There’s nothing like a bad Irish accent to put a dampener on the release of a high-profile video game. Irish players have been left irked by the fact that one of Starfield’s non-playable characters, Dr Charlie Flynn, has been voiced with an unbelievably bad attempt at an Irish brogue. A clip of the character speaking in her role has gone viral on Twitter, with many players expressing their dismay at the poorly realised accent.
It’s not the first time that Starfield has been slapped with this type of criticism – but it’s safe to say it won’t be the last. This is a problem that seems to plague Bethesda, who have been consistently getting their Irish accents wrong. From Colin Moriarty in Fallout 3 to Sheogorath in Skyrim, and now Charlie Flynn in Starfield.
The sci-fi role-playing title, which was released on September 6, is set in a dystopian future. Within the game, players can encounter a number of NPCs that they can interact with and recruit to join their space crew. One of these is a medic named Charlie Flynn, who can be found in the Reliant Medical office in Cydonia City. However, players from Ireland and beyond are calling out the fact that she’s being portrayed with a terrible Irish accent.
“As someone who has lived and worked in Ireland all my life, this accent makes me cringe. It is so uncanny to what people actually sound like that it’s painful,” one Reddit user wrote. “I know it’s a video game and they can’t test every single accent for everything, but this is just terrible,” another user added. “I feel sorry for anyone that plays this who has family or friends with an Irish accent.”
It could be argued that accents in general have shifted over the centuries, which would explain why there are a number of different accents within the game, but that doesn’t excuse Bethesda’s consistently getting them wrong. Many of their Irish characters have been voiced by non-Irish actors and it’s easy to see why fans have blasted the lack of accuracy.
Of course, it’s not the first time that an Irish accent has been butchered in a video game, although there have been notable improvements in recent years. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, which featured an extensive DLC storyline set in Ireland, managed to get the accent right.
As the gaming industry continues to evolve and expand, it’s imperative that developers make a conscious effort to authentically represent all cultures and accents in their titles. This is especially true for games that are set in foreign locations or feature non-playable characters with accents.
While Starfield’s overall gameplay and world-building has been praised by players, the criticism surrounding its Irish accents serves as a reminder of the importance of accurate representation.
Thankfully, it doesn’t look like Bethesda will be changing its approach to the accent anytime soon. But if the company wants to avoid further embarrassment, it might be wise to start hiring proper Irish actors for their video games in the future.