Voice actor defends Silent Hill 2 HD

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 24 August, 2011

"If you want to hate it, that's fine."

Troy Baker - the new voice of James Sunderland in Silent Hill 2 HD - has defended the quality of the voice acting in the game, and blamed original voice actor Guy Cihi for forcing Konami to record new voices.

Silent Hill 2 HD forms a part of the Silent Hill HD Collection, which also contains Silent Hill 3. Both will be remastered with 720p visuals and new voice-overs for release early next year.

The new voice recordings have sparked controversy among fans of the survival horror series, and drawn criticism for their quality.

In an interview with The Gaming Liberty, Troy Baker, who was drafted in by Konami to record dialogue for the James Sunderland character in Silent Hill 2, said one of the problems the voice actors faced was having to lip sync because the developers did not redo any of the lip animations.

"We were tied to the original performances which, for a lot of fans, are monumental and it is a benchmark in gaming performance. But the original performances were met with mixed reviews, too. We all knew going in that we were going to get raised on this and people would be on both sides and be like, 'This is amazing,' or be on the polar opposite and say, 'It's the worst thing ever.'

"Regardless, we were going to have to live with it. But we knew as fans that we wanted to do something that was true to Silent Hill, not necessarily anyone else's performance of it, but true to Silent Hill and all of its incarnations."

Silent Hill 2, released in 2001, was praised for its atmosphere, dialogue and voice work. Guy Cihi, the original voice and motion capture actor for James Sunderland, was in particular praised for his performance.

"Anytime you hear something different, even in music when you hear a live version of a song that you love, it kind of takes on something else and you think, 'No, no, no, you were supposed to hit this note,' or, 'This is the way it's supposed to go,' because that's the way we've been programmed into it," Baker continued.

Baker also had some choice words for Cihi, who he accused of demanding residual payments from Konami in exchange for his help on the HD remake.

"I'm sure that if Silent Hill was my big game and I did it 10 years ago and I saw how successful it was, I would want more money too," Baker said.

"Actually, I don't know if I would be that way because I'd just be happy that I was a part of a successful franchise. The thing that I have learned, especially with the Japanese companies, is that you never ever speak out. You never bash your employers. You never bash the people who gave you a huge leg up no matter what they've done or what you feel that they've done.

"But the fact that he's talking about residuals being in video games shows you just how out of the loop he is because residuals don't happen. They don't exist.

"Don't think for a second that I don't wish that I had a fraction of a penny for every unit sold of Call of Duty: Black Ops or Modern Warfare 2 or Modern Warfare 3 that we're finishing up right now. I would love to see that. But that's not how the system works right now.

"So it's not that Konami wasn't willing to pay them, he (Guy) wanted residuals, he wanted non-existent money that he felt that he was owed. So Konami has no fault in this whatsoever. And they wanted to use him again. Guy was the one who was outspoken about it and said that unless this happens he wouldn't do it, so he forced Konami's hand. So if anybody wants to blame anybody for why they chose new voices, they can go back to the original James and he's the one to blame."

Baker did admit, however, that the new voice acting sounds "jilted".

"The one thing that we were limited by was that we were tied to their performances. So when people say that it sounds worse, it does sound jilted in places because a choice that I would make is not a choice that Guy would make, so you have to somehow fit that into what's already there and slip into someone else's skin and have that come out."

Baker's conclusion? If you don't like Silent Hill 2 HD, that's fine. Play the original on PlayStation2.

"We don't live in a fascist state. Please, have your opinion. If you want to hate it, that's fine. Just go back to the original because it still exists. You can still play it. This is just something new for a new generation. It's an endeavour for Konami to say that we want to bring this classic game back and give it a new treatment. We want to show you things that you never saw before.

"I find it funny when people who are reviewing me based on the new trailer and they don't even know who I am. They say that the new actor (me) displays his abysmal lack of acting chops. My reaction to that is OK, cool, that same person might have praised me for something else I've done before. But it's cool to see how people respond like that. It's kind of like a blind taste test."

Baker has played a number of roles in video games, including Ryu Hayabusa of Ninja Gaiden and Snow of Final Fantasy XIII. He is set to voice Booker De Witt in Irrational's BioShock Infinite, and plays Two-Face in Rocksteady's Batman: Arkham City.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (38) Latest comment 9 months ago

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  • apoc_reg #1 9 months ago

    Forget the voices, whats the point of a HD collection withough Silent Hill 1!

