So, what about voices in Empire?

[Anonymous II]

In Medieval II there are too many factions having generic accents of english. The most stupid one is probably the danes having a slavic accent. I laugh almost everytime I ask the admiral to sail somewhere and he replies "Da!" in a really russian manner. :bounce:

Also, hungarian is far from a slavic language, and they don't speak english that way at all.

Putting portuguese, spanish and italian in the same group is probably OK, but greek should be something else than this.

I think England, Scotland, France and HRE are really good in Medieval II, let's hope more nations gets their linguistic trademark in Empire.

:cool4:

[Furious Mental]

Well, with 50+ factions, I wouldn't count on it.

[Rhyfelwyr]

There'll probably only be one language per cultural group for Spanish/Latin American, Native American, Native African, Middle-Eastern, and Far-Eastern factions.

In Europe there will probably also be French, British, Germanic, Slavic, and maybe Italian and Greek.

[Anonymous II]

There'll probably only be one language per cultural group for Spanish/Latin American, Native American, Native African, Middle-Eastern, and Far-Eastern factions.


This sounds fine with me. :yes:



In Europe there will probably also be French, British, Germanic, Slavic, and maybe Italian and Greek.

I think "Scandinavian" should be in too. Both Denmark and Sweden are important players in this period, and they have a very distinct accent that sets them apart from the other Germanic accents of Prussia and Austria.

And if, but I sure hope not, Scandinavian not will be a seperate language group, please merge them with German - not Slavic as in M2TW...:no:

I think this is fair and square, especially if Italian is considered to be singeled out from the Latin group. Italy was, after all, not an empire in the 17th and 18th centuries.

I don't know if Dutch should be in Scandinavian or German language group, but some Flemish or Dutch forumers probably have their views on this. ~:wacko:

[LadyAnn]

Dutch is definitely closer to German. So close, the Germans said they speak Deutsch :P (am just kidding, no inference or offense here, no need to berate me for ignorance, I am already plead guilty as charged).

Annie

[Axel JD]

Let's just hope CA comes up with a better German accent than the horribly nasal evil nazi one that they used in MTW2.

[Bijo]

Dutch should be more towards German. As long as the English-speaking voices give a decent sense of the faction's people I think there isn't really a GREAT need for superior accuracy and many separations. If they will release a few discs in the package that are able to store lots of data, then I'd say why not be more precise?

If you ask me they shouldn't even include those general speaking voices but just text instead where necessary. The only voices I would want to hear in this game are the typical ones who yell, scream, shout, and curse, and so on, during battles.

STW didn't have that much of speaking voices, did it? Still they were able to install such a fine atmosphere. They must follow this and do so again with ETW.

[Discoman]

I remember playing the Britainnia campaign in MTW2 and cringing everytime the Irish units would speak with a clear Scottish accent.

[Anonymous II]

Let's just hope CA comes up with a better German accent than the horribly nasal evil nazi one that they used in MTW2.

For God's sake, no! Make it even more evil! I love it! :grin:

[LadyAnn]

I don't care much about accents in TW games. I rather have them spending resources on improving the mechanics of the game. All voice should be in regular English for English version of the game, and whatever market they sell it to (French in France, etc.) and not the accents of different factions.

1. Some accent is unintelligible sometimes.
2. If you think you know what kind of accent people spoke 200-300 years ago...

Annie

[Zim]

Dutch is definitely closer to German. So close, the Germans said they speak Deutsch :P (am just kidding, no inference or offense here, no need to berate me for ignorance, I am already plead guilty as charged).

Annie

:laugh4: In Pennsylvania where I grew up, early English speaking colonists thought the German colonist were Dutch because of that odd linguistic occurence.

[Anonymous II]

I don't care much about accents in TW games. I rather have them spending resources on improving the mechanics of the game. All voice should be in regular English for English version of the game, and whatever market they sell it to (French in France, etc.) and not the accents of different factions.


We disagree here, nothing more to be said about that matter. ~:cheers:



1. Some accent is unintelligible sometimes.
2. If you think you know what kind of accent people spoke 200-300 years ago...


I hear your arguments, but if we take M2TW as an example, they already have a distribution of different accents. If that's the framework of Empire's voices, I still think danish should be German rather than Russian.

[Intrepid Sidekick]

Well all I can say is that there are plans, they are a-foot, and some will be very suprised by what we are planning. Soooo many things I can't talk about. *bites lip*.
Promise. More will be revealed later.

[Rodion Romanovich]

Well all I can say is that there are plans, they are a-foot, and some will be very suprised by what we are planning. Soooo many things I can't talk about. *bites lip*.
Promise. More will be revealed later.
Before or after release? :wink: :yes: :jumping:

[LadyAnn]

I hear your arguments, but if we take M2TW as an example, they already have a distribution of different accents. If that's the framework of Empire's voices, I still think danish should be German rather than Russian.

