There was once a time when protagonists in games didn’t say anything, with console titles from the late 90s and early 2000s focusing on characters without a voice, or at least one without much expression. Now a new interview with Final Fantasy XVI Clive’s voice actor, Ben Starr, shows a contrast to this, with his protagonist unafraid to show earnest emotion and do everything he can to be a decent person.
The interview was conducted by the Video Games portion of the Sports Illustrated website, with Starr giving a comprehensive look behind Clive. Starr begins by describing how he’s less of the traditional hero from Final Fantasy games by saying, “He has hero-esque attributes. He tries to stand for good. He tries to be better. But ultimately, he is a broken man who’s trying to heal himself.”
The voice actor discusses how he relates to this, stating that this aspect of the character is the part that he is drawn to the most. Starr further elaborates when he says, “I think the most rewarding parts of playing him are those moments where we just see him genuinely be honest, and be broken – that’s the stuff I love about him.”
Not only was he on board with this character, but Starr also states that the team he worked with was extremely responsive and worked with him on the vision for the character to make it authentic. Starr was encouraged to go for the more emotional moments, saying “It’s me, unfiltered. It’s rewarding that I’ve been able to draw on a lot of my own personal experiences and bring that to him.”
This personal experience that Starr draws from is a recent tragedy, as he describes a major loss from a few years ago in the middle of production, saying “Two years into the project, my dad died. And it was just… just destroying… This provided an outlet through which I can actually feel like there’s some good to be done in this. It was a safe space to exist, and to express myself.”
This is exceptionally important given that Clive is forced to deal with his own loss of a family member during the Final Fantasy XVI demo. Throughout the entire interview, it’s clear that Starr shares some pretty strong similarities to Clive, which has largely been the reason he’s been viewed so favorably across social media for his performance and as a character.
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