  • Snake_2011 #2 9 months ago

    @apoc_reg you could say the same about Mass Effect 2 being on PS3 this year without playing the first one it was still one of the best games I played this year.

    the voices are not that big a deal for me some sound better imo.

  • MattEdWithCheese #3 9 months ago

    @apoc_reg because upping the resolution would probably make it look worse unless they are actually creating new textures and models for it, If anything you should be asking Konami why the original still isn't back up on PSN after they pulled it for pricing reasons...

    Troy was quite good as Vincent in Catherine so I'll reserve judgement
    Edited by MattEdWithCheese at 24/08/11 @ 09:47

  • HyperTails #4 9 months ago

    While I would honestly prefer the original voice actors, I don't hate on the fact that its changed so long as the new actors do a good enough job. Its changed, so we can either like it or leave it, and i'm going to wait until the final release to decide whether or not I like the voices.

    Plus this bloke did the voice of Snow... he's a good voice actor, so its not like they are replacing Guy Cihi with someone who puts in a wooden performance.

  • -cerberus- #5 9 months ago

    What an asshole.

  • richarddavies #6 9 months ago

    It's been that long since I played Silent hill 2 I can't remember what the original guy sounded like anyway so im not too bothered about the new VA.

  • Architect_z #7 9 months ago

    Can't they get Snoop Dogg to do the voice acting?

  • Rufus #8 9 months ago

    Whilst the story is brilliant, it's not like the voice acting for James (or anyone else for that matter) was amazing in the first place anyway. Baker has had to make the best of a bad situation. I'm still looking forward to playing it again regardless!

  • Jim_Lahey #9 9 months ago

    I am kind of torn on this one. On the one hand I have played all the Silent Hill games numerous times over the years, so the new voice work might freshen up the experiance for me. Yet on the other hand it may not feel right no hearing the original actors voices and thus ruin my enjoyment of the game.

    Still I am holding on to my Silent Hill collection ps2 games( unlike SOTC, ICO and Metal Gear Solid Subsistance which have all been sold for a pretty penny may I add) in case this hd remake blows hard.

  • Silent-Hal #10 9 months ago

    Considering that the Silent Hill fanbase (that I'm part of mind you) are rather infamous for never being happy with anything prior to actual release (though in some cases *cough* Book of Memories *cough* this is completely justified) I wouldn't put much mind to the "controversy" surrounding this. If the game comes out and the new voices are good, then what's the big deal? Of all the things Silent Hill 2 gets acclaimed for, voice acting isn’t one of them.

  • Mr_Brown #11 9 months ago

    I wish people would stop complaining about the lack of Silent Hill 1. It wasn't on the previous Silent Hill Collection, so why would it be in this one? Its obvious that it has not aged well graphically and would definitely need to be completely overhauled graphically to be upgraded to HD.

    I'm more annoyed that they didn't include SH4, which I know many didn't like or consider a true Silent Hill game. But it wasn't terrible and I would like to play through all of them in HD. If not that, then they could of at least added Origins or Shattered Memories in HD ala there Metal Gear Collection which has Portable Ops.

    I'll still be getting it anyway. I'm quite interested in how the new voice acting turns out. It's another reason to play through one of my favourite games again.

  • Shinetop #12 9 months ago

    Voice actor defends Silent Hill 2 HD: "If you want to hate it, that's fine."

    Great defence!

  • Silent-Hal #13 9 months ago

    [link url=http://www.relyonhorror.com/latest-news/why-is-silent-hill-4-not-included-in-the-silent-hill-hd-collection/
    ]http://www.relyonhorror.com/latest-news/...[/link]

    Apparently only SH2 and SH3 were chosen for the collection because they're the games the fans love the most (which I agree with, to a point) and they wanted to concentrate on putting the effort into updating just those games.

  • actionfitz #14 9 months ago

    "Troy Baker, who was drafted in by Konami to record dialogue for the James Sunderland character in Silent Hill 2"

    ... after Konami decided to release new versions of the game on different formats without paying the original actors their cut.
    These aren't residuals. Guy Cihi is the ceo of his own company, I think he's aware of what was in the contract HE signed, more than Troy Baker.

    "The thing that I have learned, especially with the Japanese companies, is that you never ever speak out. You never bash your employers."
    Sorry dude, you just lost any potential respect I may have had for you. I give not one single fuck about if it's an integral part of Japanese culture to take it in the ass from your boss and never speak out... If I was shafted by my company in a huge way like it seems Guy Cihi has been i'd tell them to (respectfully) go fuck themselves.

