We Need To Talk About The New Final Fantasy Voice Actors

[@anatoliasmercenary.]

Zack’s original voice really makes you FEEL like he’s from Gongaga.

[@owljaygames7776]

The comparison of "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO ANGEAL?!" made me realize how much the casting affects the game

[@ninjasniperproductions4476]

The voice director is definitely the problem here, the voice needs actual DIRECTION, the voice actor has 25% of what he needed for the voice of Zack, but unfortunately, a lot of his lines and deliveries became a comedy of missed opportunities.

[@JapanFreak2595]

If ever a game needed a voice acting patch, it’s CCR and Zack’s scenes in Remake.

[@ninjasniperproductions4476]

@@JapanFreak2595 YES

[@ninjasniperproductions4476]

@@JapanFreak2595 or just mod it

[@JapanFreak2595]

@@ninjasniperproductions4476 I personally can’t cuz I don’t got a PC. When the mod inevitably comes out, RIP the voice acting in scenes that had none in OG.

[@Imps603]

I have to say, Brianna White as Aerith is the absolute definite right choice

[@Yokai_Yuri]

Cloud is pretty amazing as well, Tifa does also a damn good job, ans barret is spectacular. It's just seph and zack

[@vlonvx]

@@Yokai_Yuri what i’m saying!

[@Solbrave00]

Nah, her crisis core/ KH3 voice works better for her honestly.

[@plewisjr90]

@@Solbrave00 opinions..

[@Solbrave00]

@@plewisjr90 no shit

[@anthonyf616]

The original voice of Zack really made you FEEL like he was a puppy

[@thesurvivorssanctuary6561]

*THIS.* I know you are joking, but Zack's OG VA is God tier on delivering the journey of a puppy's loss of innocence. It is genuinely powerful.

[@literallymizuki5]

Gongaga

[@abc4781]

Lol no please stop

[@bruhaps5252]

does that not contradict the new VAs more playful and naive tone

[@anthonyf616]

@@bruhaps5252 I wouldn't know. I'm just nostalgic. Maybe I'll buy it in a few months

[@MyNameJefff]

Zack’s original VA really killed it. That comparison of the “What the hell did you do, Angeal?” line really does show how important inflections and tone are. Reunion doesn’t have that depth and emotion that the original had. One feels like a friend feeling betrayed, the other feels like a guy reading off a script.

[@khandffruless]

Ff7 remake had zack for a quick flashback and he sounded fine. Not sure if they reused old VA lines or someone EFed up. The new zacks sounds like he trying but his voice n zack don't match

[@RiiLove]

George's voice for Sephiroth was such high quality. So terrifying yet alluring.

[@granzedora]

and well.... *Sexy*

[@reicherwallace6774]

The voice acting from Zack and Sephiroth specifically are so perfect that I felt like I watched a dog get shot when I realized that they changed their voices for no discernable reason.

[@khfreak5531]

Royalties, that they’d have to pay the original voice actors most likely. Also, the audio quality is probably not as good in the original due to compression.

[@Andrew___P]

If you didn't like Sephiroths voice in the remake, you'll loath how they butchered his Intro in the Remake. Dunno but the image of the Masamune impaling Shinra to his desk instilled more dread than hamfisting his intro an hour into the game. like WTF.

[@reicherwallace6774]

@@Andrew___P I already came to terms with the remake being a weird sidequel

[@ohgodthepain]

@@reicherwallace6774 Isn’t it an actual sequel? I read something about how Sephiroth killed Fate and reset the world, which is why he says stuff like “oh the memories”

[@shaniatreyu9303]

@@reicherwallace6774 I consider it an AU. I'm not remotely interested in SE ruining how tragic and amazing Zack's story was just so we can bring him back as fanservice cop out like Aerith's death rewrite.

[@TheAwesomeDarkNinja]

The loss of George Newbern still hurts me to this day. It's like you found the literal reincarnation of Sephiroth in real life, yet recasted him for the sake of recasting.

[@GalaxyRoyal]

I miss George Newbern aswell as I also like his Superman’s voice but at least Toshiyuki Morikawa in Japanese and Bruno Choel in French are still voicing Sephiroth as they both share the same roles as Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars. 😉

[@nexusprime2487]

Last we need is another Superman actor to voice Sephiroth.... unless its a weird requirement.

[@riesonomura]

George even WANTED to come back as Sephiroth and said he was waiting for that call from S-E... he urged the fans to let S-E know that and while Tyler Hoechlin's voice is... meh in Remake (like a playful villainy) he sounds like a friggin AI bot in CCR, ugh 😭 it was a deal breaker that made me forgo CCR

[@riesonomura]

and while I'm on that, you know what hurts more about this is that we were told that the new cast ONLY applied to the Remake trilogy and CCR doesn't have any kinda tie in to Remake's timeline specifically. why go back on that?? if there's a new KH or Dissidia and George Newbern is once again NOT Sephiroth, i think i'll cry ;-;

[@bingbongdingdong867]

@@riesonomura they said they wanted to recanonize CC to the Remake with CCR

[@envynoson]

Me before the video: The change can't be that bad. Me after the video: Yeah, Sephiroth's and Zack's voices actually hits different.

[@makisbizarreadventure4669]

The Moment I heard the new actor says The Price of Freedom is steep I knew I wouldn’t get passed it. Rick put so much weight behind those words and that journey. He’s my fave ff7 character and it’s because the original Crisis Core.

[@zephyrias]

This! I agree… i havent heard Cissnei yet. She is my fave female chara as is the Shinra crew that hang with Zack in Crisis Core. 😢 Her ending breaks my heart every time… That i cant even bring myself to beat the OG game on the psp due to the ending of CC…

[@ninjasteph9561]

@@zephyrias Cissnei is one of my favorites as well and I really don’t like her new voice. 😩

[@chstens]

I do not understand you at all. Crisis Core is terribly written, empty melodrama that's only good for a so-bad-it's-good laugh.

[@spacethingreckoning5114]

@@zephyrias Cissnei's new voice is growing on me honestly. Kayli Mills was a good pick.

[@MsFated]

It still haunts me 😂

[@ivanatinkle8083]

WOAH another perfect video with perfect narration, examples, and coordination and I can't stop laughing at you putting a clip of Zack when saying "to be fair"

[@StephanieKimPascaru]

Thank you!!! (Couldn't miss the opportunity of putting Zack Fair for "to be fair" 😅)

[@animeheadshot1016]

I am SO GLAD I'm not the only one who feels this way. And I got chills when I heard Zack yell, "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO, ANGEAL?!" for the first time. That was solid voice acting. The new VA's rendition of that scene just doesn't cut it.

[@Zerovin]

I’ve never even seen the original untill after I got past that scene and even I felt like the reunion version was pretty rough. Sounded like some kid throwing a temper tantrum, not someone utterly pissed that his friend killed their own mother

[@TheWeeklySlopYT]

Wym youre not the only one? Everyone is hopping on this VA hate bandwagon. I get it, yall like nastalgia and lets be real, this is just a mob hate train by "fans". Not everything bas to be like the original. If you prefer the original just go play that one

[@Zerovin]

@@TheWeeklySlopYT as someone who didn't play the original, it is rough in some places but the places that it is rough in are the places that it really shouldn't be rough in

[@animeheadshot1016]

@@TheWeeklySlopYT When I posted this two weeks ago, I wasn't aware at the time that so many other people weren't happy with Zack's new VA.

[@natehawthorne4828]

When it comes to the VAs, I like the new voices for Aerith, Tifa, and Barret over the originals. I'm either way with Clouds VAs. I prefer Sephiroth and Zack's original VAs over the new ones.....Especially Zack's.

[@lukasruston8618]

I'm just hoping that they do a do over of his line at the end of the game and make it sound actually sad... if they can do that then I'm 100% fine with any and all voice acting in the game, that one scene matters so much to me.

[@lemondollie]

Tyler hoechlin does a great job with Sephiroth, but he’s still not George newbern.

[@Jack_Ss]

Literally exactly how I feel. I prefer George Newbern but just a bit. But I greatly prefer old Zack

[@abc4781]

Lol honestly I can't really really the difference with barret, he still sounds like a fake ass Mr. T.

[@jeffreyjaudian8671]

yup this is my opinion too hope they change it maybe

[@microwraptor4774]

im soo nervous because Zack's voice over the course of CC changes as he gets older/goes through more traumatic shit, by the end of the game he not only has changed entirely as a character but also *sounds* so much more mature and less naive than he did at the beginning of the game. to me it was something really important that i noticed and made me emotional. i would like for the remake to at least include that but 😬😬😬😬

[@shirosaki15]

RIGHT!

