Miriam voice actress? o.o

Maybe when Miriam gets killed by a monster *screams in pain*  ✝game over✝
........Nah.

On a serious note, some of the VA names mentioned here has popped up in our office (Not necessarily Miriam). Of course it's still a long way until we get to this part.

Why would it need to be cast at this point? I mean I wouldn't say its never something done (sometimes creators do make characters with specific VAs in mine - Oda of One Piece fame has admitted as such in the past) but its still very unusual - especially for new IPs. Hayter and Belgrade have particular cache with those likely to be supportive of a project like Bloodstained I can't see being replicated by any female VA. Hayter specifically because of the fallout with him losing the role of Snake (people who are angry with Konami have additional reason to donate as a "screw you" to Konami). Belgrade because even though his VA resume isn't extensive, his role as Alucard in SOTN is iconic and super memorable to fans of Igavanias - another big incentive to donate. I can't think of a female VA (English or Japanese) that has that sort of history with Konami or Igavanias to be a big enough draw (for donations) to have to give up the opportunity to actually audition for the role or allow for the flexibility to write Miriam in a way that may end up conflicting with a particular locked in VA choice if it was made at the start.

What if she's mute o.O ?

I chuckled.

Thank you for sharing this Mana .  It sounds like Miriam isn't the only character needing a VA...  Since Igarashi doesn't speak English, are you assisting him with the casting process, or will that role be assigned to another person?

Huh. I thought that would have been something nailed down by now. The feeling I got from a previous update was that IGA wanted to finish the narrative by the end of last year and I would have figured that personalities would have been locked in by now. I'm sure whatever you finally decide on will be good - y'all have shipped games, not me. I will say I think there are some pitfalls y'all should be wary off:

• A character can have a well defined personality and still be relateable. I feel the contrary thought process leads to a lot of silent or near silent protagonists  or those meant to serve as self-inserts. I tend to find those sorts of characters super boring and I know I'm not alone.
  

• Don't conflate "strong female protagonist" with 100% stoic or hard-edged. I feel that's the default a lot of writers trend towards (yet people will allow male protagonists to have any sort of personality whilst still being seen as "strong"). You see what Sakamoto and Team Ninja did with Samus in Other M? AVOID THAT LIKE THE PLAGUE!!

• Don't be afraid to be expressive. Monotone expressions or voices aren't the defining feature of a badass. The type of woman who can smile and bake a cake one day or even make the occasional joke and then rip the head off a demon the next day is more interesting than "I boil with generic rage". I've felt it was encouraging to have shots/art of Miriam smiling in the screenshots or campaign art and I don't think that at all conflicts with a woman who can be contemplative or stern or ferocious when the situation arises.
  

• If her personality can be expressed in accurately in basically one word, you've probably goofed. Like if "oh she's the imuoto-type" is a spot on and sufficient descriptor, you've probably goofed. You can't avoid tropes but try not to dive right into them without providing an interesting or compelling take. (Also imuoto-type characters suck). If you've got the time (A LOT OF TIME) you may want to take a gander at TVTropes.com both as a means to see what sorts of tropes have been successful but also the type to avoid.

• I know she's been described as amnesiac. Amnesia carries with it a lot of tired tropes often leading to dull personalities. Try to avoid that if possible.
  

• From the kickstarter Miriam was described as: "She is a woman of few words but strong of purpose. Her youth is deceiving, making her seem confrontational and quick to judge, though in reality she is constantly evaluating her next step. The pain she felt as an orphaned child fuels her compassionate desire to protect her loved ones and friends." From this I'm getting - calm, contemplative, aggressive/ferocious (when necessary), quick-witted, compassionate/kind, goal-oriented and with a strong sense of justice. I think that's a good collection of traits to at east build from.

• It may be useful to do a brainstorming exercise to think who are y'all favorite female protagonists are, what made them work and why you liked them. Characters like Motoko Kusanagi (Stand Alone Complex version) or Balsa from Moribito: Guardian of the Spirit are characters that skew older than Miriam but are among my favorites in anime and I would probably think of them first if I were doing such a brainstorming session. Looking back to Castlevania, Shanoa is probably the most (one of the most) popular female characters in the series. I'm a big fan of hers but even then, though I understand the story reasons why, the whole "no emotions" bit was a bummer. I would've liked it if she was more expressive (again I point to the fact I appreciate then even with all the nonsense Miriam has and will have to do with that she can still smile/laugh/maybe joke, etc. per the screenshots and art)

Again, y'all call the shorts, I'm just a single dude/backer on the internet. I just felt I should offer my opinion As an aside, I mentioned it earlier, consider British VA if it at all makes sense/sounds interesting to you guys/isn't financially prohibitive.

I don't think so but IGA usually asks for my opinion whenever he's deciding on something . Since he doesn't speak English, I help out with the spell names that Miriam will shout out. Something that sounds cool in Japanese doesn't always sound cool in English and vice versa. Maybe if they're still stumped on spell names I can open up a thread for suggestions.

The bolded is an understatement to say the least The pleasure that the overall Japanese entertainment industry seems to take in butchering foreign languages is well known and equal parts hilarious and depressing. I can only assume its a function of so few bilingual people in the country - not enough people to hold your feet to the fire if you mess up. If you royally screw-up a language, any language, in the States, there are enough people fluent/competent in it around who will chew you out for not doing your research. The impression I get is that even with English classes being common in Japan (from my understanding at least), not enough people speak English well to care if you mess up. Like I can jam with derpy attack names to a point but stuff like Five's English in Terror in Resonance (a recent anime) was just painful to listen to. Japan also seems to have a bit of a French/France "fetish" so hearing them butcher French words too is also painful to me as someone whose second language is French

Anyway, yeah, if y'all stumped for names & stuffed, don't be afraid to ask. I'm sure we'd all be willing to help

How about Kat Steel for the English voice of Miriam?

(She does the voice of Ibuki in Street Fighter X Tekken and the voice of Tsuruhime in Sengoku Basara 3).

Just a minor suggestion.