Roger Craig Smith, a prolific voice actor whose past roles include Sonic the Hedgehog, Ezio Auditore, Chris Redfield, and Batman, has been tapped to voice Soul, the protagonist of the upcoming action RPG Phantom Blade Zero. Smith takes over the role from Jay Maksenuk, who had previously lent his voice to the character in various trailers and gameplay demonstrations.
Developer S-Game confirmed the change, and Smith's performance can be heard in the official launch trailer for Phantom Blade Zero. The timing of the voice actor switch appears to have been quite recent. During the review process for Phantom Blade Zero, the game's protagonist was still voiced by Maksenuk. The English voice acting for Soul at that stage was not met with universal acclaim, leading some reviewers to opt for the game's Chinese voice-over option.
However, approximately one week into the review period, S-Game informed reviewers that the voice for Soul had been updated. While the developer did not initially disclose the identity of the new actor or the reasons for the change, the distinctive vocal talents of Smith quickly became apparent. Though some players may have encountered the original voice work, those who pick up Phantom Blade Zero at launch will experience Soul entirely as voiced by Roger Craig Smith.