[@nophoria]

It does not sound like he does (at all) comparing the price of freedom clips. Almost turns me off from playing it tbh, he just sounds nerdy now.

[@george_MF_washington]

@@nophoriaSO NERDY!! For NO REASON I’m having a blast playing is sub tho

[@zephyrias]

This. Once the haircut change hit, bam! Zack as a chara was more mature. I chose the fan club option the sidequest. It’s hilarious to have those Zack fans…. 😢 until ya realize the price of freedom.

[@CelestialLimbo]

@@nophoria he sounds nerdy because of the nasal pitch that sometimes slips in. I don't know how those lines got passed...

[@MelaniAlarcon]

im scared about Vincents new upcoming voice actor, i think no one will be better than Steve Blum

[@StephanieKimPascaru]

I agree!!! His voice was so perfect for Vincent, I hope they at least find a similar-sounding voice

[@RoyleVegeta]

No.... you.... Can't..... Can't just replace Steve Blum

[@MelaniAlarcon]

@@RoyleVegeta im scared :(

[@RoyleVegeta]

@@MelaniAlarcon me too, me too!

[@karissycloud1883]

@@RoyleVegeta I WAS LITERALLY THINKING ABOUT THIS Im gonna cry forever if his new voice isn't simular to Steve Blum

[@m0ckyzo185]

Personally I prefer Britt's voice for Tifa because it lends itself to her contrasting switcharoo narrative with Aerith. Those two characters were designed with the idea that one acts more like how the other looks(Aerith looks more timid and shy at a distance, but once you get to know them, those traits fit Tifa). Tifa's voice sounding more assertive lulls you into believe she's spunky and headstrong(when those traits are more akin to Aerith), only for it to be revealed throughout the game that she has more depth to her than just her design(I like to think this peaks in the garden scene). To each there own, though, your Zack and Sephy take is essentially unanimous.

[@everythingBLUE]

I love that we're having this conversation. I'm 32 and grew up with these characters. Even so, I never really loved the voice cast outside of George and Rick. I've always thought that Cloud deserved better than Steve Burton. Not to say Steve's awful, but hot take, it takes a better performer to bring out the more colorful shades of Cloud's personality and Cody just... he just nailed it. I immensely enjoyed the performances of the main quartet (Cloud/Aerith/Tifa/Barret) in Remake. Zack... siiiiiiigh. Zack hurts me. You're so spot on with your analysis of Rick Gomez and what he brought to the character. Warmth, strength, conviction, maturity. I'm convinced that Zack's current western fanbase wouldn't be half as large without Rick's original interpretation. No shade to the new actor, but it's a dire miscast and lackluster direction imo.

[@Solbrave00]

Disagreed with the cloud part Steve was a good voice for cloud as proved with dissidia 012, NT, world of final fantasy. Its all about the direction.

[@everythingBLUE]

@@Solbrave00 I’ll definitely give him credit for the original Crisis Core too. He’s just hit-and-miss for me.

[@Solbrave00]

@@everythingBLUE thing is with the new va, you can replace cody with someone like Kyle Mcarley, Eric Vale, Todd Haberkorn or Vic Mignogna, and there would be no difference. Hes pretty much an anime VA whos typecasted to be a final fantasy character.

[@martyrodriguez1524]

Yeah can't get past zack voice reason so ify about new game I grew up with crisis core as well

[@Dankmemes555]

I agree wholeheartedly

[@hauntedhills677]

Good note on how Zacks new VA sounds like a 4kids version. I got a chuckle out of that one. To me, it just sounded like hes just there for a paycheck and performed the bare minimum. Rick Gomez nailed it in the original. First time hearing Zack in the remake I was laughing on how abysmal those lines were said. Especially towards a scene that's supposed to be emotional.

[@MariusBoss11458]

I strongly Disagree about Tifa. Now, while I was playing OG, I felt like Tifa was childish in a way. But Remake Tifa is more Mature. But I like that change. You could argue that Aerith is more even though she's older than Cloud and Tifa is more Mature. I like this Mature version of Tifa.

[@Killer_Kris7]

She sounds older and more mature than fucking Sephiroth.

[@zealousrunner7]

At the cost of Sephiroth sounding less mature

[@tonijhunter1]

The “what the hell did you do angeal” line is what made me decide to play this game in Japanese. The original CC I hold close since I was a teen when it first came out, I feel like it’s a huge injustice to zack’s character as a whole. Btw I love the beginning with the Sonic line because that’s what I call zack’s new voice lol

[@Markov_Productions]

You just said what i feel… if they only kept Rick Gomez and George Newbern, i would have never argued with how things are… But replacing such good voices……. Damn Square…..

[@reicherwallace6774]

I full heartedly agree. Though Steve was a very good Cloud, too. I feel that Zack and Sephiroth specifically were completely optimized by their original voice actors

[@riesonomura]

I personally find the new Sephiroth voice super bland, it doesn't have the "charm" that George Newbern's rendition has

[@R0B5e55or001]

If only they would've kept Rick Gomez, Steve Burton (eff off, haters if you strongly disagree), George Newbern, and Rachael Leigh Cook (I could sort of tolerate the constant change of Aerith's VA) and the whole original FF7 voice cast, then there would've never been a backlash, division, confusion, nor a plummeted excitement for the FF7R.

[@reicherwallace6774]

@@R0B5e55or001 I honestly don't understand why they basically dropped every single VA

[@riesonomura]

@@R0B5e55or001 I do like Red XIII's new voice (Plagg from Miraculous, Arataki Itto from Genshin Impact, Ryuji/Skull from Persona 5) and Barret sounds otherwise the same to me, but other than that agreed

[@Bulzeeb15]

Gomez and Newbern carried Crisis Core amazingly and even in the other games like Kingdom Hearts (Zack hitting on Aqua in particular). I'm playing Reunion with JP voices because it just isn't the same without them. Their voicework is part of the reason why I rewatch all the cutscenes from CC yearly.

[@wood1066]

Somebody please mod Zack and Sephiroth's original Voices in reunion.

[@CoraLuna]

The only problem coming with it this is that there are a lot of dialogues that where only written and not spoken…

[@wood1066]

@@CoraLuna I'm fine with that it's just like what Bandai did with Yuri in PS4 version Tales of Vesperia where they had a new VA voice the new and old dialogue that was never voiced in the original 360 version, but keep his original VA for the stuff that was already done. While not ideal I rather have it that way then to get rid of the original voice entirely.

[@R0B5e55or001]

Bring them back, bring ALL original FF7 voice cast back

[@BewareTheLilyOfTheValley]

I don't usually like PC games, but I would be willing to buy CCR if someone makes a mod to use the original voice acting (well...I don't mind Tseng's new voice. The old voice actor was very dry. I remember making a joke way back then that he just talked instead of voice acting).

[@schemar17]

Good news yall they have a mod for old voices I'm reunion

[@arkz-nero9674]

God, this just makes me cry. I grew up with those guys, so this brings me so much pain.

[@stuartlemusic]

The only one I disagree with is Tifa's VAs. I don't find each one necessarily better than another, but the new one in remake fits her story well. She is able to convey the desperateness and loneliness of trying to win Cloud back. If you take into account the totality of the different voices in remake, her lower voice is a nice contrast with Aerith and Yuffie, making each one sound more distinct from one another. However, this quality is not shared when comparing the new Cloud and Zack VAs. They sound more similar than ever at times, when Zack is meant to be mature, energetic, and cool, as you mentioned. For the record, I have no attachment to the old voices, and believe they could have been improved on. If they casted better voices than the originals, then I'd be totally on board.

[@StephanieKimPascaru]

I see what you mean! Honestly I think Britt Baron's line delivery is great. But to me her voice itself sounds like every other anime dub, like not really much spunk or special spark to it. But that's just my personal preference lol, I can see why people prefer her as the new VA. I also have the same problem with the Princess Peach VA in the new Super Mario Bros movie, since I'm more used to Peach's more delicate-sounding voice 😅

[@houseofsion8825]

Brits voice is too heavy for a shy soft spoken petit woman that tifa is supposed to be

[@KuraudoSutoraifu7]

She sounds like she’s in her late 40’s like😅 sephiroth sounds like he’s a teen barely hitting puberty and forcing a Deep edgy emo lord guy 😹 like noooo. Zacks just bad. ☠️ 😂

[@TheLegendOfLame]

@@StephanieKimPascaru yeah I think the only ones I truly have a problem with are Zack and Sephiroth. For instance, Zack ends up becoming the same guiding mentor figure to Cloud that Angeal was to him, however in Reunion, both Zack and Cloud are very softspoken. In regards to Sephiroth, as you and the commentor said in the video, the new voice fits, but it's just not as good as the original. Cloud's voice fits and sounds fine, I don't necessarily have a preference beyond nostalgia. Tifa's voice sounds more fitting to me so that one is just a difference in opinion (in fact her slightly deeper voice helps contrast her personality more if anything, which goes well with her physical strength doing the same). And of course new Aerith is a perfect casting, alongside new Barret. Anyway long story short I think Zack's new voice (at the very least the voice direction for him in Reunion) is particularly egregious, and Sephiroth's new voice is just disappointing at most.

