Localization is an aspect of video games that many don’t think about at first. However, when a game is made in a country that doesn’t speak your native tongue, it tends to be translated, and dubbed, so that you can hear it in your language. But that’s not always the case. It sometimes will keep the voice acting and just give you subtitles to read. This was a concern for Blazblue Cross Tag Battle, which brings together franchises that haven’t always had English voice acting.
In the crossover fighting game, the franchises of Blazblue, RWBY, Persona 4: Arena and Under Night In-Birth will be duking it out. The first three franchises listed have all had English voice acting before, but Under Night In-Birth has not. However, in a stream on Twitch, Arc Systems revealed that Under Night In-Birth will have English voice acting for the first time ever.
As for Blazblue, RWBY and Persona 4: Arena, their veteran voice casts will be in the game.
This is good news all the way around, as it’s nice to hear familiar voices, especially for franchises like Blazblue and RWBY, where the voice actors are as key to the games/shows as the fighting and stories. As for Under Night In-Birth, this could lead to more dubbing in the future should it appear in more video games on the Western side of the world.
Blazblue Cross Tag Battle features a massive roster of forty characters between the four franchises. However, only 20 will be available to play at launch. The rest will be coming via DLC packs (some for free, some not). The game will feature fast-paced intense action, especially given that Arc Systems is making the title. The game hasn’t come out yet, but it’s already been accepted to EVO 2018. The game releases in the West on June 5th.
