Dubbing Monster Hunter Stories 2 into English: A Q&A with Montreal’s Game On
With over 15,000 people in the industry, Montreal isn’t just the mecca of Canada’s video game development community, it’s one of the largest production hubs anywhere in the world. Boasting major studios from global giants like Square Enix, Ubisoft, Warner Bros., Activision and more, alongside successful independents like Tribute Games, Red Barrels and Behaviour Interactive, it’s hard to have not played a game developed in the city. Since 2002, Game On has helped bring many of those projects to life. Now a subsidiary of Poland’s People Can Fly (Outriders, Bulletstorm), the company specializes in motion capture, voice performance, animation and cinematic creation, racking up a resume that includes heavyweight franchises like Assassin’s Creed, Tomb Raider, Halo and the Batman: Arkham games, to just name four. Last summer, Game On added another big one to its list: Capcom’s Monster Hunter.
Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin launched on July 9, 2021. Game On was responsible for the English dub of the game. Directed by Mark Camacho, it stars Wyatt Bowen, Angela Galuppo, Skyler Clark, Elana Dunkelman and many more. The title marked the first Japanese-developed Capcom project to utilize a Canadian voice cast since 2008’s We Love Golf. Following its launch, the game has received positive reviews from both fans and critics alike, with it topping one million units moved globally just 10 days after its debut.
I had the opportunity to speak with Nik from Game On to discuss the company’s work on the project.
How did Game On get involved with Monster Hunter Stories 2?
A: Although I’m not sure if this marked the first project Game On and Capcom had collaborated together on (it was the first in recent years), we’d been entertaining discussions with them for quite some time. We had met over the years, at various gaming events.
What was it like working with Capcom? Given Monster Hunter is one of their marquee franchises, how hands-on were they?
A: It was a pleasure. It was a very tight schedule, but we managed to do it. The client was attending the recording sessions over Zoom and giving directions if something we were not familiar with came up.
Traditionally, Game On creates the original performances in video games. Is producing a dub any different than usual? If so, how?
A: It isn’t quite too different, but you have to be conscious of the timing, and the script needs to be written with that in mind. A Japanese sentence of 3 seconds can end up becoming 2 sentences or 10 seconds. That’s a challenge.
The first Monster Hunter Stories game received a tie-in anime TV series that was dubbed into English. Did Game On look at that for inspiration? Was there any interest in having those actors reprise their roles?
A: We were not aware that a TV series existed at the time. I don’t think Capcom was very concerned about it because they never gave us that information in our initial brief. The world of VO recording goes really fast and so the very next week we started recording. So the whole casting and voice design were done without knowing about the TV series, but we used the original Japanese audio clips as a reference, all the while giving it our own style and approach, because using the Japanese intonation would sound dissonant in English.
How did casting approach the game? Were they looking for actors who fit the personality of the characters as written in the script, or was more attention given to matching the Japanese performers? The English version of Monster Hunter Stories 2 features a male voice actor for Navirou, the first time that’s happened in any language.
A: Our casting director listened to the Japanese pre-existing original files and read the full script. He then gave Capcom a choice of multiple talents per character, and we sent their demo at the same time. The final choice was made by Capcom. Perhaps they liked the lower register sillier tone for Navirou in English.
How did COVID impact production? Did everyone have to work/record from home?
A: Our Voice Director was monitoring the talent via Zoom during the sessions.
We had some actors who preferred not to come to the studio, so they ended up recording from their home with their own professional setup that we confirmed was in line with our standard. We received the audio feed in our studio and proceeded as usual. It was tricky to get the timing right, because we had to stream the reference video and, of course, there was a short delay. We ended up needing more time than initially planned but it was all worth it.
Lastly, without breaking NDAs, any hint as to what’s in Game On’s future? Any other Japanese titles?
A: We do work with many overseas partners and Japan is a country producing amazing games that we’re always happy to be part of if given the opportunity. Keep an eye open for “Game On”, you might be happily surprised.
Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin is now available on Nintendo Switch and Windows PC.
To find out more information about Game On, check out their website and Facebook page. The company’s latest project is the just-released Kena: Bridge of Spirits.
Thanks to Nik and the Game On team for making this happen.
I Miss Bionix 
The Monster Hunter Stories Ride On anime was pretty much a standalone entry, so that’s probably why Capcom wasn’t concerned about getting the English voice actors involved to reprise their roles for MHS 2.
The show was pretty obscure during its release in North America (to the point that episodes 49-75 to yet to be officially subbed/dubbed), which explains why Nik and the Game On team weren’t aware of it.