[@zelohendricks51]

@@houseofsion8825 Shy? Soft? How lol

[@HumanDevilTV]

Cody Christian somewhat grew into the role of Cloud to me, as he really sounds like a younger Steve Burton to me. Briana White was a perfect new cast for Aerith, she really fits the character well and sounds so natural. Tyler Hoechlin as Sephiroth is still strange to me, especially since George Newbern delivered this character so iconically over the past years in different media. He does a decent job, though. There are some in betweens that are good enough that they don't stand out negatively. However, the voice cast of Crisis Core Reunion really has two major problems. First, Shaun Conde as Genesis. The main "villain" of the game, who has a lot of lines throughout the game. Oliver Quinn really gave the character some depth, a concealed anger and hatred, while still maintaining this gentle and elegant tone. Conde just makes him sound like an average arrogant rich kid. And second, of course, is Caleb Pierce as Zack. How in the world can you screw up your main hero's voice like that, while Rick Gomez defined this character with such emotional power and vocal range 14 years ago? Pierce just sounds too flat, too emotionless and just like a bad imitation of Roger Craig Smith as Sonic the Hedgehog. I can understand that Square Enix wanted a new direction with the remake continuity and thus changed the voice actors. However, sometimes, changes are not always for the better, but for the worse.

[@Killer_Kris7]

Sephiroth sounds fucking awful

[@finalfursonavii8635]

I personally love clouds new voice with Cody Christian, Especially the kind of raspier higher voice with that same kind of aggressive and heavy energy... But I can't agree more about Zack being so much better as Rock Gomez than Caleb Hyles... Rick Gomez is Zack... Caleb Hyles just doesn't feel like a good casting somehow.. or at least just doesn't have enough of that raw emotion. I like Tifas remake voice acting, but at times I don't feel like it has that same bouyancy and often sounds like she's on the verge of tears for unexplained reasons... But for the heavy scenes in remake it really works. Barret's new voice acting is basically an essential, it has range, charisma and power in every word... And the voice actor LOVES doing it. George Newbern really was perfect... Like you can't understate his ability to go from menacing and threatening to being playful in a reserved way. Remake Sephiroth just doesn't have that charisma.

[@crowthewicked8344]

Caleb Hyles is a youtuber, Caleb Pierce is the new VA but yeah I agree 100

[@ancapgrandscribe9546]

His voice actor is Caleb Pierce but yeah fo sho. Kenichi is authentic and best Zack though, even better than Rick but Rick was definitely the best English voice actor for Zack.

[@theronhildebrand5925]

Just got recommended this channel and really enjoy it

[@ridleylegassy]

I like the Cloud’s voice in remake and I do think it’s fitting as a “kinda dorky guy trying to be cooler” but like, Steve Burton just has the right edge to him

[@ridleylegassy]

As for the new Zach, I really didn’t like how he sounded in the snippets. Like he’s trying to be a different character entirely

[@Rhubarb120]

I'm playing Reunion in Japanese, because Sephiroth's voice actor (Toshiyuki Morikawa) makes me shiver when he gets to be menacing. A great example of this is when he played Yoshikage Kira in diamond is unbreakable, and he had that terrifying monolog before killing one of the crew, and his performance during shower scene gets me every time.

[@crystalpeaches7825]

hearing him as kira and sephiroth makes me forget that he also voices minato namikaze sometimes

[@kosaku_kq5601]

You'd be amazed how many roles he's played like Dante from Devil May Cry, etcetera.

[@GalaxyRoyal]

Toshiyuki Morikawa also voices Obi-Wan Kenobi in Japanese exactly like Bruno Choel as Sephiroth’s French voice also voices Obi-Wan Kenobi in French so they’re both outstanding! 😮

[@CelestialLimbo]

People are fangirling here over Newbern but Toshiyuki Morikawa is the GOAT and THE definitive Sephiroth.

[@crystalpeaches7825]

@@CelestialLimbo his voice will truly give you despair it’s almost a wonder how the same voice can do minato namikaze and ubuyashiki 😩

[@OSeanSanO]

Younger VAs = less experience (sometimes) = cheaper to hire Is what I took from their shameless change of the VAs

[@CelestialLimbo]

American VAs are so fucking unreliable. They switch voices at the drop of a hat.

[@BewareTheLilyOfTheValley]

Ooh...good point. I also think George Newbern is in some type of union and so they may have wanted to step around that with hiring new people, which sucks. As if voice actors don't already get stepped on in animation for celebrities to take roles that they're usually not a fit for (their names are just marketable), now joining a union to get proper pay is seen as something distasteful. I have a feeling that while FF7 will gain more Japanese fans, here in the west, it's going to start losing steam.

[@joseph8546]

I totally agree, I don't think I'll ever be able to accept Zack's new voice actor's performance in the remake. And Sephiroth's new voice while not bad, sounds like he's speaking under his breath at times

[@Whodjathink]

Is that what it is? For me it felt new Sephiroth was trying to do a deep voice and you can HEAR he's trying to do a deep voice so it fails to be intimidating.

[@Killer_Kris7]

@@Whodjathink yeah it sucks

[@jessomint]

I sincerely agree. Voice acting makes such a huge difference and I know it's going to drive me crazy in the new CC.

[@ron4538]

Thank you Stephanie someone finally can make my argument clear to my friends.

[@Lavender09-r9i]

Thank you for commenting about Mr. Newberns performance, I've noticed that as well, newberns voice gives you goose bumps, it's seriously menacing. 😬

[@TheCamdog9]

For Sephiroth, they did replace one Superman for another. As George Newburn has played Superman since the Justice League cartoon and Tyler Hoechlin currently plays Superman on Superman and Lois.

[@kosaku_kq5601]

Even the Japanese VA plays an iteration of Superman in (LEGO).

[@Bandikitty]

Um...so what? Who gives a damn that they both played Superman? Hoechlin is a bad voice actor and as Sephiroth he's downright atrocious. They need to get rid of him.

[@egateqa1351]

@@Bandikitty You’re missing the point. The fact they replaced DCAU Superman with CW Superman makes Remake Sephiroth as worse as any CW villain.

[@marushii04]

FINALLY someone who gets it!! Fantastic video! While Caleb's voice isn't on par as Rick's, most of the time he just misses the mark. Most of the characters are okay but the original just nailed the characters' voice.

[@UGNPFU]

The main problem is this belief that Hollywood Movie/TV actors are better than dedicated voice actors.

[@rolotomassi8767]

Everyone in the new cast is really good, but I think certain characters like Sephiroth, Zack, and Reno had voices that were too iconic to replace.

[@tobytheshih-tzu6329]

Yes this!!

[@TheShockVox]

Those are literally the three.

[@rolotomassi8767]

@@TheShockVox And now Vincent too. I think Matt Mercer is a great voice actor, but nothing quite compares to the edgy rasp of Steve Blum's performance.

[@mgz0305]

*APPLAUSE* Absolutely LOVE your analysis!

[@AngelCopout]

G O T T A M O V E ! ! My god. This new VA is literally Sonic from Sonic X.

[@spenser9784]

Thank you so much for bringing attention to this. I have been saying this exact thing since Remake first came out, and to my dismay none of the people I usually listen to for Final Fantasy stuff even acknowledged any of this. How people have ignored the lesser voices of Zack, Sephiroth, and even Reno and Rude have baffled me for two years. Thank you for showing me that I’m not alone in my feelings toward the casting choices.

[@meowy2k]

it feels good to see so many people in this community understand the importance of WHY this is such a big deal to us. voice acting is still as important as general acting, not everyone fits the character they're assigned to.

[@livelyoh8816]

Read a comment recently that said something along the lines of: It's not that the new VA for Zack is bad, it's just that Rick Gomez was *perfect.* I feel the same way about Sephiroth too tbh... George's voice is so naturally deep in a way that doesn't feel forced. Can't explain it, but it just sounds so natural to how I picture his voice.

[@DEPORT_nonWhites_or_KILL_them]

No, this is cope. Caleb is bad. He just sucks and the actors were all replaced in USA for Sony brand deals.

