Polygon reports on the controversy of the day in gaming and voice casting. As I noted a little over a month ago, a Metal Gear game without David Hayter as the voice of Snake is a tough pill to swallow for fans who've followed him in the role for 15 years. I've yet to see anyone thrilled about Solid Snake suddenly sounding like Jack Bauer.
"The themes are a little different from previous games in the series," Metal Gear series creator Hideo Kojima said of Sutherland's casting. "We're taking on some heavy subjects, like race and revenge. As a result, I wanted Snake to have a more subdued performance expressed through subtle facial movements and tone of voice, rather than words."
The Phantom Pain takes place in 1984, Kojima said, and the developer wanted an actor who could "genuinely convey" Snake as he would look and sound in his late 40s.
"It's different from anything we've done before," Kojima said, explaining that he turned to producer Avi Arad for assistance, who referred him to Sutherland. "I felt that he was the perfect fit, in terms of age and performance," Kojima added.
Maybe this is a fake out, which Kojima has done before. Maybe the "primary" Snake Sutherland plays is yet another clone or something.