    I've worked as a 3D artist on PS2 games. When the game hit xbox and PC you better believe we got paid for those too.
    From what I know about the case, Konami paid him once for his work the PS2 version, then ported the game all over the place, new sku's, new versions of the game, reusing his work.

  • RawNinjaKid #15 9 months ago

    This is how i look at it:
    It lets you experience a great story in a different light. Just like in Resident Evil: Directors Cut Dual Shock Version, in which they replaced the music score.

    Not ideal, but good to experience a great title in another way!

  • neilka #16 9 months ago

    That's not what "jilted" means, Cheryl.

  • Cappy #17 9 months ago

    I don't think anybody sets out 'wanting' to hate anything, Silent Hill fans are pretty forgiving, handing over their cash far too easily for shoddy cash ins. The problem lies with the voice acting.

  • MasterNameless #18 9 months ago

    Yeah, surely he meant "stilted", not "jilted".

  • foenanko #19 9 months ago

    So Guy says one thing, Baker says another. I wonder, how long has Baker has been in the industry? Maybe things were different 10 years ago, or maybe the residuals are directly tied to the mocap work Guy did. REGARDLESS, why would Konami feel the need to change the ENTIRE cast because of one man's refusal? New voice work from all the originals sans James would be a bit sad, but not as crappy as replacing everyone with new people that sound nothing like the originals. I still believe Konami did it this way, Baker's "explanation" or no, because it was more cost-effective to pump out the voices with different actors. Besides, if there aren't any residuals, there's nothing keeping Konami from just remastering and using the audio, but they chose not to. Regardless, a rant attacking the man who made the role believable in the first place doesn't inspire me to rush out and buy the game.

  • foenanko #20 9 months ago

    So Guy says one thing, Baker says another. I wonder, how long has Baker has been in the industry? Maybe things were different 10 years ago, or maybe the residuals are directly tied to the mocap work Guy did. REGARDLESS, why would Konami feel the need to change the ENTIRE cast because of one man's refusal? New voice work from all the originals sans James would be a bit sad, but not as crappy as replacing everyone with new people that sound nothing like the originals. I still believe Konami did it this way, Baker's "explanation" or no, because it was more cost-effective to pump out the voices with different actors. Besides, if there aren't any residuals, there's nothing keeping Konami from just remastering and using the audio, but they chose not to. Regardless, a rant attacking the man who made the role believable in the first place doesn't inspire me to rush out and buy the game.

  • NunianVonFuch #21 9 months ago

    You can play through Silent Hill 1 on PC in HD using emulators. It's not very pretty. In fact it's aged terribly with some of the most slow and wooden voice acting in any game I've ever played. But the option is there for the nostalgia. I was just left wondering what all the hype was as the second game and the Wii-make are x100 times better.

  • Pehmu #22 9 months ago

    You can play through Silent Hill 1 on PC in HD using emulators. It's not very pretty.

    Unfortunate but true. Silent Hill 1 was a terrific game, but when I played it on my PC ~4 years ago, it looked really bad. The game would need a big technical/visual upgrade because it really hasn't aged well. Wonky textures, short draw distance, blocky characters and animation ect.

    One of my favourite games of all time but I probably couldn't play the original PS1 version anymore.

  • Zebula77 #23 9 months ago

    Maybe I'm mad for saying this, but I'm not sure that I'd WANT an HD version of SH1. I replayed the PSN-version last year and it looks pretty cruddy, but part of the visual appeal of the game is that the textures and models are kinda crap. It makes your mind fill in more blanks and heightens whatever scare/creepout-factor you get from the game.

    There's times during that game where I just think to myself "What the hell IS that thing?!?" and I love the fact that I can't always readily identify what I'm looking at. An HD update might lose that particular quality.

    I AM looking forward to playing SH2 and 3 in HD, tho - new voices or not.

  • ZuluHero #24 9 months ago

    People moan about the lack of SH1 in the collection because its integral to the story in Silent Hill 3 and explains a lot of what the town is in SH2. And rightly so! I know the story still 'kind of' works, but to really understand the whole dynamic between the town and the characters drawn there and the reason the town is like that you really need to play the first.

    Sadly to a lot of people Harry will be just a dead guy in a chair... Heather will just be 'some girl'. The Town will be just a 'Haunted' town. And let's not even mention the fact that the majority of SH2 and SH3 don't even take place in SH!