[@jaypraru]

no no I defiantly agree that the new sephiroth can be lackluster. my fav sephiroth line isn't even from ff7, its from kh2 when you walk up to him and he asks sora "what is cloud doing?" I dunno why but growing up i thought he sounded so cool, my older brother and I still quote that line and i just could never imagine the new sephiroth sounding that menacing

[@PhoenIXPhantasies]

Hearing a familiar voice is like smelling a familiar parfume or eating familiar food. It instantly brings you back to certain memories and moments you cherish. The character's voices in games should not be changed.

[@raulsouza5866]

they can be changed, but the quality of acting, direction and etc has to remain the same...not Zack's case for example...

[@carlosldg]

I'm really excited about Crisis Core Reunion, but your analysis of Caleb Pierce's take on Zack Fair is spot on. I can live with all the other voice changes, even if I miss how bass-boosted George Newburn's Sephiroth was. The new cast is incredible, and brought so much life and color to the world of FFVIIR. That being said, it's so tough to accept Caleb Pierce because Rick Gomez's line reads were perfect. Caleb's Zack annoys me, and seems way too eager compared to how Rick's Zack was indeed very nerdy, but he was so charming.

[@Miriko_exe]

Something I notice about Zack’s new voice is that I don’t find myself smiling along to what he says as often anymore. What you said about how the voice adds that cool and funny vibe to Zack is very true, it’s the whole point of voice acting; the life adds more to the personality of the character. So changing the VA without any logical reason just doesn’t sit right with me. I don’t think Caleb’s voice acting is bad, but it still doesn’t feel like the Zack we all know and love. It feels like a great voice actor just casted in the wrong role. Yeah, in short I agree that using the excuse that they needed a younger and newer cast was pretty lame, they should’ve gone for the old voice actors to reprise their roles as most of the fanbase right now are just old FF7 players looking for that hint of nostalgia

[@ordonlink259]

Zack's new voice is the only reason I'm hesitant about buying the crisis core remake. I'm scared the entire time I play it I wouldn't be able to take my mind off of how different it sounds, leading to it ruining the remake for me.

[@CoraLuna]

thought about it too but then decided to play it with either Japanese or German dub. I absolutely can not get through the story with the new english VA’s but I also do not want to miss playing it remastered

[@AShinyPiplupTTV]

I tried to do the English…it just hurts too much, it’s fucking awful, I’d say it’s worth buying as it has the same amazing gameplay…just have to do japanese

[@chrisbeeson4322]

Yep, for the first time ever I switched to Japanese dub instead because I can't handle his new VA. It's awful.

[@GalaxyRoyal]

While Zack’s Japanese and French voices have reprised their roles. German got a new voice for Zack voiced by Patrick Keller and fun fact he played Final Fantasy VII on PS1 when he was little back in the mid 2000s and now he’s both a gamer and a voice actor in animes as he’s Kirito’s German voice in Sword Art Online. 😊

[@JoshuaGraves113]

@@CoraLuna The German dub has a new VA too in case you were wondering. It's strange to hear.

[@anilajez6339]

Nobody talking about Genesis reading Loveless. Oliver Quinn gave me chills reading those poetry lines but not the new genesis in reunion…

[@KyleOO5]

Zack's VA in Crisis Core Reunion sounds more like a fandub rather than an official dub

[@1216Rockman]

A fan couldn't make it that bad more like a spite dub

[@swiftchancellor159]

The original "Boy oh boy, the price of freedom is steep" hit me so hard man. It felt like after everything this boy has been through, he became a man.

[@senji7217]

Great video! Your voice is beautiful

[@wyguy_figs2943]

For me, Cody Christian is the definitive Cloud. I’ve always found Steve Burton’s voice a little weird for him, but Cody’s voice is exactly how I imagined he’d sound. I will say Steve’s voice is perfect for young Cloud though. Britt Baron is the definitive Tifa. I understand your point about her soft voice, but for scenes when she’s essentially parenting Barret and Cloud it just wouldn’t work with her soft-spoken tone. Her new voice is more of a balance and I think it’s perfect. Briana White is the definitive Aerith. This one is probably the most unpopular opinion, but I really don’t like her old voice. It really only conveys the emotion “nice” to me, but in reality Aerith is outgoing, funny and makes fun of Cloud constantly and her new voice is much better for that. John Bentley is the definitive Barret. I don’t think anyone will disagree here, he’s just amazing and his performance made Barret one of my favorite characters. However, I’ve never liked Tyler Hoechlin as Sephiroth. I think he’s too soft-spoken and less intimidating and it just didn’t feel like Sephiroth. But George Newbern embodies him to me. He’s less quiet and more deep, and he’s less monotone so he can convey more emotion. It also varies by game, like how in AC he sounds more like he’s taunting Cloud and he sounds scarier, but for the beginning of Crisis Core he could sound happier or more sad. And it’s a hard voice to do but the fact that it was the first English voice we got (not counting KH) it’s hard to look at Hoechlin as a good Sephiroth. Zack is possibly the biggest miss. One of the reasons I liked him was Rick Gomez’s performance. You could tell he got progressively more melancholy as the game went on, and you could feel him going from happier and goofy to depressed, but still trying to be happy similar to Tony Stark in the MCU. And so having someone else play him who most likely didn’t understand the character and is just reading off a script is very disappointing to me. Specifically the “What the hell did you do, Angeal?!” scene is full of so much emotion in the original, but now it’s just not good. Overall I’m mixed on the remake cast. The main characters are phenomenal in Remake, but Sephiroth and Zack specifically make it hard to say it’s the definitive cast. There’s also characters I didn’t mention like Yuffie, Rufus and Red XIII, but I don’t really have much to say, they’re either slight downgrades, about the same, or slight improvements. Anyways if anyone reads all this just remember opinions are subjective, and if you like/dislike the voices that I feel the opposite towards then that’s great and I’d like to hear your arguments!

[@DevilHunter1994]

I share your opinions on the main cast, and on Zack sadly. He really was the biggest misstep in Remake's casting. With Sephiroth though, I honestly kind of go back and forth on which one I prefer between Hoechlin and Newbern. On the one hand, I love Newbern for all of the reason's you mentioned. With Hoechlin on the other hand, while he doesn't have the power and imposing presence that Newbern has, I think he does a really good job of selling Sephiroth's more monstrous side. His delivery is cold, calculating, and as you said, not exactly full of emotion. For a character like Sephiroth though, I think that actually really works. The only time his voice ever seems to have a hint of joy in it is when he's causing pain to others, and especially when he's tormenting Cloud. It's sick, disturbing and...honestly REALLY fitting for this character. Hoechlin's Sephiroth looks human, but at his core, I think he really is, and truthfully always was a monster. It just took him awhile to fully embrace that part of himself, but once he did, there was no turning back. When it comes to Crisis Core, Newbern really plays up the tragedy of Sephiroth's fall, with him coming across as a genuinely good guy at first. So, you think that maybe all the tragedies involving him could have been avoided if only things had just gone a bit differently. He's basically Anakin Skywalker right before he becomes Darth Vader, a true hero who tragically lost himself, and fell from grace. This is an interpretation of the character that I think absolutely works, and Newbern pulled his take on the character off incredibly well. I think Hoechlin's interpretation of the character is a bit different though. With the way he delivers his lines, it comes across to me as though his Sephiroth really struggles with human emotions. Despite his attempts, he's not very good at forming connections with people, and he comes off as rather detached a lot of the time. When he tries to express emotion, on some level it always feels off, like the emotions aren't really coming completely naturally to him. He's trying to be human, trying to be the hero that he knows people expect, but it's not working. That's just not who he really is. This could in part help to explain why his turn into the monstrous figure he becomes happens so quickly. He was already kind of forcing the nice guy act as is, so when he learns that everything he has been told to believe is basically a lie, and that Shinra has been using him his entire life, he completely throws away his already shaky grasp on his humanity. He tosses his values, his morals, and even his friendships aside like they were nothing to him, because in truth, they really were nothing to him. At that point, he finally decides to fully embrace the monster that has always been inside him, waiting for a chance to get out. So while Newbern's Sephiroth fell tragically as a result of unforeseen circumstances that might have been prevented, Hoechlin's Sephiroth is someone who was always going to fall eventually. He was basically a ticking time bomb. It wasn't a matter of if it would happen, but when it would happen. The Nibelheim incident just ended up being the moment where everything finally clicked into place, and he finally became the monster that he was always meant to be. So yeah, all things considered, I think Hoechlin and Newbern are just giving two different interpretations of the same character, and in my opinion, both of those interpretations work really well and are really compelling for very different reasons. As for the rest of the characters, generally I think the Remake actors either match, or surpass the Advent Children/Kingdom Hearts cast. So overall, I think the cast change ends up working in Remake's favor. I just really wish they could have found a better pick for Zack. I'm sure Caleb Pierce is trying his best, but he's just not working for me at all. He's the only member of the cast that I simply just don't like in his role.

