The singing protagonist: Voice and identity in Transistor (2014) and Wandersong (2018)

The first human singing voice in a video game appeared in 1987 with Psycho Soldier . Singing is now prevalent across game genres with an abundance of playable and non-playable singers among ensemble character casts. Curiously, few games feature the singer as sole playable character (PC) and, rarer still, vocal capabilities as part of gameplay. Two games, Transistor (2014) and Wandersong (2018), occupy a novel space featuring singer PCs whose voices are central to the plot, albeit in contrasting ways. In this practice-research article, I examine how these games, while varying in genre and gameplay, establish their PCs as singers through narrative, ludic and musical elements. I begin by drawing from voice studies to establish a singer’s identity through primary and secondary characteristics. After laying the foundation to a protagonist’s core personality, I suggest narrative, ludic and musical elements that should be present to build the singer’s identity. After expanding upon the elements, I apply them as they pertain to the aforementioned games and how the games approach their respective protagonists. Through these case studies, I offer a model for the potential of using the singing voice as part of character’s core, gameplay, how a game overall may handle its vocal virtuoso.