M2TW is crap :P it should never be the standard :D

Annie

[Orda Khan]

Why would accents matter at all? If I buy the English version of the game, all factions speak English.
Far better to have a single voice and a balanced game

......Orda

[Anonymous II]

Why would accents matter at all? If I buy the English version of the game, all factions speak English.
Far better to have a single voice and a balanced game

......Orda

Because all aspects/features of a game matters. Some things have higher value/priority than others, but all counts. Excuse me for being rude, but I think "Far better to have a single voice and a balanced game" is a really stupid argument that seems to only have one purpose: to make a fool of those who thinks voices and accents is of any importance of all.

I find it rather insulting. You make it sound as if one have to choose between good voices or a balanced game - it's not possible to have both. :juggle2: How many factors do you put into a game? Only two? The "game balance-thing" and sounds? And does the presentation of voices and accents draw as much resources from the devolpment team as all the different considerations and work with the AI, game engine, graphics, and so on, combined?

Everytime one ask about what I consider rather minor details, there is always somebody there to dumbify your inquiry. :rolleyes:

I've asked about box art, limited editions, and so on, in several other gaming forums before, and I would always get one reply from somebody who appears to be one big questionmark; why on earth would I want that? It would be much cheaper to just download the game - it's the same game, you know!



But in order to reply "properly" to your thoughts: If I absolutely had to choose, I would rather have numerous accents of english - one for each faction - than a balanced game. If there is games that really, really bores me, it sure is games where everything is generic.

[Furious Mental]

An unbalanced game isn't fun for anyone to play so how can that possibly have lower priority than accents? If there were no sound bites at all it would make practically no difference so if the soundbites there are are so grating just mute them.

[Anonymous II]

An unbalanced game isn't fun for anyone to play so how can that possibly have lower priority than accents? If there were no sound bites at all it would make practically no difference so if the soundbites there are are so grating just mute them.


Who are you to decide that sound is of no importance to me? I would never mute a game. It's better to not play at all than to play without sound. For me sound is an important aspect of a game, and it is crucial for my general impression of the game, and how playable I find the game.

My point in my previous post, is that I'm sick of people trying to decide on behalf of others, what their priorities and preferences are.

By the way, where have I said that balance is of lower priority than accents? I just asked a question about why it's allowed to ask for other improvements, but not accents, because that would have to come at a cost - that of poor game balance. Why is this? I find it very, very strange... Accents shouldn't be something that draws great resources at all...

[A Norseman]

I most certainly agree with the above poster, language is hugely important, and will still be so in Empire Total War.
As I see it, different accents are a way of separating different cultures and underline the huge culture clashes seen in both Medieval and Empire: Total War.

However, unlike medieval, the sounds will have to be done properly; having my Infamous Viking ship answer me with “DAH” really destroyed some of the feel I got from playing Norway in Kingdoms.

My opinion is that all the ingame sounds should be in language of the faction playing. So that the charging Swedish infantry yells “kutt dem ned!” rather than “Cut ’em down!” The advisors should all be English however..

Of course, all factions cannot have their own language, it would have to be separated into language groups, with some variations within each of the factions in each group.
To illustrate, here is a suggestion on language distribution:

Languages. Factions

English: ...........................England*, Scotland rebels, 13 colonies.
French: ...........................France.
German: ..........................German states, Prussia*, Netherlands.
Slavic*2: .........................Russia*, Poland-Lithuania.
Latin: ..............................Spain*, Italia city states.
Scandinavian: ...................Sweden*, Denmark-Norway
Turkish: ...........................Ottoman Empire
Indian*3: .........................India factions
Native American*3: ............Indians, Mesoamericans.
African*3: ........................African Languages.

* The decisive accent
*2 Slavic languages may be split into west and east Slavic.
*3 Native languages, may be a lot more.

[Fisherking]

Not a bad plan Norseman. Just make the factions unique.

Someone early on asked what people sounded like 300 years ago. Well the English sounded a lot more like the Dubliners than they do today. British English made a much wider change than Irish or American English and after the period covered in the game. LOL

Maybe they should only hire Yorkshire men to do the English Nobility and get someone from Hanover for the Kings. Dubliners can do all of the Admirals and only West Virginians or People from the Ozarks to do the Americans.

Joking aside there should be more Irish speech in the game…as it is closer to what was spoken then.

I was shocked that the Danes didn’t have the right accent in M2 and all of the Spanish, Portuguese, and Italians sounded like they came from San Juan Porte Rico. I won’t go into the Turks… It may have been harder to find people with the correct accents in Australia. I hope the UK boys & girls can do a better job of it.

