An Official Response to the Final Fantasy IX Fandub Voice Mod

[Mesden]

Hi,

My name is Aaron, also known as Mesden and I helmed the Final Fantasy IX FanDub project on YouTube. I've been pointed to the Qhimm Forums because of ongoing requests to have the Final Fantasy IX Fandub transitioned into the Steam Mod. Before I address the idea, I need to clarify the idea of adapting Voice-Overs.

The Bad News

We developed a project straight through the completion, except for the Finale which mysteriously vanished. Some of those Actors have expressed interest in the Steam Mod idea, but most of them have moved on. As the Fandub was a non-profit project based on intellectual property, their commitment was entirely voluntary. As a professional Voice Actor myself and having recorded hundreds of hours voicing Zidane, I can speak from experience that that process was a massive undertaking.

What's important to consider is that the Voice Actors involved may not want to have their dialog ripped from the YouTube project and placed into a Steam Mod. It might be a tempting idea from a modding perspective, but from (standard) industry practices, this would be bordering on piracy. What's more, I could be targeted by the Voice Actors involved for modding their material without permission. From a Director's viewpoint, the Voice Acting was not coherent all the way through. While many of our Voice Actors held on to the very end, there were a handful of Voice Actors that had to be recast a number of times. This wouldn't be practical for use in a single modded feature.

Long story short, do not rip the Fandub off of YouTube.

The Good News

Meanwhile, we have a massive community that wants to see a Voice Mod for Final Fantasy IX. I know because my inbox has been exploding with requests (read above). So yes, a redevelopment of the Final Fantasy IX Fandub is in progress. I've launched a Casting Call on CastingCall.club to recruit a brand new team of Voice Actors that will record dialog specifically for Steam version of Final Fantasy IX. I can also state that a handful of the original Voice Actors have expressed interest in reprising their roles.

You also won't need to wait for the project to be completed as this will be released in phases. Development will also be streamed on Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/mesden) as it progresses. Notifications of these streaming sessions will be posted on our Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/FFSDubs), not on Reddit, Qhimm, or the Steam Community. You can also Follow my Twitch Channel if you want these notifications from there directly.

Regards,

Mesden / CCC / Actor, Director of FF9 Fandub

[Bonez]

Just so you're aware, Echo-s VII (the voice dub mod for ff7) is all but complete once the final bug testing is completed in the next month or so. Once that's completed Echo-s VIII and IX will be underway simultaneously. The code to get voices playing in-game has been made and working and have largely been cast.

Not that there's an issue having 2 projects going, just wanted to let you know incase you find this out later and decide to stop after having some work done for nothing or something.

[Mesden]

I'm not going to interfere with what they're doing. If they want to cast a team of Voice Actors and implement that into the game, that's their call, Ias long as they aren't ripping it off of our YouTube series

[Tsuna]

Hey Mesden! Long time no see dude. Hope you've been well.
We are also working on a voice mod for FF9 aptly named Echo-S 9 after our Echo-S 7 voice mod, and it's gonna be cool to watch each other progress through this.

Also love that you're gonna stream the creation! I actually made doing exactly that into my career and will be doing for the same for 9 shortly. So best of luck with it, I'm excited to see how everything goes.

[Mesden]

Yup, feel free to drop in and let me know how things are progressing.