Sorry Nolan North, My Gaming Voice Hero is Dave Fennoy

Quick. Name your favourite video game voice-over artist. If it’s not Nolan North, it’s most likely…that guy who played..that guy. Or that lady who was that woman in that one series I really like.

It’s sad that so few of these talented artists are recognised for their work, so I figured today I’d shine the spotlight on a man who is not only one of the most accomplished veterans of the trade, he’s a man who, with his incredible work on Telltale’s The Walking Dead, is so hot right now

Dave Fennoy began his career in voice-over work over twenty years ago, and has appeared as prominent characters in everything from the Metal Gear Solid series to World of Warcraft to Bayonetta

Some of his more recent (and prominent) roles include Valve’s DOTA 2, where he voices six heroes, and perhaps best of all his turn as StarCraft 2’s Gabriel Tosh, who even looked like Fennoy, courtesy of his long dreads.

He’s outdone pretty much all of that this year, though, with his performance as Lee Everett, the star of the first season of The Walking Dead. Helped out by some great writing from guys like Sean Vanaman and Gary Whitta, Fennoy has given Lee a depth of character that embarrasses more big-budget games, and is one of the biggest reasons the episodic series has come out of nowhere to be one of the best experiences of the year.

My favourite role of his, though, might be the time he had to step into the shoes of Billy Dee Williams, and play Lando Calrissian in Lucasarts’ 1999 X-Wing Alliance. He of course couldn’t quite nail Williams’ perpetual state of surprise, but I remember even at the time thinking he still did one hell of a job.

Games aren’t all he’s done, though. Far from it. If you’ve ever used Hulu, for example, you may recognise Fennoy as the “voice” of the service. He’s also done commercial voice-over work for clients like Toyota, KFC and McDonalds, while Ben 10 fans may recognise him as the badass alien Tetrax Shard.

If you’re interested in checking out more of Dave’s work, head to his personal site, where he’s got clips from interviews he’s done explaining the art of his craft. You should also check out the reels put together by his fellow voice-over artist Adam Harrington (like the Walking Dead one just above).