Just keep the wit and humor of the inspiring speeches and show us what whimsy you can come up with.

[Matt_Lane]

I can understand the frustration with the accents in M2TW but I would be disappointed if the pre fight speech were in that armies language. There were some real gems there and it would be a same not to be able to listen to similar next time around. I would prefer that CA take the harder option and have the speeches in English with accurate accents. However I don't know how far they should take this. The British army for example was led by English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh generals and staff. Should each accent be accommodated for or are we likely to just have crisp Eatonian accents?

[Orda Khan]

OK I can see these voices mean a heck of a lot to some people so why don't we go a step further and have each faction speak its actual language? Surely that makes more sense than a non English faction speaking English with an accent?

BTW AnonymousII, I didn't insult you at all, pity you took it that way

......Orda

[Anonymous II]

BTW AnonymousII, I didn't insult you at all, pity you took it that way

......Orda

Now, that isn't for you to decide, is it? ~:wacko:

But hey, no hard feelings here! I've said what i feel on this matter, and life goes on as usual.

Cheers, mate! ~:cheers:

[Furious Mental]

"Who are you to decide that sound is of no importance to me?"

Didn't you state that the post to which you were responding was "really stupid"? Don't bite my head off because I put it you rightly that the vast majority of people put balanced gameplay ahead of nice soundbites. A PC game is a game not a soundtrack. If the gameplay is bad, which by definition it is if it is unbalanced, it is a worthless game, just as a CD of bad music will always be worthless regardless of how good the cover art is.

[Frederick the Great]

I don't care much about accents in TW games. I rather have them spending resources on improving the mechanics of the game. All voice should be in regular English for English version of the game, and whatever market they sell it to (French in France, etc.) and not the accents of different factions.

1. Some accent is unintelligible sometimes.
2. If you think you know what kind of accent people spoke 200-300 years ago...

AnnieTotally agree with Lady Ann....obviously the foreign accents have to be in pigeon english anyway in the english game so we can understand what's being said and I for one don't want to learn a number of foreign languages just to play a game.
If I remember rightly "Medal of Honour" had Donald Sutherland reading war poetry in one of their games and it was quite moving.One of my favourites would be Anthony Hopkins who has a great voice for good and evil ah annie just don't be too frightend by those screaming lambs. lol

[Evil_Maniac From Mars]

To be fair, I thought some of the voices (English, Scottish especially) were better than in Rome. At least they don't sound like the actor just hit puberty. I'd actually say there's been an improvement, however slight.

[A Norseman]

The more I think about it, the more I feel that there should be proper European languages in Empire: Total war, not amateurish accents.

I feel like the British and especially the Americans who think that the whole game should be in English are ultimately selfish and narrow minded, as English are their mother tongue and so they have little understanding of other peoples wanting to hear their native and historical language. Would you be happy, with a game portraying the American Revolution where the American rebels all spoke German? Of course not! Language is an important part of their national identity.

Of course, I am not saying that the whole game should be in French if you play as France. In-game menus, commands, advisors, and tutorials should all be in English, possibly even the general’s speeches. But please, CA, make the spontaneous sounds on the battlefield, the voices of the soldiers, the officers commands and the eventual marching sounds in the native language of the playing nation. Make it feel like you are commanding real Swedish, Germans and Russians.

Now, it may sound a bit strange to have those kinds of alien sounds in a English game, however, I’ve seen it work wonderfully in other strategy games, for example company of heroes, where the Nazis spoke German, (in my opinion one of the best ww2 games ever made) and Medieval: Total War, where even Arab voices were included.

I cannot see how including different languages into the game can do little other than enhance the gameplay experience, And for us Europeans, make it a much better experience to play our Native Countries!!

A Norseman

[LadyAnn]

CA games never had proper American accent :D

Annie

[Evil_Maniac From Mars]

CA games never had proper American accent :D

Annie
CA games have never had American factions until now, except for natives. :inquisitive:

[Boyar Son]

CA games never had proper American accent :D

Annie

I'll offer my services to CA for those voices.

[Fisherking]

You know it is early enough in the development process that if they really wanted to do this right they could do some consulting on what English really sounded like during this period and give us at least a character or two that uses it.

Imagine, actual historic material in a game…

Baring that I would just as soon the seamen sound like Wallace Beery as Long John Silver. LOL

[Bravedude]

I most certainly agree with the above poster, language is hugely important, and will still be so in Empire Total War.
As I see it, different accents are a way of separating different cultures and underline the huge culture clashes seen in both Medieval and Empire: Total War.

However, unlike medieval, the sounds will have to be done properly; having my Infamous Viking ship answer me with “DAH” really destroyed some of the feel I got from playing Norway in Kingdoms.

