10 Video Game Voice Actors Who Played Multiple Characters In The Same Game

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In the past two decades, voice acting for video games has become a thriving and varied field, attracting actors from both television and film. Large games need many voice actors to portray both main characters and minor roles. Despite the often-extensive cast sizes, it’s not uncommon for actors to play multiple parts within the same game.

It’s common for actors to play multiple roles in a game series. But sometimes, you might notice the same voice actor credited for two completely different characters. This can happen for storytelling reasons, or simply because the actor wanted to challenge themselves. It’s always a cool surprise when you realize a character is essentially talking to themself, especially if the actor is skilled enough to make the characters sound completely distinct.

Spoilers for most of the following games!

10. Ella Lentini

Until Dawn: Beth And Hannah

A classic filmmaking technique involves having one actor play twin characters, as famously seen in the 1998 version of The Parent Trap with Lindsay Lohan. This saves money for the production and ensures both characters have a similar look and feel. It turns out this approach can also work well in video games, especially those that use detailed facial recording technology.

Ella Lentini provided both the voice and motion capture for the twin sisters, Beth and Hannah Washington, in Until Dawn. Although they don’t have many lines in the game – mostly appearing in the opening chapter – their disappearance is the key event that sets the entire story in motion, ultimately leading to the terrifying Wendigo threat at the lodge a year later.

From what I can tell, the Wendigo sounds – the growls, shrieks, and howls Hannah makes – weren’t actually created by actor Lentini. They seem to be pre-recorded sound effects, though it would have been a fun challenge for him to do them himself in the recording booth.

9. Elizabeth Maxwell

Yakuza: Like A Dragon: Saeko And Nanoha

The game Yakuza: Like a Dragon features another instance of an actor playing twins. The character Saeko Mukoda, a key supporting member of your team, has a twin sister named Nanoha. You’ll meet Nanoha during the main story when Ichiban and his friends are asked to find her by Saeko’s employer.

Interestingly, the characters Saeko and Nanoha are both voiced by the same actress in both the Japanese and English versions of the game. Sumire Uesaka voices them in Japanese, while Elizabeth Maxwell provides their voice in English.

Nanoha doesn’t have as central a role in the story as Saeko, meaning she has fewer lines. However, her performance is still crucial to Saeko’s development, so getting it right was essential. Using the technique of filming both characters simultaneously was a clever way for the writers to make sure it worked.

8. Michael Shapiro

Half-Life 2: G-Man And Barney

The G-Man is arguably the most memorable character in the Half-Life series. This mysterious figure, who looks like a man in a plain suit but might be alien, shows up unexpectedly to steer Gordon Freeman’s adventures through Black Mesa and beyond. Michael Shapiro voices the G-Man in both the original Half-Life and Half-Life 2, and he also provides the voices for the anonymous security guards at Black Mesa in the first game.

It seems Barney Calhoun, the popular security guard from the original Half-Life and the star of the Blue Shift expansion, will also be featured. Though Barney and the mysterious G-Man don’t appear often in Half-Life 2, both characters are still voiced by Michael Shapiro, who does a remarkable job making their voices sound completely distinct from each other.

Honestly, I don’t think there’s any big story reason why Barney and G-Man share the same voice actor. It’s not like Barney’s secretly G-Man or anything crazy like that. They even met a few times in Blue Shift, so that wouldn’t even work! But hey, I could be totally off base. Maybe if Valve ever gets around to making Half-Life 3, we’d finally get some answers!

7. Keith David

Saints Row 4: Julius And Himself

I always loved Keith David as Julius Little in the first two Saints Row games! He starts as someone who helps you out, but then becomes a really big villain – the leader of the Third Street Saints, no less! It was so shocking when he tried to take you out with an exploding boat! And then, near the end of the second game, you finally get to confront him in a side mission and… well, let’s just say the Boss delivers some justice. It was a great arc for his character.

David Jones reprises his role in Saints Row 4, but this time as a version of himself. He plays a famous actor who’s also the Vice President, working alongside the Saints’ leader, who is now the President. Throughout the game, characters frequently point out how much he sounds like his previous character, Julius, which is no surprise given it’s still his voice.

Because the game is set within a simulation, it can bring back characters who died in earlier games, including Julius. You can even add him to your team as a ‘Homie.’ If you have both Julius and David on your team, they’ll jokingly discuss how people always say they sound alike, but neither of them can actually hear the resemblance. It’s a funny moment, especially since Julius’ voice isn’t that different from how David normally speaks.

6. Bryce Papenbrook

Danganronpa 2: Nagito And Makoto

When Danganronpa 2 was first released in Japan in 2012, the character Nagito Komaeda – known for his extreme focus on hope – was voiced by Megumi Ogata. Interestingly, she also voiced Makoto Naegi, the main character from the first game. This casting was intentional, as Nagito is designed to be a twisted version of Makoto, taking the idea of hope to unsettling levels.

As a big fan, I was really excited to hear that Bryce Papenbrook was back for Danganronpa 2! He originally voiced Makoto in the first game, and they brought him on to play Nagito this time around. It was a clever move because Makoto actually shows up at the very end of Danganronpa 2 to help everyone, so Bryce got to perform as both characters – it was a cool little connection for fans like me!

