How exciting would it be to randomly run into Lara Croft while out for a jog? That is the type of experience that dreams are made of! Alas, as every child who dedicates six hours-a-day to Overwatch or Fortnite has repeatedly heard from their annoyed parents, video games are not a reflection of reality. While a disconnect remains between the two, which is one of the medium's many benefits, this barrier is fading away quicker than Kingdom Come: Deliverance's active player base. Facial-recognition technology is absolutely on-fire right now and the results are immaculate! During the early years of 3D graphics, anything even remotely resembling human warranted a round of applause, but the times they are a changing. Voice actors are no longer faceless players hidden behind a pixelated curtain.
Voice-acting in video games dates back to the early '80s with Space Spartans, a combat simulator released for Mattel's Intellivision. This amounted to a couple of lines and the performers had nothing to do with their characters' designs. With the inauguration of each brand-new cutting-edge technology, dev studios up the immersion by casting actors who can walk and talk the part. At first, these "realistic" graphics were more unsettling than impressive; however, in this day and age, games can rival cinema. In turn, gaming transformed from a career-ending move to a respectable choice for A-list celebrities. In this day and age, you could undoubtedly run into THE Lara Croft at the local supermarket and the resemblance would be uncanny!
Transforming fiction into fact; here are 25 video game voice actors that look exactly like their characters (almost)!
25 Beyond Two Pages
Quantic Dream's Beyond Two Souls tried to bridge the gap between movies and gaming, so it made sense to hire a recognizable actress for the lead role of Jodie Holmes. David Cage's search led to Ellen Page, who was teleported into this alternate universe via the use of advanced motion capture. Beyond Two Souls garnered a polarizing reception and the actress ended up threatening to sue Sony over a leaked image that was less than flattering. Just to set the record straight, Ellen Page did NOT lend her likeness for The Last of Us's Ellie, although anyone who makes that mistake can easily be forgiven.
24 Senua's Sanity
Senua's Sacrifice deftly tackles themes dealing with psychosis, depression, and grief. Be it the underappreciated Enslaved: Odyssey to the West or the polarizing DmC: Devil May Cry, Ninja Theory sit among the better storytellers in the business. The studio's 2017 puzzle-action game lacks the AAA gloss found in its earlier output, but the engrossing and emotionally-draining plot more than makes up for it. Senua's exhausting journey would have fizzled to nothingness without an actress gifted enough to probably depict the character's sadness; luckily, Melina Juergens brought her A-game.
23 A Dogg's World
Fueled by the success of Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto III, True Crime: Streets of LA attempted to scratch that "open world action-adventure" shaped itch. The similarities were there for everyone to see, but Luxoflux's 2003 release garnered a decent enough reception from critics and featured a cameo by quite a big-name. The rapper contributed to the game's soundtrack and shows up to help the protagonist on a couple of his quests. If that was not enough, Snoop Dogg can be unlocked as a playable character by collecting 30 Dogg Bones.
22 Gears Of War
2018's E3 delivered the typical highs and lows associated with the expo. In terms of content, Sony's hit a home run with heart-pumping showcases for Ghost of Tsushima and The Last of Us Part II, but the overall exhibition left something to be desired. At the expense of deep dives into any particular games, Microsoft opted to overwhelm audiences with trailers and reveals. Honestly, their press conference was pretty awesome! Gears of War 5 acted as the sh0w-stopper and Laura Bailey's Kait Diaz seems set to take center-stage for the sequel. We cannot wait!
21 Rockstar
Right from the start, James McCaffrey has been Max Payne, or, to be more specific, Max Payne's voice. In 2001, motion capture was not on the cards for a budget title like Max Payne, but things changed with the release of 2012's second sequel. Developed and published by Rockstar Games, James McCaffrey transformed into the full package. Max's gruff disposition and world-weary demeanor were reflected admirably by the Jessica Jones actor, who was a substantial upgrade over the original incarnation of the detective.
