15 Comedians We Didn't Know Were In Video Games
Is there anything better than playing a video game and stumbling upon the voice of a beloved comedian? When comics voice video game characters the familiarity of both their voice and their humor takes any game-playing experience to the next level. Here are 15 comics we had no idea popped up in some classic video games.
Jack Black: Brutal Legend
Jack Black has had a non-stop wave of popularity ever since the release of School Of Rock, with his rock and roll, high-energy style of comedy, which eventually led to an entire video game being based around his aura of rocking awesomeness. Brutal Legend was released in 2009 and followed a roadie character voiced by Black who enters the demonic underworld to use his powers of Rock to save the universe. The game even opens with a sweet real-life video of black showing the player where he keeps his favorite secret album “Brutal Legend” in a record store. Also, just for good measure, the voice cast also features, David Cross, Kyle Gass, Brian Posehn, Ozzy Osbourne, and Tim Curry.
Conan O’Brien: Death Stranding
Not only does Conan O’Brien’s voice show up in the game Death Stranding, but his entire face and body do as well. With the right know-how, the player can locate a hologram of Conan wearing an otter hat, and spitting cold hard otter facts. Can you imagine a more fun situation than stumbling upon Conan O’Brien in a post-apocalyptic hellscape?
Dave Foley: Fallout New Vegas
Original Kids in the Hall performer and comedy legend Dave Foley was hiding in plain sight in Fallout: New Vegas all along, and I never even noticed. Who else could Dave Foley play but Yes Man, the robot eagerly programmed to help you save the Mojave wasteland from being taken over by any faction except for you? No one but Dave Foley could make the prospect of killing hundreds of apocalypse survivors sound so fine.
Niecy Nash: Spiderman 2
The year was 2019. I was doing my bi-yearly playthrough of the Spiderman 2 movie tie-in game on my Playstation 2, and that’s when I heard it. A voice beckoning out to me from the streets below saying “Way to go Spidey!” The voice was familiar, I had to look up the game’s IMDB and sure enough, the woman yelling at me was none other than Reno 911’s Neicy Nash, aka Officer Reinesha Williams.
Jason Lee: Skate 3
Nothing made me more excited to play Skate 3 than seeing that Jason Lee as Coach Frank was going to be the one to teach me the controls. Jason Lee is no stranger to skateboarding, in fact along with Owen Wilson, he’s considered one of the best skaters/actors on the market. We may have lost My Name Is Earl the year before Skate 3’s release, but at least we got one more mustache-laden performance from Lee so he could ollie on the way out.
Tina Fey: Medieval Madness
While it may not be a “video” game, Tina Fey's voice was featured in the arcade pinball machine “Medieval Madness.” Most of the game's dialogue was written by Second City members Scott Adsit (Pete Hornberger on 30 Rock) and Kevin Dorff. The two pulled in their Second City castmate to voice several characters in the game including an “Opera Singer” princess, Cockney-speaking princesses, and a character with a southern drawl. (You can hear some of the outtakes here.)
Patton Oswalt: Minecraft Story Mode
It’s official, Patton Oswalt is the voice of Rats and Minecraft gamers everywhere. You may not have known if you’re older than 13, but Patton Oswalt plays the role of Jesse in the Minecraft Story Mode franchise. If there's anything missing from the creative world of Minecraft, it'd rigid structure and story, so today we salute Patton for helping us get to this point in Minecraft’s slow journey to be the only video game left.
David Cross: GTA San Andreas
David Cross seems like the kind of nasally-voiced comedian who would be perfect to lend his voice to the video game community, and he did just that as electronics expert Zero in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Go back and check it out if you want to fly the hardest-to-control RC planes in history.
Tom Kenny: Spyro Reignited Trilogy
Tom Kenny IS a voice actor, it’s like his whole thing. So, it may not be surprising that he has 74 roles attributed to his name for video games alone, but there are a few surprising highlights. Did you know Kenny is the voice of Spyro the Dragon in the original Spyro 2 and 3 for PlayStation, not to mention all the games in the Reignited Trilogy? Kenny also portrayed Iron Man, Captain America, Agent Coulsen, Doc Oc, Impossible Man, M.O.D.O.K, Impossible Man, Deadpool, Morbius, Rocket Racoon, Cable, and Daredevil in Marvel Superhero Squad Online. Let’s hope they paid him by the role on that one.
Stephen Merchant: Portal 2
In what may be the best comedy performance in a video game of all time, Stephen Merchant put his whole Merch-ussy into the role of Wheatley in Portal 2. If you’ve played the Portal games, you know they are a life-changing experience in terms of how to tell a story in a video game format, but Wheatley’s character is really what makes Portal 2 a step up from the original (along with J.K Simmons). Wheatley’s neurotic helpful comments which evolve into psychotic bumblings of a madman make this game infinitely replayable, like rewatching a classic comedy.
Hugh Laurie & Stephen Fry: Little Big Planet 3
Stephen Fry’s all-knowing and soothing voice has long been lent to the creativity-centered video game franchise known as Little Big Planet. His voice taught you how to build and design your own video game levels from the ground up in the first two games, but by the third, his former comedy partner Hugh Laurie was added to the cast as Newton. A long awaited comedy reunion that doesn’t disappoint (even though it’s where the franchise ended).
John Cleese: Fable 3
Fable 3 was such a unique and hilarious game when it was released that it was only fitting that the voice cast be unique and hilarious as well. The folks at Lionhead studios brought in Monty Python’s John Cleese to voice Jasper, the character’s faithful butler. The creators of the game said fans had said Fable’s humor was so British and Monty Python-esque that they brought in the most iconic member they could to join the team. They also claim that Cleese was given more lines than almost anyone in the cast to ensure he feels as unique to the individual player as possible. Other Fable voice actors include Ben Kingsley, James Corden, and Simon Pegg.
Kumail Nanjiani: Shadow Of War
Ever wonder what an orc would sound like if it had the voice of a Pakistani comedian? Well, wait no further as you enjoy the voice lines Kumail Nanjiani recorded for the game Shadow Of War as “The Agonizer.” I had the pleasure of playing this game without the knowledge of Nanjiani’s inclusion and was immediately tickled the first time I heard his unmistakable voice. It was a blast hearing his voice up until the point when I was eventually forced to behead him.
Keith David: Saints Row IV
Saints Row and comedy got together like peanut butter and bread (excluding the recently released lifeless reboot), the Saints Row recording booths have seen many famous faces throughout the years including, Terry Crews, Jamie Pressly, Mila Kunis, Michael Clarke Duncan, Neill Patrick Harris, and Jon Glazer, but one of the most iconic roles has to be Keith David playing…Keith David in Saints Row IV. To be clear, David had been involved with the franchise since the very first game in 2006, and by 2013, creators threw all logic out the window and allowed him to kick ass as himself.
Penn & Teller: Borderlands 3
Penn & Teller join forces in Borderlands 3 to bring you Pain and Terror, the owners and operators of the killing machine known as “The Agonizer 9000.” This sweet little cameo from the magic/comedy duo definitely went over a lot of kids’ heads and made a lot of adults feel really cool for getting the reference.
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Top Image: Conaco & Kojima Productions