In Danganronpa 2, Nagito and Makoto never have a direct conversation because Nagito dies before Makoto appears. However, the English dub of the Danganronpa 3 anime gave voice actor Xander Mobus the chance to have both characters speak to each other, even if it was just for a short scene.

5. Darren Korb

Hades: Zagreus And Skelly

Darren Korb was a key part of making the original Hades so successful, and for two main reasons. He composed the game’s incredible music – all those fantastic background tracks were his work. He’s also composed the soundtracks for Supergiant’s other popular games, Bastion, Transistor, and Pyre, which were all highly praised.

Additionally, Korb voices the main character, Zagreus, who has a huge amount of dialogue – more than most games even have. He not only composed the music but also served as the lead voice actor, and both his music and his performance as Zagreus – which is understated and subtly witty – were exceptionally well done.

Korb is incredibly talented! Not only does he play a major role in the game, but he also provides the voice for Skelly, Zag’s sarcastic training dummy. The contrast between Korb’s energetic performance as Skelly and the calmer voice of Zag is really funny. Interestingly, he continues to voice Skelly, now known as Schelemeus, in Hades 2. It’s amusing to consider that Melinoe, who has never met Zagreus, is actually hearing his voice through Skelly every day.

4. Kevin Afghani

Super Mario Bros. Wonder: Mario And Luigi

Okay, so for pretty much my entire life playing Mario games, Charles Martinet was Mario’s voice – and it wasn’t just Mario! He did Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, the whole crew! It was a shock when he retired in 2023, but they found a new voice actor, Kevin Afghani, and we first heard him in Super Mario Bros. Wonder. It’s definitely different, but he seems like a good fit!

Following in the footsteps of the previous voice actor, Kevin Afghani now voices both Mario and Luigi in Super Mario Bros. Wonder. Though his take on the characters is different from what fans are used to, he successfully captured what makes Mario energetic and Luigi a bit more reserved.

I first became a fan of Charles Martinet as the voice of Wonder, and it’s been amazing to hear him take on Wario and Waluigi too! He started voicing Wario in WarioWare: Move It and Waluigi in Super Mario Party Jamboree. It’s a lot to live up to, considering the history of those characters, but honestly, I think he’s doing a fantastic job!

3. Roger Craig Smith

Team Sonic Racing: Sonic And Omega

Roger Craig Smith has been the official voice of Sonic the Hedgehog in video games since 2010, taking over from Jason Griffith with the game Sonic Free Riders. Smith’s portrayal of Sonic is more balanced than Griffith’s, which was known for a quick, forceful delivery. Smith brings a more relaxed and playfully sarcastic tone to the character, while still maintaining Sonic’s friendly personality.

For a long time, Roger Smith was mostly known for small parts in Sonic games, like the voice of the announcer in Sonic Colors when you use the Wisps. But starting with Team Sonic Racing in 2019, he became a regular character, voicing E-123 Omega – a character who loves fighting Eggman and is always armed.

Over the years, several voice actors have played Omega. Vic Mignogna voiced the character for the longest stretch, from 2010 to 2019. Since Team Sonic Racing, Keith Silverstein has been Omega’s voice, notably in Sonic x Shadow Generations and Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, always using a robotic effect. Because Omega is a simple character, voicing him alongside Sonic doesn’t seem to add much difficulty for Silverstein.

2. Haley Joel Osment

Kingdom Hearts 3: Sora And Vanitas

Haley Joel Osment originally voiced the main character, Sora, in the first Kingdom Hearts game back in 2002. He was just 14 years old then, and has literally grown up with the role. That’s why Sora’s voice sounds noticeably deeper in Kingdom Hearts 2 – Osment’s own voice changed as he aged.

Throughout most of the Kingdom Hearts games, Jason Marsden voiced Sora. However, that changed with the 2010 release of Birth By Sleep. In that game, Haley Joel Osment played Vanitas, a character who is essentially the dark version of Ventus, and who looks remarkably like Sora without his mask. While you can still hear similarities to Sora in Osment’s performance, Vanitas’ voice is noticeably deeper and more intense.

Vanitas only had a brief line in Kingdom Hearts 3D, but a much better example of actor Haley Joel Osment playing both Vanitas and Sora came in Kingdom Hearts 3, released in 2019. That was the first time he performed a complete conversation between the two characters. There’s also an explanation within the game’s story for why Vanitas resembles Sora, though it involves complicated concepts of Hearts and Darkness that are a bit hard to follow.

1. Johnny Young Bosch

Persona 4: Yu Narukami And Tohru Adachi

Johnny Young Bosch is a voice actor I really admire, both in video games and anime. I grew up watching Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers, where he voiced Adam, which made a big impression on me. Plus, he’s incredibly talented in Persona 4, a role-playing game I love, because he voices both the main character and the villain!

Bosch handles all of the protagonist’s voice work in the game, including his grunts and special Persona calls. He also voices the character Tohru Adachi, a detective who later becomes a dangerous killer, demonstrating his ability to play both a laid-back, good-natured guy and a completely unstable villain. Bosch reprised both roles in the English dub of the Persona 4 anime, where the protagonist was officially named Yu Narukami.

Interestingly, the original Japanese version of the game used two different voice actors for Yu and Adachi. It’s unclear why the English version chose the same actor, Bosch, for both roles. However, given that these characters are meant to be complete opposites within the game’s plot, it creates a compelling contrast.

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2025-10-29 21:12