So... 'Talking' Mario...?

Mario123311

Mario123311

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Most of us know Mario as a silent protagonist besides his occasional yelps of joy and simple grunts... However it's feeling like it's starting to get stale. Which is kind of sad considering I think games which give him some simple sentences allow for us to know more about his personality and all.

Sometime ago Charles Martinet posted some vines using some figurines with his famous voice just commenting on things:
Needless to say it's pretty entertaining and something I would love to see more of, especially in the actual games.

So I do want to ask... Would you mind a speaking Mario in the main games? The most we ever get is his "Wahoo!"s and "Yah!"s, I think it's about time we expanded his vocabulary honestly.
 
I don't know. I think it would be a bit out of place. The Mario games are not very dialogue driven for the most part so there would not be much reason for this. Even in the RPG games with their snappy dialogue it would be out of place. I like the wordless interactions in the M&L games and how in the early Paper Mario games having partners that speak for Mario. The most in the Paper Mario games having if I remember correctly Mario showing pesonality through words, is the silly responses to questions characters bring up that Mario is implied to say.

Maybe in different media where Mario can have a more established personality but not in the games. Mario is just not that kind of character.
 
Also, you're playing the role of Mario. Not someone directing Mario where to go, but Mario himself. If he'd talk, that'd seem unnatural just like it'd seem unnatural if Mario suddenly started walking somewhere automatically.
 
I actually kinda like that about both Mario and Link, I enjoy them being silent, only ever really communicating anything through their reactions. I wouldnt wanna see that change : p

My favorite example is his reactions in TTYD, like Big Magma said, with having other characters speak for him. And I enjoyed his wordless reactions to everything.
(I really liked that game : p)
 
When they give him a role in Wreck-it Ralph 2 (like they were planning to) then I hope he talks. Charles's "talkative" Mario I think would go over really well in a movie like that.
In games it could be weird but it's not like we've never had him saying full sentences.
"Just what I needed!" "Open salami!" "Another door!? Hello, door." "Meow!"

And of course "Thank you so much-a for-a playing my game!"

I mean imagine Mario had a speaking role in Super Mario Sunshine. I know, I know, the horror.
But let's actually think about what made the cutscenes so bad:
Bowser didn't work because his voice sounded too goofy and his lines weren't exactly ... dignified... "MARIO! HOW DARE YOU DISTURB MY FAMILY VACATION!?"
Peach didn't work because her script was way too ditzy and clueless.
Toadsworth actually kinda worked. He only said things he'd say in the other games and he sounded like you'd think he'd sound. The generic Toads were obnoxious enough but they only had 2 short lines so that was ok.
Bowser Jr. was ..ok... again, it was the weird plot that made his scenes awkward.
Fludd was kind of annoying since she had so much exposition to dump.
Now, if Mario had spoken for real (which he does in the japanese version but only very faintly in the background) and had a good script, I don't think it would've been that bad. At least not worse than Bowser.

I wouldn't want them to narrate an entire RPG game's dialog, that would be too much. But for a few short lines in some cutscenes I wouldn't mind. I mean have you seen the ending cutscene from Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon? Mario speaks a few lines in that and it doesn't feel too out of place.
 
ShyGuyXXL said:
W
I wouldn't want them to narrate an entire RPG game's dialog, that would be too much. But for a few short lines in some cutscenes I wouldn't mind. I mean have you seen the ending cutscene from Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon? Mario speaks a few lines in that and it doesn't feel too out of place.
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No, but in Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon, you're playing as Luigi and not Mario, right?
 
Yeah, I sorta mean things like that. ^ I don't tend to hear those as often anymore.

I think it may be the fact they are reusing clips that kinda bugs me, Especially for the NSMB games: You know those games on Mario Fan Games Galaxy where Mario is limited to these quotes, typically taken from the GBA games: "Hoo Hoo! Just what I needed!" "Oh, Mama Mia!" "Yahoo!"... It kinda gives me bad memories of those.
 
I don't mind Mario having a larger voice acting role. seeing as how Nintendo can do and has done good voice acting in their games, (Kid Icarus Uprisng anyone.) But please just not his modern Mickey Mouse ish voice, maybe something more along the lines of his N64/GCN era voice, where it sounded more natural and not so over exaggerated like it is now. (That's just my opinion though.) and please no more f**king Wahoo after each sentence.
 
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Honestly i would like him to always do it how he does in the mario and luigi games where he clearly talks and you know what he says do to obvious context clues but you have to fill in the blanks for what he said exactly, Though some scenes drag it on to long like when luigi hasan idea for an overworld ability and he won't shut up. Though i find it very charming and would love that in the, well the 3D games and spin offs really. 2D mario doesn't need it but with cutscenes like you saw in sunshine and the galaxy games i think it would be fine.
 
ShyGuyXXL said:
Bowser didn't work because his voice sounded too goofy and his lines weren't exactly ... dignified... "MARIO! HOW DARE YOU DISTURB MY FAMILY VACATION!?"
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Since when is Bowser dignified? Honestly I always imagined Bowser sounding kind of goofy.

"I'm HUUUUGE!"

 
To me goofy Bowser only really works in Paper Mario (the good ones) when you're not supposed to take him seriously. But when he's supposed to be the big bad villain who's actually somewhat competent then I don't think his goofy side fits very well.
Like I often say, go big or go home. Don't make him 80% threatening and and 20% goofy without the two sides mixing well.

Another game that pulled it off well is Bowser's Inside story. In that game he's mostly a badass but he also has more goofy or silly moments but they make it work. It feels much more believable. It doesn't feel strange.
 
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I know but there's a difference between a character acting goofy and a character being goofy because of the situation they're placed in.
 
I'd love to see Mario talk a bit more. I mean I loved the gibberish talk in Mario & Luigi, for example! No I could go further and say I love the short lines in the Mario Advance series, like "Lucky!" or "Thank you very much!".
So yes, I can see Mario speak a bit more, no need to narrate any story, but I can see charming dialogue.

Mario's voice is not annoying, the main issue is that he only shouts, and that's why he can sound a bit annoying. Mario's voice is nice for speach, actually! Fun and friendy!
 
The Big Magma said:
I know but there's a difference between a character acting goofy and a character being goofy because of the situation they're placed in.
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Like so? :STongue3:
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