[@Killer_Kris7]

@@DevilHunter1994 or you could say you don't want Sephiroth sounding like a grown ass man

[@DevilHunter1994]

@@Killer_Kris7 He sounds like a grown ass man in his 30s, which makes sense considering he's literally voiced by a grown ass man in his 30s. Please stop exaggerating. It does nothing to strengthen your point. I get that you don't like Hoechlin, but he very clearly has the voice of a grown man.

[@egateqa1351]

In regards to the first four party members, My thoughts on Cloud’s voice actor is the complete opposite of yours. I think Cody Christian fits the younger Cloud, whereas Steve Burton is the Cloud we know. I think the voice actor who voiced Tifa in the remake was eh… not bad, but certainly not good. I do get why people loved Brianna as Aerith, she arguably did one of the best performances in the FFVII remake. And I love Barret’s new voice actor.

[@Solbrave00]

@@egateqa1351 Steve burton - Classic Cloud Cody Christian - Remake Cloud

[@xknightmare013]

The other thing I don’t understand about “reunion” is the change of the buster swords design. I’m pretty sure they just reused the asset from remake because it was Easier. But thats the story of the sword it’s self. In the original the design of the buster sword was supposed to look ornamental. Like it wasn’t supposed to be used just seen with all the small flourishes and engravings. And angel never used it so it never really had any scratches or damage on it. Until Zack gets it and even then, “even though it’s not represent in game” Zack does say that he only uses the blunt side of the sword, in order to preserve the edge of the blade. And it maintains mostly a good look throughout the year that he has it, but then it gets passed on to cloud who proceeds to let it degrade with constant use and mishandling and I would assume causes it to lose most of its luster, even the engraving on the hilt, which would lead to him having to replace it with the metal bar that goes t throgh the middle. Giving it the iconic look but now they just make it look like it always looks like that and it hasn’t changed in over 10 years span. Like the sword history, never really matter to begin with. it’s just always been a huge hunk of metal that cloud swings around.

[@matthewwylie2735]

For characters like Cloud, you could tell me his voice actor did not change and I'd totally believe you. Maybe Cody's performance sounds a bit more mature and consistent, but he sounds almost the exact same as Steve. For Sephiroth it's a bit more noticeable, like his voice sounds a bit deeper and quieter. It also feels like Tyler is trying realllllly hard to mimic George's voice. It works(?) but it doesn't quite match the bitterness and coldness of George's performance. But what the hell happened to Zack's voice man? Caleb sounds completely different than Rick who knew how to play Zack. And if he had a good new take on Zach I wouldn't mind, but all his dialogue feels either way too grunty, way to nasally, or way too whiney (saying he came out of a 4Kids dub is so accurate).

[@Killer_Kris7]

Sephiroth's new voice is NOT Deeper lmao the fuck

[@zealousrunner7]

​@@Killer_Kris7 I think they were high when writing that.

[@DEPORT_nonWhites_or_KILL_them]

Tyler has no bass in his voice. He is trying to do it but can't which is why his voice goes quieter to compensate. He was hired because of Sony and TV brand deals. Square is lying about age to cover for money deals.

[@Niosai]

This is a great video and I can't wait to see what you do next! Really great commentary and you made some good points. Subscribed! I was originally VERY against the recasting, and still am in some cases (Zack) but I did see an argument that softened me on it a bit. When you look at Square-Enix going all-in on FF7-related content and see how long these games might take to come out, I can sort of see why they'd want to go for a younger cast. Barret's original voice, Beau Billingslea, is 78(!) years old and while he's still working, I imagine they might want someone who can stay with the series for possibly up to 20 more years. Of course, not everyone in the cast was that old, but even then, imagine Steve Burton voicing cloud in 15 years while pushing 70 years old. Still, I do wish they'd gone with someone more energetic for Zack. His voice is so iconic and changing it so harshly makes him feel like a completely different character. I say this as someone who really enjoys the performances of the new cast otherwise.

[@tri3348]

I didn't really grow up with these games, and I'm just now getting into them. Tbh, I think most of the voice actors are great, but I understand where people are coming from and I respect the nostalgia. You're right, Zack's voice is drastically different and I wish they'd stuck with the original voice actor for him, but I can understand both sides.

[@mraidandm]

OUT OF A 4 KIDS CARTTOOON what a way to nail it

[@BlytheChan]

I remember the moment I heard/saw the Reunion trailer. Everyone was so excited, and all I could think was "are you kidding me.... then this better be more than a remaster if Zack sounds like THAT." It just feels like they were told "read this on your own and record it on your own, and don't watch the original scenes/voices for research." I feel that they were not given proper direction. If anything they were probably given a "we want character X to sound like Y," and were left to their own devices which is not ideal for any VA. Many of Zack's lines were a major miss because I can replay the original Crisis Core and feel the emotions while Reunion.... I want to mute most of the voices because they make me feel nothing and relate to nothing. At the end of the day, kudos to these new VA (whether they're new to VA or new to the FF7 series) because they have some wide shoes to fill. I hope they're able to improve and experience great things. Regardless though I wish a patch for the OG cast would be released because from what I can tell the audio/lip animations are word for word (except of course the parts that were not voice acted but it wouldn't be the first time where two voice actors were used for a character in final fantasy).

[@senpaigarr]

I grew up watching my older brother play Final Fantasy 7 on Playstation. When I was older, I loved getting to play that game myself. I was insanely excited when Advent Children came out. I immediately loved all the voices put to each character. And as time went on and I played Dirge of Cerberus and Crisis Core, it just cemented my love for those voice actors. Then the day comes when a trailer for a remake of the original Final Fantasy 7 game comes, and in that trailer, the voices were those from the movie and previous games. It was awesome. But when the game finally comes out, all the voice actors were re cast. And I'm someone that has wanted to be a voice actor since I was 12. I have such respect and love for all the work they do. They brought characters to life in shows, movies, anime, cartoons, etc, etc and I love them for the great work they've done and for the memories they gave me. I'm like you, I'm not here to hate on the new cast, just to say that I do really notice, and miss the old cast. I personally thought the delivery of lines just sounded better coming from the original cast. And most noticeably from Zack Fair. I find his new voice to be the most out of place. We got what we got, but I do wish we could have had FF7 Remake/Rebirth and Crisis Core Reunion with the original voice cast. All the guys and girls did such an amazing job. I will always love what they brought to the characters in one of my all time favourite game franchises, being that of Final Fantasy 7.

[@AngelofPaz]

Thank you for being brave enough to make this video, a lot of people get angry or pull the "who CARES it's voice actors they can be replaced!" anytime english VA's gets brought up. The original cast put a lot of effort and Rick Gomez as Zack really shines. They'll be missed.

[@otakuppa]

this video is fire, ive been sending it to all of my friends, well done lmao

[@TahaTheArtist]

Crisis Core was my introduction to the world of FF7. Before that, I had no idea who any of the characters were or where the plot was heading so Zack has a special place in my heart. Playing remake, I was more than fine with all the voice acting... until they got to Zack. It honestly hurts to think that this is how he's going to sound from now on... plus with how different his face looks compared to the way he did before in CC's cutscenes and AC, it straight up feels like a different guy altogether. Great vid btw.

[@passionx3]

Rick Gomez's voice acting has so much HEART. the new one reminds me of ned fulmer :s

[@passionx3]

and honestly, same with Hayden Panettiere as Kairi - I feel like Alyson Stoner's VA of her was so lifeless (for both her roles as Kairi AND Xion). It was a huge bummer.

[@briandong5293]

This has a lot to do with Japanese producers and developers not understanding their English's audience or having a grasp of the nuance in English voice acting. I understand changing some people when they grow older or have another situation but why is it that some people like Haley Joel Osment continued to voice Sora who grows older while Kairi who was growing older had her actress replaced?

[@darkessraven]

The Kairi replacement was due to issues with her original actress not available or not wanting to do voice work outside of KH 1 and 2 ( and maybe 3D). During those times, another actress took over who most know as Xion’s actress. But both actress have played Kairi and Xion at one point.

[@billionaeris1183]

@@darkessraven That's not true, Hayden said she wasn't asked to return for KH3

[@egateqa1351]

@@darkessraven It’s shown later in the video that Hayden Panettiere wasn’t contacted to voice Kairi for Kingdom Hearts 3.

[@R0B5e55or001]

Imagine they might replace Haley and the whole Kingdom Hearts voice cast with the prolific young celebrities who never heard of Kingdom Hearts nor their characters and were shoved into the marketing gimmick while ghosting Haley and the others why they were replaced. Then maybe they'll finally understand the mistreatment the original Star Craft and the FF7 voice casts went through.