My opinion is that all the ingame sounds should be in language of the faction playing. So that the charging Swedish infantry yells “kutt dem ned!” rather than “Cut ’em down!” The advisors should all be English however..

Of course, all factions cannot have their own language, it would have to be separated into language groups, with some variations within each of the factions in each group.
To illustrate, here is a suggestion on language distribution:

Languages. Factions

English: ...........................England*, Scotland rebels, 13 colonies.
French: ...........................France.
German: ..........................German states, Prussia*, Netherlands.
Slavic*2: .........................Russia*, Poland-Lithuania.
Latin: ..............................Spain*, Italia city states.
Scandinavian: ...................Sweden*, Denmark-Norway
Turkish: ...........................Ottoman Empire
Indian*3: .........................India factions
Native American*3: ............Indians, Mesoamericans.
African*3: ........................African Languages.

* The decisive accent
*2 Slavic languages may be split into west and east Slavic.
*3 Native languages, may be a lot more.

Technically, both the Ottoman and Mughal Empires were started by military conquests by Islamic Turkish invasions from the steppes of central Asia.

[LadyAnn]

CA games have never had American factions until now, except for natives. :inquisitive:

See. Point is confirm.

Annie

[Marcus Furius Camillus]

Originally Posted by A Norseman
I most certainly agree with the above poster, language is hugely important, and will still be so in Empire Total War.
As I see it, different accents are a way of separating different cultures and underline the huge culture clashes seen in both Medieval and Empire: Total War.

However, unlike medieval, the sounds will have to be done properly; having my Infamous Viking ship answer me with “DAH” really destroyed some of the feel I got from playing Norway in Kingdoms.

My opinion is that all the ingame sounds should be in language of the faction playing. So that the charging Swedish infantry yells “kutt dem ned!” rather than “Cut ’em down!” The advisors should all be English however..

Of course, all factions cannot have their own language, it would have to be separated into language groups, with some variations within each of the factions in each group.
To illustrate, here is a suggestion on language distribution:

Languages. Factions

English: ...........................England*, Scotland rebels, 13 colonies.
French: ...........................France.
German: ..........................German states, Prussia*, Netherlands.
Slavic*2: .........................Russia*, Poland-Lithuania.
Latin: ..............................Spain*, Italia city states.
Scandinavian: ...................Sweden*, Denmark-Norway
Turkish: ...........................Ottoman Empire
Indian*3: .........................India factions
Native American*3: ............Indians, Mesoamericans.
African*3: ........................African Languages.

* The decisive accent
*2 Slavic languages may be split into west and east Slavic.
*3 Native languages, may be a lot more.

I think everyone on this forum knows I can't resist replying to a post where the word 'Netherlands' or 'Flanders' is used, so, here's my opinion:

Why ??
Why giving those poor Dutch and Belgian citizens a German accent ??!!
As you can read in my profile ( and my style of posts ), I'm ( proud to be ) Belgian.
Nor I, Nor my friends and relatives have something like a German accent.
In fact, a Belgian and Dutch accents are a hybrid of northern French and western German accent.
Everyone recognizes a Dutchman speaking English! ( sorry ! ~:rolleyes: )

So, I'm a great fan of the "Give-every-nation-its-own-language - idea"

and, if this idea would be in Empire, PLEASE GIVE THOSE POOR DUTCH AND BELGIAN PEOPLE A GOOD VOICE

Proud to be Flemish,
Marcvs

[LadyAnn]

Well, a Dane complaint, then a Flemish. Who will defend the American Indians? :)

Annie

[Rhyfelwyr]

Well if Danes can have Slavic accents and Aztecs have the same accent as Mongolians then German accents in the Netherlands and Belgium wouldn't be too bad...

[Furious Mental]

I rather doubt that British colonists in the 18th century sounded much like Americans in the 21st century.

[IrishArmenian]

The Ottoman court actually spoke Farsi.

[rajpoot]

While accurate accents and languages will be wonderful and really authentic and all, I really doubt that hardly 10% of the people who buy the game will actually know if that which is being said is accurate or not save for statements made in their own language and accent which they know and can find faults in.
I for instance wouldn't know if the French replies the troops gave would be correct or not, as I'm sure many other wouldn't know that what the Mugal-Indian troops are saying is Hindi, Farsi or Urdu........... :sweatdrop:

[Cheetah]

Get the game balance right, then the tactical AI, then the startegic AI, then diplomacy, after that perhaps we can worry about voice acting .... :yes:

[Anonymous II]

I don't think this is the right thread do discuss what CA should prioritise, and in what order.

This is a discussion about how to model voices, how many categories they should be in, which faction should belong to which laguage group, and so on.

