Max's accent in the game is causing quite a stir. First, this article, posted earlier today, features Avalanche honcho Christofer Sundberg answering questions about it.
What Happened to Mad Max's Aussie Accent?
"It's a different take," says Avalanche Studios' Founder Christofer Sundberg.
by Lucy O'Brien JUNE 17, 2013
When the Mad Max trailer debuted at Sony’s E3 media conference last week, many Australians felt a flicker of national pride. For those unfamiliar with the film franchise, it is inherently, undeniably Aussie, set in a Down Under dystopia where the dusty outback serves as the playground for vehicular warfare between Australian cars. A young Mel Gibson was the Australian star. George Miller was the Australian director. The first Max helped usher in the Australian New Wave.
It was a surprise then, at Warner Bros.’ Behind Closed Doors demo at E3, to hear Max speak not with an Aussie twang but a gravelly American growl, a cookie-cutter ‘tough-video-game-angry-man’ accent. Surely developer Avalanche Studios isn’t seriously stripping the franchise of its Australian roots? Surely we’re not yet at a point where all game protagonists need to be white-washed into a collective pool of generic American anti-heroism?
“We treated this as a completely new property,” said Avalanche Founder and Chief Creative Officer Christofer Sundberg, when I enquired after the studio’s decision. “And that was really the only way for us to take on a licensed game. It’s the first licensed game we’ve ever taken on. And we wanted to treat it like an original IP. The setting – where it is in the world – has really nothing to do with the Mad Max video game. It’s really a game to do with the relationships between different people in this world."
Considering the Mad Max video game still looks like its grounded in the Outback, and considering Ford Falcons still feature, it still seems an odd call despite Sundberg’s reasoning. Did he foresee a backlash from fans of the movie franchise?
“No, I didn’t really,” Sundberg laughs. “But, I don’t know...it’s a game that can hopefully transcend that. It’s Mad Max: The Game. It’s a different take, and I hope that’s what will make it successful.”
Would anything convince the Mad Max team to change the accent?
“I don’t know.” Sundberg pauses. “We’ll see.”
http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/06/18/ ... sie-accent
Within hours, a petition was put up by
AusGamers asking that an Australian voice actor be used for Max.
Petitioning Avalanche Studios
Avalanche Studios: Hire an Australian actor to portray Max in the Mad Max videogame.
Petition by
AusGamers
Mad Max is an important part of Australian cinema and pop-culture history. However, the series is as equally important worldwide, and is arguably one of the most recognisable and referenced post-apocalyptic tales ever told. The titular hero, Max, was played by Mel Gibson whose Australian heritage came across as a gruff, stoic and hardened portrayal of a man who'd lost everything, but still had a sense of hope.
Avalanche Studios has, however, chosen to have Max voiced by a "generic" American voice-actor so that Max can appeal to a "generic" crowd. This negates the hero's place in popular-culture and is a bit of an affront to Australians who hold the character and movies so dear (and also to global purists).
We're not asking for Mel Gibson, but finding an Australian voice-actor who can channel the Max of the popular films would just be the right -- and reverent -- thing to do.
Please Avalanche, have a heart and give us the Max we all love.
http://www.change.org/en-AU/petitions/a ... ideogame-2
The petition already has over 100 signatures.
Here's AusGamer's original post.
Avalanche Chooses "Generic" American Actor to Voice Mad Max, We Petition for the Opposite
Post by Steve Farrelly @ 12:24pm 18/06/13 | 12 Comments
Mad Max was a bit of a surprise to see out at E3 this year, and I'd be lying if I said I'd never wanted to play a game based in that universe -- it's ripe for the videogame picking, after all with everything the first two films gave us.
What thoroughly irked me during the presentation of the game by new developer, Avalanche Studios (it was originally being worked on by KMM's in-house, Sydney-based games studio), was that Max was voiced by an American. In fact, it was really uncomfortable to sit through given the studio talked passionately about treating cars and car-combat in the game with respect given the movie heritage and its impact on pop-culture.
I asked them after the presentation what the decision behind that was, and if they'd change it, but was met with "we wanted someone generic", and a bit of a shrug regarding any sort of reverence to the character in the same way they're giving vehicles.
So we've started a petition.
Max is an important part of Australian cinema and pop-culture history, even globally. The character's man-of-few words persona made (admittedly US-born) Mel Gibson's Australian accent a hugely memorable and significant factor of the films. All we're asking is that Avalanche look for an Australian voice-actor who can channel the stoic film icon, and treat the property with the respect it deserves. If you feel the same way, please check out our petition on Change.org and get as many people involved as possible.
For more on the game, check out our game page and stay tuned for impressions of what Avalanche is doing beyond ignoring the importance of Max, soon.
http://www.ausgamers.com/news/read/3318 ... e-opposite