[@egateqa1351]

@@R0B5e55or001 Ironically enough, the voice cast for the Kingdom Hearts original and SquEnix characters were celebrities. So I don’t know why they would replaced the FF7 voice cast with younger celebrities if the Compilation cast were celebrities to begin with.

[@XastherReeD]

This is what I love about Dragon Ball. The voice actors for Goku and Vegeta, Sean Schemmel and Christopher Sabat, have been voicing the character for decades now. They ARE the voices of Goku and Vegeta. I believe I saw a interview with Schemmel at one point where he stated having fought to stay as Gokus VA. I respect that. Why replace a VA who did a phenomenal job and already made the character their own? The change in VAs is the reason I can't buy Reunion. I'm married to the original voice actors. It's the same reason FF7Remake felt so foreign. Like I was listening to strangers dubbing these characters I've listened to for years.

[@annecurtis3235]

I'm so glad you posted. You have such great taste and this needed to be said! I'll have to rewatch your video a few times to get every hidden joke haha

[@ERODRIGUEZ249]

Love your videos, please make more! You have excellent insight into the topics you discuss and your voice is rather pleasant.

[@ZAMAN3705]

Thank you for saying what's on my mind 😭

[@siighosts0145]

This video just nailed everything on what I was thinking 😂

[@NoahRogers19980618]

Thanks KZbin Reccomendations

[@raphsurf]

Hey, Wake Up ! Stephanie posted !

[@saberflavor5633]

New Zack sounds like a teenager trying to do a Sonic impression

[@keybladesrus]

Started CCR today and got about 6 hours in. God, I miss Rick Gomez and George Newbern so much...

[@ChipDamageMike]

Fantastic video, I agree with most of your opinions, especially with Zack and Sephiroth. Zack in particular really breaks my heart. It’s amazing that a Crisis Core remake even exists, and Zack is my favorite character in the series, but after playing it a bit now, I can honestly say his new voice takes the wind out of my sails a bit. It’s a real shame, because all the little gameplay improvements are fantastic. After about two hours, I had to switch to Japanese, which is something I rarely do for games…but it’s still Crisis Core, so it’s still fantastic. Great work on the video! You have a new subscriber.

[@goodnesswhy]

I've never played these games, but finding out that Rachael Leigh Cook was the original voice actress for Tifa was a pleasant surprise! She was great in the movie She's All That. Man, time flies!

[@StephanieKimPascaru]

I was so surprised to find out she was the original voice actress too!

[@lukehart7225]

I’ve just watch FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE Voice Actors - JAP/ENG. I agree that Square Enix does a perfect job in voice actors especially in FFX, but would’ve been nice for the old voice actors to come back too! Or have a switch in the menu so you can change voice actors. That’ll be nice.

[@Bunnykilllls]

I’ve been waiting for someone to say this oh my god

[@R0B5e55or001]

Your explanation and the description of this video are on point which is what, how, and why the VA change changes FF7 forever. Ngl, but it's almost like I don't ever want a Remake that does not let the legacy voice cast return nor to string them along to become part of the Remake after Steve and Beau just returned as Cloud and Barret in the FF7R 2015 trailer while George Newbern on the other hand have been trying to get his agents to keep in touch with the Square Enix of making sure he's still Sephiroth, but they've ghosted him only that four years later they were all suddenly replaced out of the blue like that without a prior warning. Hmm interesting situation with what recently happened to Henry Cavill aka live action Superman due to "ageism" not that anybody cared nor feel bummed for him the same way the original FF7 voice cast were bummed they weren't part of the Remake. It's also the same thing that happened to Julia Sawalha aka Ginger who couldn't return for the Chicken Run sequel due to "ageism." From how people don't find it a big deal that they've all been replaced and to quickly turn their backs on them with no sympathy of how they've been mistreated is absolutely questionable and ridiculous. They're all what defines their characters and they're all even attached to their characters for a long time, otherwise, they never would've voiced in every other projects. Ngl, but when I go back to memory lane with the original PS1 FF7 game, I automatically read every character texts with the Compilation FF7 voice cast's voices in my head, and was hoping when the FF7 game gets a Remake, they would all voice act in most of the scenes I was so looking forward to to be brought to life, but sadly ever since the voice change came out of nowhere like that, that's where all of a sudden the excitement for the FF7R plummeted. If you check out Operation Reunion's video called Is Square Enix turning into the next Blizzard, it all makes perfect sense that the CMO for Activision Blizzard Entertainment have mistreated Glynnis Campbell aka Sarah Kerrigan by stringing her along to be part of Star Craft II and then they replaced her with a prolific celebrity like Tricia Helfer and then crazily promoted her to market the fandoms of Battlestar Galactica into the Star Craft II and then never acknowledged Campbell ever again after Campbell had just voiced Kerrigan in the project before the recast happened. If you noticed that the same CMO for Activision Blizzard Entertainment has now worked for Square Enix ever since the end of 2018, it's not so coincidence that around that same time, the secret auditions for FF7R were being held and even Christian stated that he was auditioned for the secret project for the secret character that he didn't even know about around the end of 2018. Since the announcement of the recast at E3 in June 2019, Square Enix has been pushing FF7R to be marketed towards a “new, younger audience”. The marketing team, lead by CMO Heinecke, had to figure out what would be the best way to pull a new, younger audience to FF7R to increase sales and the fanbase. The solution? Hire the young celebrities from ViacomCBS and The CW’s popular teen shows “All-American”, “Teen Wolf”, and “Supergirl”, Cody Christian and Tyler Hoechlin, to headline for rivals Cloud Strife and Sephiroth. So isn't it obvious that the circumstances of the recast for Star Craft and the FF7 voice casts were absolutely similar and comparable? Original FF7 voice cast voiced a promotional trailer for Final Fantasy 7 Remake for Playstation Experience in 2015 and continued to voice the characters in other projects. Was stated in a private press conference held by Yoshinori Kitase that the original cast voiced the whole game. The actors were fired months before E3 without being told why, then replaced with popular Teen Wolf television actors like Cody Christian and Tyler Hoechlin. Square Enix never acknowledged them voicing the characters ever again and only advertised the new cast as the voices of the characters as if the original compilation cast never existed by creating the “the original didn’t have voice acting” slogan campaign, completely ignoring the following 13 gaming titles that did have voice acting like Compilation of FF7(Advent Children, Dirge of Cerberus, Crisis Core), Kingdom Hearts series, Dissidia Final Fantasy series, Mobius Final Fantasy, and World of Final Fantasy.

[@R0B5e55or001]

If anyone finds it a no big deal that the original FF7 voice cast were all replaced, then don't even bother finding it a big deal either when David Hayter couldn't return for Metal Gear Solid 5, the original Scooby-Doo voice cast couldn't return for Scoob movie, original Looney Tunes voice cast couldn't return for LeBron James's Space Jam movie, James C Burns couldn't return as Frank Woods for the Black Ops Cold War, Johnny Yong Bosch couldn't return as Vash, original TWEWY voice cast couldn't return for the new TWEWY animated shows, the original Mob Psycho 100 voice cast couldn't return for the renewed season, and the original Super Mario Bros voice cast couldn't return for the new Super Mario Bros movie.

[@changbinism]

zack's new voice actor sounds like he should be discussing raid mechanics on reddit.

[@nexiousimrex264]

Can I just say, thank you for making this video. I felt exactly the same way and I’m glad I’m not the only one who felt they should have brought back the original cast.

[@yupthisisandy]

As someone who never played the original I think they’re all fine

[@R0B5e55or001]