20 Overwatch's Gamer
Voice acting in gaming can be divided into two eras: pre and post-Overwatch. Blizzard's beloved hero shooter took the world by storm and firmly established its colorful roster of personalities among the industry's top tier. Visually, the game is rather cartoonish, but that did not stop the dev studio from sprinkling in a human touch over their line-up. Charlet Chung portrays everyone's favorite teenage pro-gamer, although it can be hard to appreciate D.Va without her mech suit. Otherwise, the actress is ready to join the special forces!
19 Trouble Is Brewing
In hindsight, it might be better if fictional characters remain trapped within their own respective universes. A Lara Croft or two might be nice, but this planet is not big enough for Grand Theft Auto V's Trevor Phillips. Rockstar's massive commercial hit spared little expense during the production process. The sprawling single-player campaign features three separate protagonists and the developer teleported their respective voice actors into the game. Out of the three, Steven Ogg is undoubtedly the eeriest and most shocking, largely due to Trevor coming across as a cartoon character in Grand Theft Auto V.
18 A Portal Into Nintendo
Whether anyone realizes or not, at one point or another, Alésia Glidewell featured in their childhoods. As the voice of Sly 2: Band of Thieves' Carmelita Fox and Star Fox's Krystal, the multi-talented voice actress' career in gaming dates back a couple of decades. Nowadays, Glidewell focuses more on directing and producing her own content, but her resume lists Super Smash Bros., F.E.A.R: Project Origin, and Valve's Portal games. Okay, she does not actually speak during the latter, but Chell's appearance is modeled after Glidewell.
17 Alan Is Alive
Microsoft, why is there yet to be a sequel to Alan Wake? The solitary stand-alone expansion hit the scene back in 2012, so there has been more than enough time to put together a followup! Sadly, the creepy action-adventure shooter struggled to find an audience upon release, but Remedy Entertainment's experience deserves another roll of the dice. Wake's story has yet to be told in its entirety and this IP could easily match Resident Evil. While he had nothing to do with the voice, Ilkka Villi stepped in as the eponymous character's model and the dude personifies "rugged handsomeness."
16 Mass Effect's Super Spy
Mass Effect Andromeda's hilarious animation really put into perspective the original trilogy's awesome presentation. Chuck and Dexter's Yvonne Strahovski lent her voice and likeness to the Normandy's crew. Portraying the cold but endearing Miranda Lawson, a human Cerberus Officer who initially questions Shephard's role in this entire shindig, before slowly warming up to her captain. Even though she is far from the only person that can form a relationship with the Normandy's commander, Strahovski's knowledgeable crew member must be one of the more popular romantic partners in Mass Effect 2 and its sequel.
15 #NotMyDante
Finally, Capcom has stopped messing around and announced a sequel to Devil May Cry 4. Ten years and a failed reboot later, the publisher realized there is no need to fix something that never stopped working, although Capcom is hardly going to be deterred by common-sense. With the announcement of Devil May Cry 5, DmC: Devil May Cry has been relegated to nothing more than a diversion, or, as certain fans are concerned, a bad dream. Tim Phillips did an okay job as the Americanized Dante, but there is just no replacing the real deal.
14 Becoming Human
Seriously, look at these graphics! Technology has officially caught up to nature and Skynet might just be right around the corner! Frankly, the motion capture is slowly starting to overshadow the human body. Published earlier this year, Detroit: Become Human centers around three sub-servant androids who are suddenly stricken by a case of sentience. Admittedly, Quantic Dream remains unable to program gameplay that is not fidgety, but the visuals are truly next-gen. Valorie Curry is the android Kara, and vice-versa. There might be a metaphor lurking somewhere in this paragraph.
13 BioShock's Elizabeth
BioShock tore to shreds the myth that video games cannot produce fascinating storylines. Set in the underwater city of Rapture, 2K Games' 2007 epic oozes atmosphere and dread, traits that are hard to come by in any medium. BioShock Infinite teleported the franchise to the heavens and debuted a companion to accompany players during their mission. Portrayed by the talented Courtnee Draper, Elizabeth serves as the game's heart and soul. While boasting gorgeous graphics, the NPCs occasionally leave the not-so-safe skies to journey through the uncanny valley. Elizabeth is far from an anomaly.