Strange thing this... never seen another thread where people get so interupted by other people telling them not to bother with the issue in question - there are other, more important issues. Well, that's up to each individual to decide, isn't it? Everyone here brings up questions and issues they feel is important, and this particular issue happens to be of interest and importance to me.

I don't mind discussing priorities, but this is just not the right thread for it.

[Arngrim]

[QUOTE=A Norseman] ...My opinion is that all the ingame sounds should be in language of the faction playing. So that the charging Swedish infantry yells “kutt dem ned!” rather than “Cut ’em down!” The advisors should all be English however.. ...

QUOTE]

"Kutt dem ned!" Would for a Swede be a little confusing since the worlds would mean something like "Hunch downwards them!".:laugh4: The frase "cut them down!" should be translated to "Hugg ner dom!". Anyway, the swedish order for assault in the Great Northern War was "Medh Gudz hielp, buzzar - Gå På! (contemporay spelling). In English "With Gods Aid, boys - Onwards!"

BTW; advance and assault should take place in silence, according to the regulations. No "HORRAAY!!!", "YAAAH!!!" or "...hooting like monkeys..!"

[Intrepid Sidekick]

"BTW; advance and assault should take place in silence, according to the regulations. No "HORRAAY!!!", "YAAAH!!!" or "...hooting like monkeys..!"

This all depends on the nation doing the advancing/assault. But nice to know thats what Swedes did.:book:

[A Norseman]

You are absolutely right Arngrim, however I was making an example, and as I did not know the exact Swedish spelling, I used my own language, trusting that the difference was insignificant in the international forum. As you might know “kutt dem ned” is Norwegian.


While accurate accents and languages will be wonderful and really authentic and all, I really doubt that hardly 10% of the people who buy the game will actually know if that which is being said is accurate or not save for statements made in their own language and accent which they know and can find faults in.
I for instance wouldn't know if the French replies the troops gave would be correct or not, as I'm sure many other wouldn't know that what the Mugal-Indian troops are saying is Hindi, Farsi or Urdu...........
01-10-2008 04:25

I see that as part of the fun, Hearing other languages than English, like French, Spanish, Indian languages and Native American for that sake. Different language will both build character for the Empire: total war game, Add historical realism *Prussians not speaking English in 1756* and help differ the factions in a time where the standardisation of the armies all over Europe was at its worst.

[Arngrim]

This all depends on the nation doing the advancing/assault. But nice to know thats what Swedes did.:book:

I was reffering to the Swedes, but maybe i was a little inprecise. The reason for the Swedish silence (I believe) is that while Swedish batallions advanced very fast towards the enemy lines whitout fireing, the adversaries kept fireing continously by line, or more propable by this time, platoons. Blackpowder produces enormous amounts of white, stinking smoke, so on a windstill, or nearly so, day it would be like trowing smoke grenades just in front of you. Even in a windy day the visibility would be impaired after a couple of salvoes.

At seventy steps away from the enemy the rear two lines of the Swedish musketeers would step up beside the front two lines and fire a salvo. At thirty steps, the grenadieers would throw their grenades, and they and the front two rows of musketeers would fire. After that all musketeers and grenadiers would draw their rapiers, the pikeneers would lower their pikes and all would immediatly assault.

The psykological impact of suddenly facing hundreds of enemies coming out of the smoke, as from nowhere, in complete silence, just in front of you, would create much more "chock and awe" than if they had been screaming like football hooligans all the time. BTW commands would have been given in a calm and somber voice, no louder than absolutely necesary. No silly "prussian" screaming in falsetto, like your trousers is to snug.:beam:

[LadyAnn]

Except for the Finn Cavalry in service of the Swede. They did yell when charge, or so I was told.

Annie.

[Arngrim]

You are absolutely right Arngrim, however I was making an example, and as I did not know the exact Swedish spelling, I used my own language, trusting that the difference was insignificant in the international forum. As you might know “kutt dem ned” is Norwegian. ...





Yes, I know it´s Norwegian, but for the average Swedish soldier in GNW, who considered Norwegians and Danes to be Orcs from Mordor, or the Devils Spawn Themselves, it would have been confusing, or even very unsettling on the odd chance that they would recognise the language.