    I guess it would be akin to people starting to read Lord of the Rings on the Two Towers. You'd sort of understand what is going on, but you'd miss out on a lot of what makes it what it is.

    I don't have a huge opinion on new voice actors as long as they sort of sound like I remember them.

  • Lycanthroat #25 9 months ago

    One important mention: Troy Baker does the VA for Vincent, the main character in Catherine.

    I am happy with this turn of events.

  • Bulbatron #26 9 months ago

    I must admit, I'd have liked Silent Hill 1 to have been in the collection two. I uderstand all the reasons why this hasn't happened, but it would've still be nice to have for those who wanted it. Perhaps it would've been nice to have it as a bonus. I understand this can be downloaded on PSN, so for PlayStation 3 users, there's no real problem anyway.

    Still looking forwards to the HD Collection though. I think the new voices sound OK to be be honest. Out of the original cast, it was only the voice of Mary/Maria that really stood out, in my opinion.

    And yes, it would've been nice to have Silent Hill 4, but perhaps, if this collection does well, then there'll be another one, maybe containing Silent Hill 4, Origins and Shattered Memories.

  • Ikaros_O #27 9 months ago

    Why did I laugh so hard to that quote "If you want to hate it, that's fine" lol.
    It's like the guy just surrendered straight away, what is he, French?

    Still don't know why it made me laugh...

  • OllyJ #28 9 months ago

    Just had a listen to as much as I could find, the new stuff is fine, it's not amazing but it's not worth the crywank. In some cases it's better.

    Worst thing is that any scene where the voices were processed (radio, reverb) seem to be dry and unprocessed.

  • RESIDENT_nEVILe #29 9 months ago

    "We all knew going in that we were going to get raised on this and people would be on both sides and be like, 'This is amazing,' or be on the polar opposite and say, 'It's the worst thing ever.'"

    Umm, no. People would either not give a shit or be WTFing. Why would anyone think 'this is amazing' because somebody is changing part of an already critically lauded game?

  • fabio78 #30 9 months ago

    Best of the series.

  • Centrifugal #31 9 months ago

    I think Troy Baker is an amazing voice actor anyway; in Final Fantasy XIII he played the role of Snow to perfection even if the character itself was a tad annoying. You only have to watch the scene where he's confronted by Hope to see how good he is.

  • Feanor #32 9 months ago

    Baker's best work is as Kanji in Persona 4.

  • Rufus #33 9 months ago

    Good call @centrifugal, that's a great scene.

  • OllyJ #34 9 months ago

    3 people actually hated my comment eh? Kin'hell.

  • Jacksie66 #35 9 months ago

    Thank fuck they didnt put The Room in there. That game sucks more than a prostitute vacuum cleaner....

  • silversun #36 9 months ago

    Not going comment on the old VA but i love troy baker voice work in other games i have got.
    Alot of voice actors are kinda the unknown great part of alot of games.
    Was final fantasy 10 the first big game to get voice acting.

    I know there where games before, for example grandia and even fmv games but think ff10 kicked of a massive use of voice actors in games.

    I would be intrested in doing voice acting, but i may need go back do more trainning.
    have done some stage; amature acting. no idea how people get in to that area though and was a while back so my confidence droped off alot since then.

    Anyway just think voice actor in video games are like i said, that unknown great part of video games.

  • Spong #37 9 months ago

    I'm disgusted with Baker finger-pointing at Cihi as though he was the one solely responsible for this fiasco. If Cihi was holding out for residuals he genuinely wasn't entitled to, why didn't Konami just say "screw you" and simply re-record the original voice cast while replacing James (and Douglas, for obvious reasons)?

    The fact Konami has recast everyone implies to me that they might be trying to twist their way out of a legal tryst, at the expense of two iconic games being tarnished. And I said tarnished, not trashed. While I haven't been impressed by what I've heard of the new voice actors, I don't think it'll render the games unplayable.

    *Edited for shit grammar*
    Edited by Spong at 24/08/11 @ 21:04

  • Limimi #38 9 months ago

    Does anyone else kind of feel that regardless of whether voice actors get residuals or not, claiming the other guy was the bad guy for talking out and asking to be treated like other voice actors is kind of crap? I understand he wants to keep his job, but there is no need to go all Uncle Tom and sell your fellow vas down the river just because you don't want more money.