When it comes to getting the English dub right, these Square Enix games are great.
Since its start in 2003, Square Enix has been one of the biggest publishers in the world. Even before that, both of its parent companies were making waves in the gaming industry. Most of Square Enix’s products are made for Japanese people, but they are then translated and sent to people all over the world. Before voice acting was popular, most of this was done with subtitles. In the last 20 years, though, dubbing videogames into English has become a big deal.
There are English dubs for a lot of the biggest games out there, which is a big deal because voice acting is so important for both explaining the story and making emotional dialogue in stories. Even if that wasn’t enough, the basic screams and grunts that are in almost every game can be hard to listen to if they aren’t good enough. With that in mind, English dubs have gotten better and better over the years, and Square Enix has made some of the best ones.
Nier Automata
The game Nier Automata was a huge hit, and for good reason. Everything about it was great, from the great gameplay to the good story to the interesting characters. It also has a great dub, and the English voice actor for 9S was probably the best part of the whole thing. Overall, this is one of the best dubs Square Enix has done, given how much content there is to dub in a game like this and how many interactions there are during battles.
Some fans think that the original voice actors caught the essence of some characters, like 2B, better. However, this is mostly a matter of personal taste, and the English dub doesn’t have any clear flaws.
Dragon Quest XI
Dragon Quest XI came out without any Japanese voice acting, and the English dub came out before the Japanese one, but it still works. To be fair, the English version was better than anyone could have hoped for.
In the past, English dubs of JRPGs haven’t been very good and sometimes even funny, but this dub was great. Everyone in the group did a great job, and there isn’t much to complain about. Some of the new things, like how every character calls every other character by name every time they talk, might get old fast for some people.
Final Fantasy XV
The English dub of Final Fantasy XV is great, and Ardyn’s voice acting is especially good. There are some worries, like how bad the English dub was at the beginning of the game. But it was clear that the voice players got better as the game went on.
The exchanges between the four “main” characters that players follow through the whole game and the party system were a big part of why people bought this game. The speech acting and chemistry between the four of them was great, and most importantly. It didn’t feel like it was done by a machine. Overall, this was a good dub, but there were some things that didn’t match up.
Tactics Ogre Reborn
The new Tactics Ogre is basically an updated version of Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together. The original game is one of the best turn-based strategy JRPGs out there. And the new version has made a lot of changes to improve the quality of life, such as giving every character a voice. Along with this, an English dub was made for people in the West.
Given how long Drive Mad is and how much writing there used to be, the Japanese voice acting was very good. Also, the story is a big part of the game, which is set in an older culture and talks about a lot of moral dilemmas. It uses flowery words a lot. Everything worked out really well, though. In the same way, the English dub is also amazing and gets the tone and message right. Most of the important characters, like Vyce and Catiua, have great English dubs. However, some dub fans think they didn’t do a good job of capturing the characters. Which keeps this game’s dub from being Square Enix’s best.
Final Fantasy VII Remake
Final Fantasy VII is one of the most famous role-playing games ever made. And many people think of it as Square Enix’s best game. A version of a game that was this popular and had this much buzz around it had to look amazing. Even though the remake isn’t perfect, it’s pretty close, and the English Dub is, for the most part, really good.
Most of the important characters, like Sephiroth and Cloud, have good dubs, and the voice-overs are also mostly pretty good. In fact, most of the other characters, like Aerith and Tifa, are also very good. Fans’ ideas of what Barrett’s voice would sound like are reflected in his speech. Some of the NPC conversation can seem a little over the top at times. And the first time fans heard what Zack sounds like, it wasn’t all that great. Aside from that, though, this English dub is amazing and helped this game live up to all the hype.