I agree with you, however. The rest of the world couldn´t care less about the linguistic differences between the Nordic languages.:beam:

Look at Hollywood "Wiking" films where they happily mix Danish, Swedish and Norwegian to make it "sound real", instead of using Icelandic or Faeroeish which actually to more than 90 % are the real langage of the wikings.:wall:

[Intrepid Sidekick]

Hi there everyone

I think I have to clear a misconception some people have about game development, the assignment of tasks and the order of their development.:dizzy2:

For example:
We dont first
get the game balance right, then the tactical AI, then the startegic AI, then diplomacy, etc. For a start the first item would be impossible without completing the second, third and fourth item in your list. :inquisitive: :no:

The reality of commercial development for a game is that there are several sub-teams of people that all start working towards a common goal at the same time. This involves a lot of communication, co-operation and co-ordination. We all have to communicate our thoughts, ideas and processes to each other and make sure they stay in sync. :gathering:

Thus we have a talented team of people working on each area of the game, that is identifiable as a coherent chunk, and then keep stitching the bits together until it all works and we have a completed game.:2thumbsup: :sweatdrop: :whip:

Therefore we have audio, graphics, campaign map, battlefield and art teams etc all working to complete the game. Telling the audio guys or the graphics guys not to work on their bit of the game until the game balance is right is actualy pointless and a waste of time. The team, as a whole, contribute towards the balance of the game by making it, playing it and giving feedback and making adjustments where agreed.

So you see, we can't take the confused, linear process some suggest because a) it would take about 10 years to produce a high quality game if we did and b) it would also probably be horribly dated by the time it released.:no: :oops: :thumbsdown:

[Arngrim]

Except for the Finn Cavalry in service of the Swede. They did yell when charge, or so I was told.

Annie.

The famous "Hakkapellittas" where from the time of Gustavus Adolphus, and they certainly screamed when charging, but the Swedish Army had changed doctrine seventy years later. I suppose, since Finns generally was considerd less disciplined, and "less civilized" than mainstream Swedish soldiers, they occasionally forgot to keep silent. More Finns was hanged for rape and plunder than Swedes, but not as many as German or other mercenarys.
:whip:

Also the cavalry fought under different circumstances than the infantry, and the reasons for silence weren´t as valid.

[Anonymous II]

Hi there everyone

I think I have to clear a misconception some people have about game development, the assignment of tasks and the order of their development.:dizzy2:

For example:
We dont first etc. For a start the first item would be impossible without completing the second, third and fourth item in your list. :inquisitive: :no:

The reality of commercial development for a game is that there are several sub-teams of people that all start working towards a common goal at the same time. This involves a lot of communication, co-operation and co-ordination. We all have to communicate our thoughts, ideas and processes to each other and make sure they stay in sync. :gathering:

Thus we have a talented team of people working on each area of the game, that is identifiable as a coherent chunk, and then keep stitching the bits together until it all works and we have a completed game.:2thumbsup: :sweatdrop: :whip:

Therefore we have audio, graphics, campaign map, battlefield and art teams etc all working to complete the game. Telling the audio guys or the graphics guys not to work on their bit of the game until the game balance is right is actualy pointless and a waste of time. The team, as a whole, contribute towards the balance of the game by making it, playing it and giving feedback and making adjustments where agreed.

So you see, we can't take the confused, linear process some suggest because a) it would take about 10 years to produce a high quality game if we did and b) it would also probably be horribly dated by the time it released.:no: :oops: :thumbsdown:


Thank you for making that clear for us! :thumbsup:

[anders]

Get the game balance right, then the tactical AI, then the startegic AI, then diplomacy, after that perhaps we can worry about voice acting .... :yes:


seconded, they can begin to work on the nice fluff once they get the base game right, nice period voices will be a meagre comfort if the gameplay is bad.

[anders]

Yes, I know it´s Norwegian, but for the average Swedish soldier in GNW, who considered Norwegians and Danes to be Orcs from Mordor, or the Devils Spawn Themselves, it would have been confusing, or even very unsettling on the odd chance that they would recognise the language.

I agree with you, however. The rest of the world couldn´t care less about the linguistic differences between the Nordic languages.:beam:

Look at Hollywood "Wiking" films where they happily mix Danish, Swedish and Norwegian to make it "sound real", instead of using Icelandic or Faeroeish which actually to more than 90 % are the real langage of the wikings.:wall:

the fact that they(hollywood etc.) mix us together or use contemporary languages instead of period ones I dont mind, its more irritating that instead of bothering to have real swedish, danish etc in series and movies, they substitute it with some "scandinavian-sounding" jibberish, I mean, have you heard the "norwegian" spoken in X-files?

[TevashSzat]

While accurate accents and languages will be wonderful and really authentic and all, I really doubt that hardly 10% of the people who buy the game will actually know if that which is being said is accurate or not save for statements made in their own language and accent which they know and can find faults in.
I for instance wouldn't know if the French replies the troops gave would be correct or not, as I'm sure many other wouldn't know that what the Mugal-Indian troops are saying is Hindi, Farsi or Urdu........... :sweatdrop:

What may be a bigger problem is that the odds are that those who actually understand some of the languages will find them to be really fake.