Here are my reviews for the original FF7 voice cast. Original Cloud: I grew up hearing his voice, become attached with his continuity in every project he's in starting with the Kingdom Hearts series, then Compilation of FF7, Dissidia Final Fantasy series, 2015 Remake trailer, World of Final Fantasy, Mobius Final Fantasy. His natural voice even matches to his Japanese counterpart voice well even when it comes to going on a path of stoicism and traumatic experiences. From Dirge of Cerberus and Crisis Core, those become the times he wasn't enigmatic which is even more interesting because he usually counts as one of the emo-like characters along with Squall and Lightning in other spin-off games like World of Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts 2 (where he one time teamed up with Squall), and Dissidia Final Fantasy series. For Crisis Core, I like how Steve went for the younger version of a country boy with his own voice and capture how Cloud used to be: shy, hopeful, self-motivated, and relaxed where he was fitful to be a soldier with military training just not yet to the soldier classes level up until Sephiroth turns evil. From there, that's where Cloud becomes traumatized with the experience when his favorite hero who now turned insanely bad destroying his hometown, killed innocent people, hurting Tifa, and betray humanity so now that's why Cloud gets vengeful towards Sephiroth; unfortunately, due to his traumatic experience, his own mental state and his own will were weak. So that's why he was not strong enough to resist the mako poisoning. Because of the mako poisoning, Cloud was able to absorb Zack's character every time Zack does something in front of him and talk to him while he's in a comatose state, so from the start of FF7, Cloud was half mixed with Zack's character, his will, and his memory after Zack's death. For the FF7, they made Cloud become a cool and cocky anti-hero, but it's already a shame they took the chance away from Steve including every original FF7 voice cast to be part of the Remake knowing he'll for sure go to that kind of direction because he stated in few of his Cloud Cameo videos, he originally before did try to add his own thing or emotion to the lines, but his voice director and producers go like, "No! Less, do less, do less!" so he had to go to that kind of 'monotonous-like' path. When first time watching Steve Burton's interviews about his voice work as Cloud, I was priceless when he talks naturally without even acting like Cloud, he still sounds like Cloud as if it's the first time Cloud was out of character not being all enigmatic or dark. When looking at him, holy F, he even looks like Cloud in real life especially with his beautiful mako-infused blue eyes that maybe it'd be a perfect idea he also plays as a live action form of Cloud just like when Matthew Lillard voice of Shaggy also played in live action form of Shaggy. Same goes for Beau Billingslea aka Barret Wallace when he also looks like his own FF7 character. Trust me, when you try FaceApp for Beau and Barret (don't matter which version Advent Children or FF7R) there's no difference at all. Original Sephiroth: Starting off with Lance Bass first since he's technically considered as original Sephiroth, but unfortunately, his run on KH is short-lived alongside with David Boreanaz aka original Leon, and Mandy Moore aka original Aerith due to heavy criticism so some part of me felt bad for them since their performances are really good. However, Lance, tbh, doesn't hit a mark for me even if his performance was too short throughout the first KH game. If they could've expand Sephiroth's part in that game a little more, then I maybe so would've given him another chance. When looking through Lance's previous acting career, ngl, but his acting skills in most of the projects he's in is pretty lacking so it's kinda justifiable why he didn't ever come back as Sephiroth. So oh well at least he tried. Then enters George Newbern for KH2, oh man WOW!! I get the true chills when I hear, "Hmph, did Cloud tell you that? Then he must understand now." and he didn't even need to mimic Lance's voice. And then in Advent Children, I got even more surprised with his super chilling voice with "Good to see you...Cloud!" like I instantly felt the fear and the chills to my spine almost like I feel intimidated. His voice from there was like so hauntingly calm and cool, yet so dark and sinister and that I should shut up when he talks. His voice even perfectly matches to his Japanese counterpart that makes Sephiroth's character to bring in fear to every character he encounters. It's like his super cool voice somehow makes his character, instead of being a love-to-hate type of villain, he's actually a love-to-love type of villain (likeable villain). In Crisis Core, it gets interesting to first time ever see Sephiroth to be on a good side and that they this time let George to add in emotion to his Sephiroth voice since that was the time he wasn't evil yet. From the part when Genesis needed a transfusion, Hollander says Sephiroth isn't viable when he was about to volunteer to be his donor, I first time ever felt pity for Sephiroth after he go "Why couldn't I be the donor...?" Even in the Nibelheim scene, George did an excellent laugh through pain even though we all thought it was an evil laugh when actually it isn't from the part when Sephiroth was asked about his family. After finding out the truth of his origins by Genesis, he went back to being a super villain again (don't mean in a chronological FF7 timeline). This reminds me of his Superman role back in Injustice: Gods Among Us and Superman Vs The Elite where Superman was all bad-guy-like due to the tragedy, like whoa life imitates art. I don't know if it's wrong to say George looks a little bit like Sephiroth excluding the long, silver hair, but his eyes totally resemble Sephiroth's eye color. When you watch him in some live actions roles, he even sometimes accidentally slips out his Sephiroth tone voice. And to add on with your opinion. Original Zack: He has a Sora-like personality with being all naive, cheerful, silly, energetic, friendly, and optimistic, hero-enthusiastic but yet emotional, aggressive, and edgier when it comes to impossible situations like finding out about Angeal's betrayal, "What the hell did you do, Angeal?!", Genesis encounter, forced to go on a mission to track Angeal down, finding out about Sephiroth's betrayal to the humanity, and how many years have gone by after missing for 4-5 years (you get the idea of listing on and on) which is all a very stellar performance. When you hear Rick Gomez in some interviews and the one in GameSpot's KZbin E3 2012 Bonus Stage video with him and his brother, he talks naturally without even getting into Zack's character (just the same way with Steve's). And to add on with your opinions to mine. Original Barret: He did well with capturing Barret's sense of humor and aggressive personality in Advent Children, Dirge of Cerberus, and 2015 FF7R gameplay trailer. Not to mention Beau even looks like Barret. Original Aeriths: Starting with Mandy Moore, she's easily amazing. Mena Suvari, her performance in Advent Children is not bad until KH2 her delivery becomes weakened a little bit. Andrea Bowen, she's amazing that her on-voice chemistry with Rick Gomez's Zack is perfectly well fitting in Crisis Core. Every previous Aerith's VAs really did capture Aerith's innocence and kind personality so Idk why this is one of minor flaw Square Enix have done with the inconsistent casting for Aerith. Original Tifa: Her voice captures Tifa's feisty, tough, sensitive, and optimistic personality really well especially from the part when she helps Cloud through with the complicated situations to move forward with his life, for instance when she finds out he had a stigma, willing to help Cloud with her light of hope when fighting with Sephiroth in KH2, working together in Dirge of Cerberus and World of Final Fantasy(though it's a little too short), and in Duodecim where they feel like they felt the connection with each other despite they being on the opposite side, but had to face the inevitable that they're supposed to treat each other like enemies or there'll be worst consequences for them. So that's why I'm fond with Rachael's voice for Tifa and that her battle quotes in KH2, Duodecim, and NT were pretty edgy, feisty, and intimidating. Rachael does even look a little bit like Tifa, and that she does talk naturally like her. So if you'd asked my opinion of who should also play in their live action forms of their own voice characters, that would be Steve Burton as Cloud, Beau Billingslea as Barret, and Rachael Leigh Cook as Tifa (I wouldn't mind if George Newbern can become a live action Sephiroth possibly).

[@R0B5e55or001]

Here are my honest opinions and scale rankings towards the Remake voices, and no! Don't take it the wrong way, it's all not meant to harass them personally. Teen Wolf CW Remake Cloud: Ok, he maybe so did great, no doubt about it not that his voice exactly twins with Steve's, but just similar cause I could easily tell it wasn't Steve's voice when first time seeing the E3 FF7R trailer back in 2019 which is deeply disappointing and shocking to find out the whole original FF7 voice cast didn't return like no prior warning at all after Beau and Steve just voiced their characters in the 2015 FF7R trailer. 9/10 Teen Wolf CW Remake Sephiroth: Sort of okay, but still not feeling it. Some part of his delivery is a little stiff, not necessarily bad, but just a little weak. He, maybe so, would make a great villain role or a bully-like role, but don't feel any intimidation nor fear at all. And sorry, but his not-so-coincidental mixed Superman background that's trying to replace George's Sephiroth/Superman career doesn't deceive me. 6/10 Remake Zack: I don't mean to be rude or anything personal towards the actor. So sorry, but this is the loudest scratch to the chalkboard of all scratches. Like I was hoping they would end from here of trying to promote CBS actors and the recasting choices. While his acting skills weren't that bad, his delivery and range are a little weakened, lacking charismatic personality, and truly a failed attempt of imitating Rick and Japanese Zack's voice. Yeah, maybe so his performance could match to Zack's naive and energetic personality and such, but it doesn't reach high enough to that level. If it was the voice director's idea of making him go this way, then I don't believe it's him to be entirely blamed for the stiff performance. Well, at least he tried. 5/10 Remake Barret: He did pretty alright, so I'll give him points for that. 10/10 Remake Aerith: Since I'm used to the constant change of Aerith voices (though I hope this is the last time ever), I'll give her points for that, and I have no doubt her performance is stellar job. Her innocence and kindness to Aerith's personality really does match well to the character. 10/10 Remake Tifa: Almost similar to Rachael's, but a little bit low pitched voice not in a bad way though. 9 and a half/10 Look, no disrespect, hatred, nor personal issues with the newbie voice cast, I'm positive they're great actors and at least tried, and no doubt they're all pretty nice people. I understand it's not their fault for the choice of replacing the original FF7 voice cast, but the recasting is very unnecessary. When they're all voice directed into sounding like their original FF7 voice counterparts, they've technically been given credit for the original FF7 voice counterpart's originated voices, so the excuses for the recasting becomes even more flimsy, contradicting, and ridiculous. Like why not just rehire the original FF7 voice cast to be part of the Remake projects? And why would they string Beau and Steve along for when they just voiced their FF7 characters back in the 2015 Remake trailer when their performances were excellent enough? No matter how the Remake games go with the new cast still going in upcoming Remake projects, it doesn't change my heart that I'll always miss, cherish, and prefer the original FF7 voice cast who actually brought hearts, reputation, and souls to the FF7 characters to life first and the longest especially they're even attached to them and knew their characters very well than anyone (otherwise they would've said 'no' to returning as their characters), and of how Square Enix used to upheld a reputation for keeping voice actors consistent through projects and characters up until now which is somehow suspiciously out of character of them. Evidently, they've lately been promoting the newbies names all over media and journalism like they needed special attention and marketing without even acknowledging the original FF7 voice cast ever again. It's like David Hayter all over again when they unnecessarily replaced him with Kiefer Sutherland as Solid Snake, but only this time it's worst when they've recasted the whole entire cast without prior warning. The decision to unnecessary recasting is absolutely beyond my comprehension. While I'm sure the newbies did great job and at least tried, but the original FF7 voice cast don't deserve the mistreatment nor to be forgotten. That's why I'm still holding out a miracle that they'll all be back one day in every, new projects even as an additional downloadable content with legacy audio patch for the Remakes even the Crisis Core Reunion.

