Charles Martinet, who has voiced the beloved plumber since “Super Mario 64,” will become an “ambassador” for Mario rather than record new audio, Nintendo said.
@MyFairJulia I wish but let's be real, dude is old, he would retire sooner or later. It will be so difficult to top him though, but perhaps someone was already found as Mario's voice in Wonder sounds slightly different.
Do they even need to replace him though? There's a 25-year back catalog of recorded voice lines to recycle, and most of those consist of "Let's-a-go" and "Yahoooo!" I think the most complex sentace I've ever heard Mario speak in game is "Thank-a-you so much for playing my game". Combine that with AI voice recreation, and there's literally no reason to ever hire a replacement. Just cut Martinet a big-ass check for perpetual use of his voice, and they're golden.
I literally said "oh NOooo" aloud in a Mario-like cadence without even thinking when I read this headline. It's sad to see him go, he was such a perfect fit for the job in every way.
I hope Chris Pratt replaces him but actually doesn't want to. He just didn't realize the contract also stated he would voice the character in video games in perpetuity.