While it may be easy to find people to do the European Languages, finding people for the more obscure ones may be alot tougher. I don't think that doing the voices necessarily fetch a great salary so I can't picture CA getting some authentic Native American over to speak their language or even find someone who is actually interested in doing the job near their offices

I remember Battlefield 2, which had the Middle East faction speak Arab and the Chinese people speak Chinese. When I heard the Chinese, I just cringed because it sounded so blatantly fake.

[Mikeus Caesar]

I remember Battlefield 2, which had the Middle East faction speak Arab and the Chinese people speak Chinese. When I heard the Chinese, I just cringed because it sounded so blatantly fake.

I love the voices in that. The Chinese saying 'incoming tank' sounded a lot like 'eating taco pudding, one-b'.

I always lol.

[Raz]

I don't mind the voices, accents and the languages - Music is what gives things an atmosphere. :yes:
To prove this, watch a horror movie with no sound. Does it scare the pants off of you now? Didn't think so.

As long as the sounds are reasonable and the music is good, I'll be happy to try Empire. That and of course graphics. :laugh4:

[rajpoot]

Ditto, I simply love the TW soundtracks! :yes:

[Mouzafphaerre]

.

...and we have a completed game. :2thumbsup: :sweatdrop: :whip:
I so much hope so, this time! :yes: :ballchain: :cheerleader:
.

[Viking]

I don't mind the voices, accents and the languages - Music is what gives things an atmosphere. :yes:
To prove this, watch a horror movie with no sound. Does it scare the pants off of you now? Didn't think so.

As long as the sounds are reasonable and the music is good, I'll be happy to try Empire. That and of course graphics. :laugh4:


We already have the good music - now some of us are interesting in getting correct accents too. :2thumbsup:

[MadKow]

A suggestion From a Portuguese.

If you are going to use the same accent to different nations, as in MTW2, and i don't expect Portugal to deserve special attention anyway, you might considr the fact that, phonetically, a Portuguese accent of the English language is probably closer to what you hear from a Russian then from a Spanish or Italian.

I guess this poses other problems as cultural references in the content of the speech would be closer to Spanish or Italian, indeed.

I wonder what other Portuguese in this forum think of this, since it is just my opinion.

[Gorm]

Considering that French was a court language for many years (lingua franca) :scholar: , perhaps having a mild French accent would do for most diplomatic relations?

[Arngrim]

Considering that French was a court language for many years (lingua franca) :scholar: , perhaps having a mild French accent would do for most diplomatic relations?

Actually, the diplomatic language was latin, and since upper class classical latin sounded somewhat like spanish, and the gutter speech of the lowly plebs sounded somewhat like french, that MIGHT not be the right way to go...

On the other hand, which 17 and 18 century diplomat knew how correct classical latin should sound like..?:laugh4:

[Gorm]

Actually, the diplomatic language was latin, and since upper class classical latin sounded somewhat like spanish, and the gutter speech of the lowly plebs sounded somewhat like french, that MIGHT not be the right way to go...

On the other hand, which 17 and 18 century diplomat knew how correct classical latin should sound like..?:laugh4:


Well here is what I found on Wikipedia:


French was the language of diplomacy in Europe from the 17th century until its recent replacement by English, and as a result is still a working language of international institutions and is seen on documents ranging from passports to airmail letters. For many years, until the accession of the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Denmark in 1973, French and German were the only official working languages of the European Economic Community. French was also the lingua franca of European literature in the 18th century.

French was also the language used among the educated in many cosmopolitan cities across the Middle East and North Africa. This was true in cities such as Cairo, around the turn of the 20th century until World War II, and especially in the French colonies of the Maghreb. French is particularly important in Algeria and its capital, Algiers. Until the outbreak of the civil war in Lebanon, French was the language that the Christian members of the upper class of Lebanese society used. French is still a lingua franca in most Western and Central African countries (where it often enjoys official status), a remnant of the colonial rule of France and Belgium. These African countries, together with several other countries throughout the world, are members of La Francophonie.

[rajpoot]

This dosen't sound right, one can't generalize all diplomats to French, I mean, in British colonies, English had to be the language of the state. In India, it was all a turmoil, the Mugal language of state was Urdu, in the South there were at least 10 different languages, and the British and the French spoke neither in the begining.

[Arngrim]

Well here is what I found on Wikipedia:
I am sure that many in a diplomatic surrounding used french informally if all involved understood the langauge, however all(?) formal discussion and written documents were in latin due to its clarity and relatively lack of double meanings. I was also the lingua franca of the clergy, doctors, scientists and other learned professions. Also it was neutral, meaning it belonged to no country, and all. The French were not always that popular, especially in the age of Louis XIV. Using french was like an admission that France was the cultural top dog, and that very few of its neighbors would accept.

