) should be played by a guy with a voice simillar to that used by the character.  Remember KQV, with the narrator that sounded like an old guy who needed to clear his throat? And then KQVI with the younger, bolder narrator?  I think that by keeping the gender of the narrator the same as the character you are controlling, it makes you feel like you are the character and the narrator is the characters thoughts or internal voice.  Obviosly its too late in the development to change the narrator, that's not what I'm expecting nor really care to happen, but I just wanted to know what everyone else thought on the topic.

doom saber

There's a speaking narrator in the game!?  Man, something is wrong with my sound configeration than since the voices would work on some scenes of the character.  Thought the narrator was silent.  Good to know it isn't.

Alexandar28

I really liked the narrator.  I thought she was very clear and had a really good speaking voice.  I am jealous.  I want to sound like her. :)

Baggins

#3
Its a good narrator, but my favorite king's quest narrator will be still be the one in KQ6.

Its not King's Quest by top favorite sierra narrator was probably John Rhys Davies in QFG4.  :D
Well, ya, King's Quest is on Earth. Daventry is very old city from a long time ago. It's in ruins now and people aren't quite sure exactly where it used to be. There are some archaeologists searching through the ruins, they think they know its Daventry. But its somewhere on Earth."-Roberta Williams http://kingsquest.wikia.com/wiki/File:Daventryisearth.ogg

TribeHasSpoken

I've only just started playing the demo.

Quote from: Alexandar28 on July 31, 2006, 04:09:17 PM
I really liked the narrator.  I thought she was very clear and had a really good speaking voice.  I am jealous.  I want to sound like her. :)

Agreed.

Also, I laughed out loud at this bit in Graham and Valanice's quarters when you click on the wardrobe:

Narrator: Valanice's clothes occupy most of it
Graham: That says a lot about my fashion style
Narrator: Please note, dear player, that I didn't say that myself
Once the votes are read, the decision is final. The person voted out will be asked to leave the Tribal Council area immediately. I'll read the votes...


koko_99_2001

<3 Happily married to FataliOmega since July 11, 2009 <3

The Unofficial The Silver Lining Official Sarcasm Cleaner Upper :cat:

Catherine DaCosta

sarahrah

I agree she is very clear.  But I'll admit I also agree that a male narrator seems to fit more (I LOVED the one in KQVI).  But she is very good.  My only criticism - and this may be fixed in the actual release - is that she mispronounces some words - Valanice, for example.  There are other words and names in a thread in the forum I believe.  Overall though - very good.

koko_99_2001

Yeah, Neil said that even she realized afterwards that she had mispronounced Valanice's name. But I guess it's important to remember that the demo was put together in three weeks :) That might account for it. I'm sure it'll be fixed when the game comes out :)
<3 Happily married to FataliOmega since July 11, 2009 <3

The Unofficial The Silver Lining Official Sarcasm Cleaner Upper :cat:

Catherine DaCosta

TrueCrusader

Quote from: Baggins on July 31, 2006, 04:16:34 PM
Its a good narrator, but my favorite king's quest narrator will be still be the one was the one in KQ6.

Its not King's Quest by top favorite sierra narrator was probably John Rhys Davies in QFG4.  :D

Haha! The narrator in KQ6 Was Def My favorite! (Maybe that was because Kings quest 6 was the first game I ever played as a kid...) I thought this Narrator was Alright, lol it did sort of annoy me when I Listened to her say Valiance! lol

auroraambria

Hey everyone!  This is Amy Kurylo, the voice of the narrator!  I'm also the voice of a few characters and the vocalist on the theme song, "The Day You Were Gone." 

I appreciate all your comments.  The circumstances surrounding how I became the narrator are quite inconsequential  ;).  I will say this, I'm very honored and humbled by the opportunity.

Few things I'd like to mention:

  • Being a very big fan of the KQ series, imagine my devastation when I realized I'd mispronounced a few names.  The horror.  My only defense is that I think I only had a night or two to lay down the tracks and get them back to the sound department.
  • I don't know why they chose me and not a guy to do the Narration, but I'm very glad that they did.

Thanks to all who played the demo and worked so hard to make it a reality.
Amy K.



TheGreatGraham

  I liked your narrating very much.  YOu said all the lines clear, and I didn't mind you don;t sound like Graham.
  Also, I was a bit worried Graham wasn't voiced by Josh Mandel, but he still sopunds very good.

