Summary
- Learn more about the evil vampire lord, Deadalus, revealed in this cinematic trailer.
- Exclusive Interview with Mark Meer about his inspirations, and lessons learned from TTRPGs.
- MythForce is available to play now on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One.
The voice of MythForce’s newest villain, Deadalus, has been revealed as Mark Meer, best known for his voice performance as Commander Shepard from the Mass Effect trilogy. Meer has also lent his voice to a number of iconic Baldur’s Gate characters, including Cyric and Baeloth “the Entertainer” Barrityl, so we’d wager that he knows a thing or two about voicing villains.
In this exclusive interview for Xbox Wire, I had the chance to speak to Meer about his inspirations, insight and reflections he is bringing to the role of Deadalus, and we are also able to shed some light on the captivating world of the visionary voice actor.
Aspyr Marketing Specialist Matthew Ray: Which great villainous actors were you most inspired by for your performance as Deadalus?
Mark Meer: Definitely some Tim Curry in there — though whether it’s leaning more toward Darkness from “Legend” or Frank N. Furter from “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” I leave for you to judge. Alan Rickman’s turn as the Sheriff of Nottingham is a likely influence, and who can possibly play a vampiric uber-villain without turning to Christopher Lee’s Dracula for inspiration?
Ray: What are some of the joys of playing villains?
Meer: I’ve always been a fan of the bad guys: Doctor Doom, Darth Vader, Skeletor. Their designs have always been more appealing to Halloween-loving me. And when you’ve got a villain who clearly enjoys his villainy like say, Loki (or Deadalus), you generally get to have a bit more fun in the role than the hero. You get to chew the scenery a little more, really relish it. “Wallow in your own crapulence,” as another classic villain would have it.
Ray: Which video games have consumed the most hours of your life?
Meer: I played Red Dead Redemption 2 almost nonstop for the first few months of the pandemic. But I’d have to say that I’ve logged the most total gaming hours in the Fallout universe, particularly Fallout 4. I’ve probably spent days or even weeks of real time building weird settlements in the Commonwealth.”
Ray: As a game master, what lessons do you bring back to acting from running roleplaying games?
Meer: There is much similarity between tabletop RPGs and improvised theater—both are a form of collaborative storytelling. In fact, I always credit Dungeons & Dragons with being my first acting and improv experience. A lot of the same guidelines apply—acceptance of offers, reincorporation of ideas, and making the other guy look good. Whether onstage or around the table, if everyone is supporting and actively making their fellow players look good, everyone benefits—as does the show/game as a whole. Things kind of came full circle with my very first voice acting gig on the original Baldur’s Gate II game, and years later my return to the Forgotten Realms with Beamdog in the Baldur’s Gate Enhanced Editions.”
Ray: As an avid comics fan, what are some of your favorite Saturday-morning cartoons? What makes the great ones stand out from the rest?
Meer: Probably my attachment to whatever license they were based on. In the ’80s, cartoons were all about selling toys. One of the best DC Comics toy lines of all time is still the Super Powers Collection, based on the revamped Super Friends show, “Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians.” The old “Dungeons & Dragons” Saturday-morning cartoon also stands out for me. Speaking of toys, they finally made action figures of the main characters of that show (Venger, Dungeon Master, and the kids), and I immediately snapped them up. Nostalgia is a powerful thing. I was also a regular viewer of “The Real Ghostbusters,” “Spider-Man,” “Masters of the Universe,” and even though it was a much older show, reruns of “Rocket Robin Hood” will always have a place in my Canadian heart.”
Ray: What’s a role you’re dying to play?
Meer: I recently crossed an item off my nerd bucket list when I got to play a classic DC Comics villain, Starro the Conqueror, in Gotham Knights. Since I’ve always been a fan of both DC and Marvel, I figure I eventually need to play a Marvel Universe villain too. I mentioned Doctor Doom earlier—he’s always been my favorite supervillain, so he ‘s at the top of the list. In a way, I did get to play him already, or at least a very thinly veiled homage to him, with my character Doctor Von Chaos in Tiny Plastic Men.
Ray: Which MythForce hero is your favorite? As Deadalus, how would you most like to defeat them?
Meer: I’ve been friends with Nikki Rae Hallow (Hulowski) for years, so I think I’d best pick Victoria. Then again, I tend to favor spellcasters in tabletop RPGs, so maybe Maggie? I think I’d like Deadalus to have some sort of Mortal Kombat-style “Finish Him!” fatality move, with plenty of spine-ripping action and gore. Can you guys fit that in? Though now that I think of it, that might be a little too 1990s for this 80s-influenced game.