Warframe 1999 is finally here, allowing players to explore the past, ride around on motorcycles, and lust after Viktor. However, it's also probably one of the richest updates in terms of popular voiceover talent. Warframe has always been solid in the VO department, but with Ben Starr, Alpha Takahashi, Amelia Tyler, and Trieve Blackwood-Cambridge, the bar has been raised to a whole new level.
So, with that in mind, I wanted to sit down and chat with one of the voice actors about what it's like to step into the wacky world of Warframe for what may be the most ambitious update yet. To that end, Mr. Starr was willing to spend five minutes talking about bringing Arthur back to life, if he had any inspiration for the performance, and the details of adding a human voice to the suit of creation.
iGamesNews
Starr: “I was naked and bathed in slime all the time, like in Find Myself. Sorry, no. I would say the coolest thing about this character is that you get to see two very different sides. You get wise The police officer barks orders and then because of the romance system you get really intimate tender moments if you want to choose, and to me it was never about doing a 90s sound as much as that. “Sounds of the 90s”? I'm not really doing a specific '90s archetype, it's more like, this is an officer living his own life. Let him care about something, about what is in front of him. Battlefield, your character (if you choose), hex group. The immediate situation around him. ”
“I'm a huge fan of the '90s, those were my most formative years, so being able to play the game in that sandbox was really cool. They – the developers – did all the work to make it listen It sounded like the 90s. I just made him sound human.”
iGamesNews: How can you play in a 90s sandbox if the characters don't have “90s voices”? If you're not acting with a '90s voice, what's the difference between acting a character like Arthur and a modern character?
Starr: “Speaking of the acting? No. Because if you try to influence something, it's not going to be particularly interesting. I think the most interesting thing for us is that we took these characters. No, it was almost these archetypes of Excalibur that I played It's the Excalibur! this Iconic Warframe characters. How do you look at this framework and explore what makes them tick like humans? How do you take those sides and show the struggle between their humanity and the inhuman parts of themselves. ”
“It's just that the setting is the '90s and the soundtrack is the '90s, but that's not something I can influence. The character is actually fighting for his own survival but also fighting for his humanity. How those two things work How they conflict with each other and combine to create a compelling story.”
iGamesNews: As players continue to update, they will have the option to approach Arthur. As a voice actor, how do you transition from those tough officer moments to more intimate ones? How has your performance changed?
Starr: “It's like, wall up, wall down. Instead of having the wall suddenly collapse, we create these little cracks to peek in. I think there has to be a tease like that because it's just a carrot and a stick that players can explore if they If you wish.”
“Players can fall in love with and get to know these characters, just like how we made Arthur an attractive prospect whose story you want to know more about. Each one's story will be just as interesting as the last, whether it's Amir, Letty or Eleanor are both really interesting stories, Arthur is just one of them and it's really cool to have that character in my own way and if you invest the time as a player, it's a little gift for you here! Some fun little Easter eggs that will be worth the time if you put in the time.”
iGamesNews: Did you have any inspiration for this character, or any personal inspiration?
Starr: “I'm not pulling it from anything personal. I would say Reb made a note that said the original tone was 'grinding the gears into the dirt.' That's what she wanted Arthur to do . So there's this real deep rant, but as you continue to play Warframe 1999, you'll find that there's almost a need to be loved, and a need to find love in a lot of action games that don't give you the opportunity to do that. There’s a lot that goes into this update emotionally.”
Voice performances like Starr's (but not just Starr's, I particularly enjoyed Alpha Takahashi and Trieve Blackwood-Cambridge's immersive portrayal) add a lot to Warframe 1999. Thousands of players were attracted to the game to interact with the actors. Definitely worth a look if you haven't already.