12 Agent 47
Give a hand to the Hitman himself, David Bateson! Hailing from South Africa, Agent 47's doppelganger's launched his career as a hired gun with 2000's Hitman: Codename 47. Over the last two decades, Bateson reprised the role for five sequels and this streak is not set to be broken anytime soon. Dedicating nearly two decades of his life to Agent 47, we simply cannot imagine anyone else as the suited protagonist and, yes, that includes Rupert Friend and Timothy Olyphant. Hopefully, Bateson continues to do what he does best for the foreseeable future.
11 Ready For The Invasion
The name Sonita Henry should mean something to sci-fi and comic devotees. Gamers know her as the survivalist Ellie Langford, but her resume is far-reaching and awe-inspiring. Currently, Henry is stationed in the city of Krypton, but she also appeared in The Fifth Element, J.J. Abrams' Star Trek, and the short-lived Olympus series. As Ellie, Henry portrayed a tough-as-nails pilot who stared in the face of an army of Necromorph and came out from the other side. At the end of Visceral's trilogy, Ellie's faith remained unresolved and that seems unlikely to change anytime soon.
10 Dawn Of The Wire
Hey, if a game is going to take from a TV show or movie, they might as well pick from the best! With a resume that includes Oz, Fringe, and Bosch; Lance Reddick is a veteran of the small screen and should be far from a stranger for gamers. Besides annoying Aloy as Horizon Zero Dawn's Sylens, Reddick also popped up in Quantum Break, Payday 2, and both Destiny titles. While Bungie and Guerrilla Games' releases are hard-to-beat, especially the latter, The Wire has to be the highlight of Reddick's career.
9 Frozen In Time
Frozen propelled Kirsten Bell to the big leagues, although the American actress spent the best part of the last two decades knocking on the door to superstardom. Veronica Mars showcased Bell's wide-range and irresistible charm, but the series struggled to attract a huge audience during its three-season run. The actress appeared in a string of indie films before Disney's Anna came calling. During her post-Veronica Mars and pre-Frozen period, Bell got involved in a centuries-old conflict that spanned a myriad of civilizations. Sadly, Lucy Stillman's story ended with the third entry in Ubisoft's franchise, so Bell's gaming days are in the rearview mirror.
8 Widowmaker
Overwatch's heroes and villains share more in common with anime than real-life, but Blizzard deserves props for toeing the line between fiction and fact. Wisely, the developer opted against casting any high-profile celebrities as any of the champions whilst maintaining enough of a resemblance to the voice actors for the characters to come across as human. In the realms of cosplay and fan-art, Overwatch is the reigning champ and that can partially be credited to the faces behind the computer-animation. Chloé Hollings is Widowmaker, but Blizzard tweaked the appearance just enough for players to be able to imagine themselves as the hero.
7 Heavenly Serkis
Andy Serkis needs no introduction. This is the magician behind The Lord of the Rings' Gollum and Ceaser in the Planet of the Apes reboot series. Even though Black Panther allowed Serkis to ditch the tech, the English actor will always be known for his motion capture work. While nothing more than a footnote in the performer's storied career, Heavenly Sword showcased the PlayStation 3's fidelity by casting Gollum as King Bohan. In retrospective, Heavenly Sword was a decent hack-and-slash that was simply crushed beneath the lofty expectations that arose from being one of the console's earliest exclusives, but the motion-capture was godlike.
6 Life Is Strange
For someone who has yet to celebrate their 30th birthday, Ashly Burch's accomplishments speak for themselves. Over the course of the last decade, she assisted in the takedown of an egomaniacal dictator, saved an entire city from a dinosaur invasion, and stole the show as Life is Strange's Chloe. The latter garnered the actress a Golden Joystick Award for Best Performance and prompted anyone who picked up Dontnod Entertainment's episodic adventure to suddenly get something in their eyes. With the gaming world truly conquered, Burch set her eyes on Adventure Time and Steven Universe. She is living the dream.