Destiny's huge, 17 GB 2.0 update is out now, and with its release comes the nail in the coffin for the voice of Peter Dinklage. We've known that Dinklage, who played the role of the companion Ghost in Destiny, would be getting replaced by veteran game actor Nolan North for a while now — but yesterday it become official: Dinklebot is nowhere to be found.
Much has been said about Dinklage's performance. We criticized it in our initial review of the game, as did many others. It sounded phoned in — like Dinklage was bored and had absolutely no idea what he was actually talking about, probably because he didn't. Now that Nolanbot is officially live, Polygon has taken the opportunity to compare the old and new voice of Ghost side-by-side to see how North stacks up.
Maybe I'm just cynical, but after watching the video, I honestly don't hear much of a difference. The real problem seems not to be with the voice actors, but rather the completely nonsensical, jargon-filled lines they're required to read.
That said, there are a few differences. North generally sounds happier and a little more excited about what is going on than Dinklage, who delivered nearly every line in the same tone of voice. He also adds a little flair to such eye-rolling lines like "Careful, its power is dark," by putting a slight delay on the end.
Overall, however, there doesn't seem to be a change between the two. You can decide for yourself below.
Was it really worth it for Bungie to completely recast the character? Sure, it must have been embarrassing for the developer during Destiny's beta, when everybody was making fun of Dinklage's "That wizard came from the moon," line (so much that Bungie cut it out of the game entirely) — but does this make any real difference? Is having Nolan North over Peter Dinklage going to convince a new player to jump into Destiny or an old one to return?
Not likely, but many of the other major changes to the game might. You can get a rundown of what's new in Destiny 2.0 here, with more new content coming in the game's September 15 The Taken King expansion.
Be sure to follow T-Lounge on Twitter and visit our Facebook page.