Yonkey

Welcome Amy and thanks for registering! XD

Quote from: auroraambria on August 01, 2006, 11:25:57 AM
I don't know why they chose me and not a guy to do the Narration, but I'm very glad that they did.
I can actually answer this.  Basically the guy who we first had as Narrator read them a bit too uninterestingly.  Then I tried out for the role, but Mike said my voice wasn't right for it.  Then we got the C&D and knew we needed a narrator, so Mike suggest why not a female?

The first thing that came to my mind, as well as Cesar's later that night when we talked to him was "Hmmm interesting...".  We knew Amy is a professional vocalist and is capable of producing high quality work even remotely, from her online auditions.  When we found out she was also a professional singer, it opened up a ton of more opportunities, namely TSL's current hit single "The Day You Were Gone". 8)

So, we made the design decision to go with a female, rather than the traditional male, and I think it works quite well.  It may feel odd for Graham to have a female voice in his head, but keep in mind that Graham will not be the only playable character in The Silver Lining. 8)
"A wish changes nothing. A decision changes everything."

koko_99_2001

I've never really thought of the narrator being the "voice" in the character's head. I've always figured if the playable character was going to think something, then the voice actor for the character would say it instead of the narrator...
<3 Happily married to FataliOmega since July 11, 2009 <3

The Unofficial The Silver Lining Official Sarcasm Cleaner Upper :cat:

Catherine DaCosta

Yonkey

Well, I guess I meant for people that compare our Narrator with the ones in KQ7.  Although technically, KQ7 didn't have narrators.  It was just Valanice & Rosella talking to themselves. :P
"A wish changes nothing. A decision changes everything."

Throckmorton

Hehe...this may be kind of off-topic, but I thought I'd mention it since we're talking about narration.  What about the narrator from Gabriel Knight?  Wouldn't that be funny if, when Gabriel was thinking, it was in the voice of that old creole woman.  ("Get out of my head, you crazy lady!")

Anyway, great demo!  Amy's voice is perfect for the role of narration.   :thumbsup:
"The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time."
   Bertrand Russell

"It is better to know some of the questions than all of the answers."
   James Thurber

Novaman5000

I think a narrator is more of a storyteller than the inner monologue of the characters (most of the time).  Kings Quest has always lent itself to a sort of fairytale setting, so it could easily be tales being retold by some removed individual.

I personally always like when they have someone older and wizened sounding doing the narration.  I think it can give a story a really mythological feel.  Take, for example, the narration in the game "God of War" (for Playstation 2... I'm hoping some of you have heard of this game).  In it, the old woman's narration is so fitting, in my opinion.  It just helps everything feel more epic somehow.  Still, I have absolutely no complaints about the narrator being a young woman for TSL.

Cez



Cesar Bittar
CEO
Phoenix Online
cesar.bittar@postudios.com

Elessar

Quote from: TribeHasSpoken on July 31, 2006, 07:08:07 PM
Also, I laughed out loud at this bit in Graham and Valanice's quarters when you click on the wardrobe:

Narrator: Valanice's clothes occupy most of it
Graham: That says a lot about my fashion style
Narrator: Please note, dear player, that I didn't say that myself
I'm wondering if there could be a way to say these lines without the narrator actually addressing the player. As it is now, it sort of takes you out of the world of Daventry and reminds you that you're only playing a game. However, it could just be me.
All that is gold does not glitter
Not all who wander are lost
The old that is strong does not wither
Deep roots are not touched by the frost

From the ashes a fire shall be woken
A light from the shadows shall spring
Renewed shall be blade that was broken
The crownless again shall be king


Count Elessar of Cumberland

dark-daventry

The narrator is very clear, precise, and very well spoken. I believe that a female narrator is innovaotive, and innovation is good, at least in my opinion. Amy Kurylo is great at the narration, and is also a great singer. Her voice definetely fits the game in my eyes. Besides, I don't listen to the narrator often. Granted, they say very mean things to the character, and it can be very funny, but I usually pay attention to the game more than the narrator. The narrator in this game is great however and she definetewly fits it well!  :thumbsup:
Founder of the (new) Left Handed Alliance Of Left Handed People (LHALHP)

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Avid Adventure Game fan

ksz4

I LOVE that there is a female narrator. I think it is a nice change of pace from the other games (though I will never forget my endearment for the narrator in KQVI and his frequent notes that "alexander is carefully checking his pockets") But I think the female voice ads a new dimension to the game... a GOOD dimension.