[@tropicaltracerbirdie2241]

As I heard someone else say, it's not entirely that the new VA for Zack is terrible, but that he needs to learn to emote the dialogue better and feel what the character is going through, like you gave as example of original CC versus remake's ending of Crisis Core here: 4:21 You're right, that Zack is fighting his former comrades in arms here and says it with reserved pain, but playing it off as a respect of honorable duty versus in remake it does come off as him saying it to seem cool, without the overall feeling attached to the moment. In scenes in Reunion, when he's following the old VO acting (like in the ending), you can tell he took the criticism of his voice acting from Remake's ending to heart and tried to mimic Gomez's Voice and emotions as much as he could. When he does, he actually comes off as very genuine sounding and what the players are looking for. If the new actor can continue to study and emote a bit more in line with Gomez's, he could really improve his current state of the character, but it will take practice and time. Overall, I do miss Gomez's voice, but think the new one could find improvement.

[@KoichiSaito625]

As someone who's followed the voice over industry for years, there's a number of factors that could have impacted Remake's choice to recast everyone. The most likely outcome would be that most of these voice actors would come with big price tags in the US, especially for legacy voices. And since Square was already taking a chance with doing Remake in the first place, I'm betting they set weighed their options and chose to improve overall quality rather than keeping the legacy voices since the company would have deemed it the least contributing factor to the overall success of the game. But again, it's just speculation on my part. As much as I understand the want to keep everyone's VA intact, I've been enjoying the new takes to most of the new cast. Hopefully in time, their performances will continue to grow and give the FFVII fans a performance to be proud of. Briana White as Aerith and John Bently as Barret have hit it out of the park for me, and though I have reservations on Caleb Pierce as Zack, as this video has pointed out, I am looking forward to seeing how his portrayal of Zack in Rebirth will be played out. I'm willing to give the new cast a chance, as someone who played the OG FFVII in 97'.

[@joshvilar2582]

Now that I think about it, I would have liked to see the original English dub cast of Advent Children play their characters in the Remake. The new cast did a great job, of course. My only problem was that as much as I enjoyed the Remake in dub, it felt a little weird because my introduction to Final Fantasy in general was Final Fantasy VII Advent Children and the dub cast was my childhood. Then I played Crisis Core on the PSP, Kingdom Hearts, and Dissidia Final Fantasy, so I was attached to the voiced for years, especially Steve Burton as Cloud Strife, Rachel Leigh Cook as Tifa Lochhart, Rick Gomez as Zack Fair, and George Newburn as Sephiroth. When they showed the teaser trailer for the Remake, I was expecting most or all of Advent Children's dub cast to return and they didn't. That is why when I got Crisis Core Reunion on the PS5, I played it in Japanese. Now I am replaying Remake in Japanese and I will play Rebirth in Japanese. At least the cast there is consistent, and I won't be weirded out because they changed the cast.

[@npaul5962]

I played the Crisis Core Remake for 10 mins and my gf asked me why I looked so disappointed. I showed her the voice acting and she said Zack sounds like Sonic the Hedgehog lol

[@zealousrunner7]

And Sephiroth sounds like shadow the hedgehog too

[@KingOfHeartsTANK]

I'm a little sad you didn't bring up Clouds voice actor, as I feel the new VA is good specially for his first major role, he doesn't have the same confident, considerate and cold but compassionate tone and comes off as monotone a lot. Great video.

[@Dymangel]

I can asure you that modders will make a mod and bring the OG voices (for only a part of the game since the OG was not fully voiced) into the Reunion on Steam.

[@samurai6331]

I feel like there’s another to talk about. Angeal, I didn’t realize it was a different actor, I thought it the exact same actor.

[@yukixnohara]

I agree with every single thing you have said and mentioned. I actually switched to japanese now aswell for Crisis Core bc this pisses me off. Still, I miss the old english cast :( They all made the characters what they are now. Especially the main cast is so iconic, like you said.

[@joshuashaw6105]

It's funny you say that Zack's new voice sounds straight out of a 4Kids dub, the entire time I was playing Reunion (before switching over to the JP voices) I thought he sounded like Sebastian Arcelus. (The original VA of Yoh Asakura in Shaman King's old 4Kids dub)

[@MHUltimate]

If that's the case, even Sebastian would make a better Zack than Caleb.

[@Ritsuka69]

I'm glad I found this video cause it captured all my problems and feels with the VA in these games as someone who also grew up with crisis core etc

[@LifestriderX]

I agree with your stance on Sephiroth, but I like both of Tifa’s voices.

[@nicrules77]

literally this hurts so much and it’s facts. i learned to let it go but still such a big sigh, i hope the original ff7 eng dub fam know how much we love them

[@TheO.C.G]

I may not agree with all of your points but this video is incredibly well done well thought out and lovely ide never seen anything you'd done and now I'm subbed 😎

[@MoreLimitless_]

The only ones I really think I have no to little problem with are the main Cloud,Barret, Aerith and Tifas although some nitpicks with some of Aeirths lines and how they were delivered, they were good. With all the other VA’s though it always felt like something was missing maybe the delivery of lines or something else but something felt off. Despite this I still love the game so much and excited for more to come and to see how the VA’s will grow!

[@momoru]

As someone who also grew up with Crisis Core & Advent Children I mostly agree. I feel like Zack & Sephiroth were either miscast or misdirected. However, I actually really love Cloud and Tifa’s new voice actors a lot more because I feel like there more personality within them.

[@R0B5e55or001]

I knew Square Enix would've originally kept the original FF7 voice cast consistent even up to the Remake projects especially when the original Japanese counterparts were still welcomed with open arms. If it weren't for the super talented original FF7 voice cast, then the Compilation FF7, Dissidia Final Fantasy series, Mobius Final Fantasy, and the Remake for FF7 would've never happened nor would they have voiced their characters for over 15 years. If the shady corporations and the celebrity endorsements hadn't happened behind the scenes, the whole original FF7 voice cast for sure would all still continue to voice their characters today. It's honestly sickening how some people would quickly turn their backs on the original FF7 voice cast after putting reputation and hearts into their roles for many years, and become easily hype blindsided by the toxic media and journalism that pushes the promotion onto the young celebrities who never even heard of Final Fantasy VII nor the characters, had to have formal training of voice acting, and were shoved into the PR marketing gimmick. If you'd ask my opinion, I don't even care what the haters nor the minority say, but ngl Steve Burton is the definitive voice for Cloud Strife capturing his stoicism and enigmatic state like his original Japanese counterpart, and he doesn't even need to try to get into character (just the same way Rick Gomez don't even need to try to get into Zack's character and they all sound good). This time it's a fact, but it's not even his fault he had to follow through director's directions when he originally added his own emotions to the character, but was told by the director, "No! Less, less, less!" And George Newbern is the definitive voice for Sephiroth. He played real well of playing the good and bad guy versions of him. His voice sounds cool, yet so sinister and spine chilling. I know if it weren't for them, Cloud and Sephiroth would never become this much iconic rivals.

[@JediSentinel1010]

My exact reaction when I first played remake and saw the black hair: "That's Zack!!!!" Zack barely gets a single word out "That's not Zack..."

[@zealousrunner7]

You seem to enjoy high pitched Sephiroth just fine. Why can't you handle Zack then?

[@JediSentinel1010]

@@zealousrunner7 I'm not the biggest fan of Sephiroth's new voice but he's also not the main character of any of the games