This of course only applied to western nations. I doubt that many Chinese or Indians learned Latin.

I do agree, however, that french was much used in the 19:th and 20;th century.

[LadyAnn]

You forgot that the English court spoke French to begin with :)

Annie

[Russia_CCCP]

Actually, why can't it be like in Imperial Glory? Why don't they make the languages foreign according to the nation? It makes you feel like you are actually ruling your empire and that there is a sense of reality. I can't stand when I hear Aztecs or Russians talk in English. It ruins the self esteem to play. At least they can input subtitles but please make it foreign languages. Who's with me?

[rajpoot]

One thing that I suddenly realized, that in Kingdoms, when you kill a American-Indian general, the voice message says, "we've killed the saracen general"....... :P ............way to ridiculous to overlook casually.......

[Viking]

One thing that I suddenly realized, that in Kingdoms, when you kill a American-Indian general, the voice message says, "we've killed the saracen general"....... :P ............way to ridiculous to overlook casually.......

Things like that...:wall:


Actually, why can't it be like in Imperial Glory? Why don't they make the languages foreign according to the nation? It makes you feel like you are actually ruling your empire and that there is a sense of reality. I can't stand when I hear Aztecs or Russians talk in English. It ruins the self esteem to play. At least they can input subtitles but please make it foreign languages. Who's with me?

I assume you mean like in Civilization. I think it worked pretty well; though the game is at risk of becoming less "epic" if you do not understand wat your generals/soldiers are saying. At least if the language is of the sort that you have never even heard spoken before.

[PershsNhpios]

Next thing all you obsessive schedulers will band together in disappointment and call yourselves something like Europa Barbarorum!

..

"Lauf!"

[Forlorn Hope]

Damn I hope that the Brits have a good aristocratic drawl... ::2thumbsup:

[Rhyfelwyr]

Also the Jacobites better have good Teuchter accents when/if the appear. And the Highland regiments in the British army had better also have these accents, I couldn't take hearing my highlanders shout back at me in broad Englihs accents.

[Forlorn Hope]

Definitely agree, Irish and Welsh also.
I hope they have some unique regiments too. Not just Scots having kilts etc. but If they have Coldstreamers etc. then I will probably never turn the game off lol...
I so need my English foot guards so i can continuously use them to beat the old garde :P

[Martok]

Definitely agree, Irish and Welsh also.
I hope they have some unique regiments too. Not just Scots having kilts etc. but If they have Coldstreamers etc. then I will probably never turn the game off lol...
I so need my English foot guards so i can continuously use them to beat the old garde :P
Well CA has stated that regiments become somewhat personalized over time, getting their own unique names, etc.

I know that's probably not precisely what you're looking/hoping for, but I admit it's still sort of a neat-sounding feature.

[Rhyfelwyr]

Well CA has stated that regiments become somewhat personalized over time, getting their own unique names, etc.

I know that's probably not precisely what you're looking/hoping for, but I admit it's still sort of a neat-sounding feature.

I am so glad to hear that, will add so much of a roleplaying element to the game.

Maybe when/if R2TW ever comes out, we'll get individual names for legions, based on where they are recruited.

[Forlorn Hope]

Well CA has stated that regiments become somewhat personalized over time, getting their own unique names, etc.

I know that's probably not precisely what you're looking/hoping for, but I admit it's still sort of a neat-sounding feature.
I'm glad they're adding in some form of personalisation, as individual regiments were a major feature in most armies and it would be a shame to leave that out, especially as the unit types will inevitably become less diverse.
Do you happen to know how they gain names etc and whether the player will be able to personalise them without having to mod(which i suspect would be very difficult for this sort of thing). :/

[Dead Guy]

I hope they remove voices from the campaing map altogether. I absolutely hate them.

I will give you a common example from M2TW:
I have an assassin and want to check his chances to kill other characters in the vicinity. Everytime I click on a new one he has to spout some nonsense. Silent but deadly (fart jokes? really...), who must die master? Sometimes the voice clips go on and on even after I've stopped clicking on things. This got old about 2 years ago.

If you turn all voices off, somewhat important stuff disappears from what is said during a battle, though some of that is also extremely annoying. The tide of battle seems to have turned against us! We must act! Shut. Up. This is a feature that has gotten progressively more annoying and detrimental to my gaming experience since Rome. The only thing that was said during a battle (or at all?) in MTW was that the cowardly enemy general was quitting the field in disgrace.

Thus, I hope the surprise on voices will be: No voices at all (except shouts and cries from the mayhem of battle)!

[Sir Beane]

Please, let dead threads rest in peace. :skull: