Kinda Funny Gamescast: Video Game Podcast - One-on-One With Ben Starr - Kinda Funny Gamescast

Episode Date: April 8, 2025

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What's up and welcome back to the Kind of Funny Gamescast. Of course, I'm your host Tim Geddes. I'm joined today by The Amazing Ben Star. Hello. Welcome to the, I think, oh, I guess not the first time on Gamescast. You did the spoiler cast for Final Fantasy 16. This is the first time. We're just hanging out talking.

There's no plan. This is so, I said before we went on just how comfortable this is. The nice little sink in. What you're going to see over, I'm going to end up the end of this. Just like all the way in. Yeah, just like lying down. You're going to therapy's me. Yeah, the couch is yours.

You can stay here. for as long as you want. Kevin was convinced that you were going to make a play to try to live in the studio. And I would, you know what, I would. As a massive fan, obviously, I would just kind of like just hide in a hole, I think, and just live here.

But it is so comfortable. I would live here forever. I mean, the last time I was here was for your wedding. Exactly, which was a very different type of setup here. I'm going to say, it's a very diverse space. But this was like a little bar. I mean, I think I did a thing with Lucy where we did that. And she's got it on her phone of like, hi, I'm Ben and this is my first drink.

Oh. And then it ends up with me just passed out in a cab after like 13 margaritas I've had. Yeah, I need to see that. That's amazing. Genuinely, I'm snoring. I'm like, Ben, this is my first drink. And we did every single one. And then by the time I was like, mm-hmm.

What a night. What a ridiculous night that was. It was a really, really special night. And what was amazing is like clearly how many people love you and also how many people wanted to celebrate this place and you. It was just, yeah. Yeah, very, very cool stuff. And you guys are probably wondering why we are here.

We are in the lab right now recording because Sam Lake is out there recording a games cast with the Roger and Greg. That guy, the winner of a thousand Lifetime Achievement Awards. He's still alive, everyone. It's kind of morbid to think about. It's kind of a good thing, you know, that we're celebrating life as they're living. You know what I mean? But it's kind of wild because, you know, I think what they celebrate in 30 years of remedy and thinking like Sam, when I see him, he's just so fresh face. but think about like the output of that studio and what they've done like they just they just create

banners they really never miss and love those guys love those games yep we're going to talk a lot about games here because this is the kind of funny games cast each and every weekday we get together to talk about games all things we love about them etc etc if you love that of course you can get the kind of funny membership on patreon youtube Spotify or apple podcast if you do that you get the shows ad free you get the daily exclusive Greg way and you can also be a super cool patreon producer like Delaney Twining Carl Jacobs and Omega Buster. Today, we're brought to you by Stash. We'll tell you all about that later.

So, Ben, before we went live, you said that you recently found your old Game Boy. Yeah. With all of your games. Yeah. What did you find, and what was that like? It was super surreal.

What I found was that, so I had an old school Game Boy, like the gray big chunk boy, big thick boy. and I found I used to have this little case with me that I would take everywhere so it was like this little case that was like had fabric on the outside and plastic

and I put all my games in and they had all the little game booklets of course What year were you born? 1988. 88, okay cool, I'm 89 so that makes sense. So rubbing it in, right?

Yeah, yeah, that's good. Yeah, so and I that was, that, when people go what was your first console, obviously my first console, well obviously my first console was a PlayStation, but like my first gaming experience was a Game Boy and I would take it everywhere and you can tell because

that thing, first of all, it's sturdy as hell. You put some batteries in it, it still works. Yeah, some, you mean like an incredible amount. Yeah. Not game gear levels, but like it's shocking. Didn't the Game Boy take four AA batteries? It did, yeah. That's insane. Yeah, it did. It did.

And there was something really satisfying about just like putting them in. I think I became obsessed with that, but that's another story. Weird Ben Star Fettish. Weird stuff. Yeah, weird fetish about putting batteries in. Don't think about it. It's so funny you say that because it's definitely the opposite of a fetish,

but I had like a phobia of batteries growing up. Because at some point, my mom said the word battery acid. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I couldn't get it out of my head. Okay, this is an exclusive here, but I'm going to say it's a safe space. When I was a kid, I used to, you know, I can't remember what they're called, but the little chunky batteries that would have like the two little things on the top. So they're like, they're like, and I would.

No. Yeah, I would Because I like the way it felt So I'd put my tongue In between the thing And it would obviously create like a little current That would go between it And I'd like the bitter taste

Of whatever it was that I was tasting If someone wants to tell me what I was tasting as a child But I would just put it in my mouth And I'd just a very normal thing for me It's just a normal thing I genuinely, if I saw one That is some Greg Miller shit dude You were tasting electricity

It explains a lot, isn't it? But yeah, I would do, I would, I've just, that's really just come to me. And I'm so glad that I got to share here. That's, God, kids are so weird. But yeah, that, that is hilarious because if I knew you, you would have terrified me. Like, because I was scared to touch batteries. Yeah. You're putting them in your mouth, man.

Yeah. And I think maybe I was intrigued. I was intrigued by it. I did have as a kid, I mean, maybe going into my teens in my early 20s, like, a story of things that I just licked. I just licked a lot of things. When I did my gap here, where I traveled from South India back to the UK in this kind of truck, I made a point of like licking famous landmarks.

This is, oh my God, this is so, this is a games cast. That's what we do here, man. Can I just say, I am a normal person? No, you're not. I am a normal person. That is why you got where you were at. You don't think of one of the faces of video games being a normal person. Well, apparently not anymore.

Lick batteries and lick things. I mean, I feel like licking in video games, there is a lineage, right? Like dating back to the Chobot PSP stuff, looking about when the Nintendo Switch first came out, and everyone's like, you gotta taste the switch cartridges. I say bring back licking. I don't think there's enough licking in video games. Bring it back.

Lick-a-tong, you know? That's me. That's me as child. Yeah, licked tongue's a good design. But yes, I found my old Game Boy, and I found most of my old games, but also because they would all come with, a lot of them would come with the beautiful little booklets

that would explain how to play them. And there's one game that I don't have on there called Chuck Rock, which is I... Oh, the caveman little platformer? Yeah. The first game I ever got on my Game Boy was Kirby's Pinball. Awesome. Because I really wanted Kirby's Dreamland.

But my parents got me the wrong one. Oh, no. And I was like, thank you. But obviously, Pokemon Red was the one at school. Of course. And, yeah, but for me, the game that I talk about a lot, maybe I've spoken about it on here, is there is a James Bond-O-7 game on the Game Boy that I really, really love.

It's kind of like a Zelda life. and I obsessed over that game and you can go to the casino and there's like secrets and essentially it's just a Zelda like James Bond but I really really loved it and that was the first one that I put in and it's still it's still good and the nostalgia

it still works I mean I think that's not necessarily a shock but it's not a guarantee because a lot of my games I tasted the battery first to be like did this work? Oh we still got some juice in there yeah put it in I think it's really cool and I feel very lucky to have grown up in a time

where I had the Game Boy. Yeah. There was, I had like a Batman the animated series game and an Empire Strikes Backside Scroller. It was, this is it. There we go. Wow, James Bond's Zelda-like.

That's so interesting. Yeah, and you could go and you could go to, and yeah. Oh, you could play like play like poker and stuff? You could play, you could play Blackjack, and it was really, really cool. Dang. The music was great.

I would recommend more people to go and play this game. I think I said it once on some program, and someone went, oh, I played the game and someone commented underneath, is it good? And then three people were like, no. That's how it goes. Especially for the Game Boy games. I feel like so many of them were trying their best

to just emulate what consoles were still very much figuring out. And to go back to it now, it's like, it just feels so, so, so like, archaic, you know? Well, you, like, going back to, you know, I was talking to you the other day about Tony Hooks Pro Skater. You know, there's Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, and then there's Tony Hawk Skater on handheld, which is a completely different video game. Yeah.

But it's that. Shout out to that, though. Specifically, the Game Boy Advanced Tony Hawk games are so good. They are, but they're just, they're different games. They're different. Yeah. But now, I mean, plugging handheld gaming, I got a Steam Deck about a month ago, and that's changed my life.

So that surprises me because of the amount of travel that I feel like your life now has. Did you always travel a lot? Yeah, I did. I've always done a lot of travel just in life, but also for work. And now I travel a lot. And I really thought I've got to up my travel game because I'm just doing so many. This transatlantic flight, which, you know, especially coming to SF, you know, that's a 10, 11-hour flight, same to L.A. And I feel like you do it like three times a year, it feels like.

And I feel like this is now becoming Ben Star does weird stuff. So I thought, let's reveal more. I would basically raw dog those flights. That's insane. I don't like watching films on planes. Why? Well, I mean, okay, I appreciate that. No, I love film.

I love film. You know what? I ain't going to question that. I ain't going to watch challenges on a plane. Fair. Also, I got caught out when I was a lot younger watching Mali and me. And, I mean, just as the ending was happening, the lights came back on and I was just absolutely wrecked.

Oh, man. But I don't like watching films on planes. And so I found myself just staring at the flight path. I am a normal person, I swear. You wouldn't even try to sleep or anything? I would try and get a nap in, but also, I mean, this isn't good content. Yes, it is. The people want to know, Ben.

They didn't feel your life. Oh, my God, I'll say it really interestingly. I would just, I would just, I don't know. I would just like have a bit of a nap. But the flight back, you can have a nap because I'll always get the evening flight that lands in the morning. But going to the States, it's like, no, you're just, I'm in, I'm a full. flying in the middle of the day and I'm going to land in the middle of the day. You can't really

do that. Are you listening to music? Yeah, sometimes. To be honest, I'm listening to you guys. I love that. That's awesome. That's hilarious, but that's awesome. So, like, I'll listen to KFGD every single day. And then, you know, I don't listen to every single game's cast. But when I'm on a flight, I'll be like, oh, well, you know, because the games cast is kind of ever-winning content. So I'll, you know, catch up on, like, what you guys are talking about the Outer Wild and stuff like that. And, you know, stuff, your retrospective look at stuff. I think it's really cool. So I'll listen to maybe podcasts that I, you know, I listen to Friends per Second or Triple Click or something like that and catch up.

That is, well, thank you so much. You're very welcome. It always surprises me. Like, it always that anybody listens if I'm being honest. It's surprising that I'm here. It's really surprising that I'm here because I still am, even though I know you guys now, I still listen to your content as a fan, which is that, like, the other day when you would, what are we watching?

I was texting you in the middle of it. It was maybe like the PlayStation, PlayStation State of Play. Oh, yeah. And I was just messaging you from. And I was watching as I was live. Yeah. And my, my, my fiance, he was next to me, was just like, are you messaging it right now? I was like, yeah, I'm just texting Tim.

And I can see you on your laptop. Like, I'll bring my messages. It's like, I'm famous. It's definitely vice versa as well. Like seeing you, I mean, the last couple years obviously have been monumental from you. You, people can't get away from seeing you. And I feel like you've taken every opportunity to the max. Like I think that you've just like really, really, really, really been the

I'm like, all right, cool, I'm here. What can I do? How can I make the space better? How can I be genuinely Ben Starr? Yeah. Ben Starr is hilarious. Thank you. He is.

I don't think I am. It's been a very weird thing. Very, very weird. And I feel incredibly fortunate to have been given these opportunities. And I just want to be here. I'm like, one of those guys that's having a nice time at the party and I don't really want to go. So it's like, yes, I'll have one more margarita, please.

And I'll stay to the end. Nor eventually, yeah. But also everyone's nice. Everyone's really nice. And, like, you guys are so welcoming. And I felt like, even though I live on the other side of the world, I have so many friends, you know, over here in different countries. And every developer I work with, I end up becoming really good friends with.

Because ultimately, people who make games, you know, oh, no. I mean, we have to do it, you know? Like, you can't just be this fucking good looking. Like, I'm not going to put anyone... You did the... That was not, that was at the end. I haven't seen this. I'm not going to put anyone specifically on blast,

but I've been close friends with some people for almost a decade, if not longer than a decade. Yeah. And the sounds that I heard them make when they saw this video scared me, if I'm being honest. Like, it was a lot. This is a lot. This is,

so Alexa Ray Korea is a very, very good friend of mine, and she said, do you want to present an award? And I said, yes. And then this happened. I don't really know.

Uh, yeah. I wanted it, okay, I wanted a normal shirt, but I couldn't find. Oh, you wanted a normal shirt. I swear to you. You lost your sleeves a long, boy. So I, you swear, you're normal. I god, this is, oh. Oh, no, I was looking at a battery and I thought, oh, this will be nice. Um, this is, uh, yeah. So, I mean, you've, you've started doing so many amazing opportunities, right? Like, not just being in game after game. Yeah. game. Like, it's reaching the point where, when we're watching a game showcase, we're just waiting to hear your voice.

You know what I mean? Yeah. But in addition to that, you are doing your, your, uh, D&D. D&D, and you're doing so many awesome, like, hosting opportunities, like the golden joysticks and, uh, presenting it, and things like that. Like, uh, what are you, like, is, is the goal for you to just do it all? Yeah. Or is it, like, I, I, this, all this other stuff we're doing.

is more just to fuel the acting. No, I'm like, I love it because I love making stuff. I love creating stuff. And it just so happens that the outlet that I use is acting. But I also am a bit of a show-off. So I'm a bit of a show-off, Jesus Christ, you've just seen that. I really love performing for people, and I really love making people laugh.

And there is, I feel like there's a lot of untrod snow out there for performers. There are brilliant, brilliant, amazingly talented individuals out there. And I kind of want to emulate a lot of what they've done, but I also kind of want to exist in this space. I love talking to you. I love hosting. I think that's a really fun thing. And I really like that video games is a space where actors are still exploring what the possibilities

of how they can engage with their communities. And I'm always looking to expand the people that I can reach out to and letting them know my work. I'm a very, very serious actor, but I'm not a very serious person. And so I really like that, for instance, I can be, I can play Kazan or I can play Clive or I can play Verso or Prometheus and I'm very serious in that role and you can take me seriously for the work that I do. But at the same time I can turn up and I can be an idiot, I can take the piss out of myself

and I will always be because I'm British the first person to take the piss out of myself. Like if you think you're going to bring me down, don't worry I brought myself down for you. And so when I did the golden joysticks, I was so acutely aware that I had to take the had been in the industry for maybe about two minutes. Yeah. And the year before Troy Baker had hosted it, and then they asked me, and I'm like, I ain't Troy Baker.

You know, that man, the legacy of what he's created in video games, the performances that he's given, like I'm so young and fresh to it. And I thought, well, I don't feel like I'm deserving of this mantle. So what I got was a load of really wonderful creatives who I know. So Sam Lake, Darren Corb, Sven from Larian, Matt Mercer. I got them to do a video. The goats.

Yeah, I got them to explain why I'll be a terrible host. Because I just thought, I'll let them take the piss out of that. So I'll get ahead of it. And so I got all these people basically being like, Ben will be a terrible host, don't do it. This is an awful idea. And it's just like, I'm happy to take the piss out of myself. I don't really mind.

I mean, I think that there's something so authentic about that, that reads so genuinely. And I think a great example of that was just the last couple days with the Squier-Nex publisher sale. video that you were in and you crushed it. And there's something about it where, let's cut the shit. It's a commercial, right, for a sale for video games. But you performing in it, I think, is just a win for every side of gaming, whether you are Square, the publisher, right?

Whether you're the developers of the game that want these games to be loved and played and want the community to know they're on sale. this is a good opportunity to get them. But it comes from a place of you being genuinely interested in all the games you're talking about. And it just, I don't know, there's something about it that I just feel like this, you've cracked the code, man. Yeah, and I don't know what the code is, and I think we're kind of still going,

God, there it is, there's the boy, fine, fancy. Also, notice how my shirt just gets increasingly undone. That is intentional. They were like, one of the costume people, went, do you want it done up? I went, no, I want it kind of sarcastically fine. down. This is a fun thing because it is, I know, we're selling you something. I understand that ultimately we're in an industry that you want to make money. If I come on here and I talk about a game,

it's because I want you to know about the game so you can buy the game. But I always want to feel like I'm giving people something. Square came to me and said, we want to do a commercial with you for the publisher sale. And they said, we want it to be authentically you. And so they gave me a template of essentially what we wanted to talk about. And then I did a draft of my own version. There is a draft out there that's far more risque than the one that they I mean it's it's actually like there Yeah, there was a whole bit where they had they One of the producers I think the head of marketing said I had to send a really weird email to Japan Explaining what half of this stuff was and it's the weirdest thing the feedback one of them was

I don't know Ben are we being offensive to toes I'm not gonna tell you what that is It didn't go in. It didn't go in. Didn't make the gut. Because they went, we think it's offensive to toes. And I went, I went, you know what?

It is, and that's the joke. And so there's a whole bit about toes. So, you know, the fetish community, don't worry, I'm trying to cater to you. But Square Enix were a bit like, ultimately we are trying to sell you something. And the detail in it, like, slime and punishment.

Like, they're so wonderful. And I think that Square have obviously, like, launched my career. And maybe they just kind of saw that they were like, Why does Ballotro get to use him as a clown? You know, like, it's just this strange thing where we're looking for personality. We're looking for individuals to get behind. You know, I love you guys.

I see you as such a kind of like tip of the spear of this community. And we want to like people. So I'm like, why don't people like me? Yeah. I mean, yeah, I mean, so this was completely unhinged. But again, I think that that leans into that's what this type of marketing can be. It's like you watch this, like the Balacho commercial or whatever you want to call that advertisement. Like spot.

And it's compelling in the most bizarre, weird way where it's like, okay, so it's a card game. How are we going to market it? Let's have Ben Star dress up like a clown and eat a banana. It's pretty much what it is. And also then like afterwards, this commercial went out on the day of the game awards. And then maybe a couple of days later, I messaged Wout, who if you have seen any game awards this year, he's the man who has to keep going up and accepting awards on behalf. because local funk absolutely quite rightly has gone.

I don't want, you know, I want to kind of remain anonymous. And my God, God, it's insane. You're a mad, man. It's mad, it's madness. And I said, they gave me 20 gigabytes of outtakes. And they said, you can have it, you can do what you want. So I went away and I edited this version, which was these outtakes of what we did on the day. And then I just put that out.

And that became its whole thing as well. So the outtakes became more popular than that. And also all the screen grabs you have of me, you know, with a banana in my mouth and nibbling a banana and doing all that stuff, like that. That's all from the outtakes that I released. And I thought it was crazy when I was watching your game of the year and you used that picture of me.

And I see people talk about it. And I'm like, that's so crazy that you're using a picture of me for a game that I didn't make. Yeah. But one thing the team said, because hopefully I will continue to do stuff with them because it's fun, is that I think even, Local Funk said, he said, oh, our Reddit went into a very, very strange and dark and sexy place.

Sometimes it has to. Because then we started seeing all the sexy Jimbo cosplays. You started a revolution. And the fan fiction. I mean, listen. Yeah. Who doesn't want to fuck a clown? You know?

I'll tell you what I meet him. So speaking of this, you get the outtakes, right? And you get to edit together, put it on social. I know that oftentimes when I talk to you, it's just a glaze fest. I know that it, but I legitimately am so impressed by you, like in every single way possible. Yeah. But I think it all goes back to you're just a good person, you're a fun person to talk to. Thanks.

That gets it. And I feel like a lot of people in the industry get it, and a lot of them don't. And I think that they're getting it in the way I mean it specifically is understanding stem to stern the entire process of, what we're doing and what it means to be in the community of gaming, whether that is playing the games or games media or listening to podcasts, whatever it is. The social media aspect of it, the way that you crush it,

needs to be studied because I am so shocked that in addition to being so talented as an actor and talented at presenting and all the stuff, you are able to, I mean, you don't have a team, I assume, right? Like all the videos you put out, like all the sketches, all everything. Like, that's all you. Yeah. How?

I'm just a weird little guy. I'm just a weird little guy. There is no plan. I think the reason why it feels authentic is because it is. Like, I didn't expect to do any of this. I expected to be in a video game and then talk about the video game

and that kind of be it. Hopefully continue to get other roles. But I think this whole thing emerged out of the pantomime of what social media provided, which was I had this character and then I created the character of myself. And that was a really important thing. I wanted people to know who I was

because so many brilliant talented actors there are so many brilliant talented actors out there and a lot of them, we don't get to promote our faces, you know, our voices, and often some of the best actors you know, you don't even know their voices because they change them and modulate them because they are so talented at being those chameleons. And I just really wanted to, oh, there we go.

This one, so this is the Astrobot video. Amelia Tyler, Jesus Christ, Ben. There you go. That is the voice of Balders Gate 3. Oh, amazing. I've stopped doing these because I didn't want to like that to be my only thing that I do and you can see obviously the inside of my house and so many people know that but I really wanted to do the Astrobot one I kind of came out of retirement to do it

because I just thought it's just so silly and I came up with the line hi my name's Astrobot short for Astrobot but you can call me ass and I just thought that's I was on a dog walk and I went okay I'm going to do it that's it that's it's it and it's exactly I just said it to myself whilst I was walking my dog and I went, right, I've got to do a video now because that is actually really good. Yeah, and I really appreciate it and I like playing with the community

and it just happened, you know? So, okay, trying to think of the right way to ask this. Final Fantasy 16 happens a couple years ago. Obviously changes your life. Obviously now you get to do all these things, so many opportunities and it's just up and up and up. Before that, you were still Ben Starr.

Yeah. Did you get, did you feel like Ben Starr though? Or was this like an awakening that like you now get to truly be yourself? Like what was on your social media before Final Fantasy? Oh, I looked back early. If you got like really early, there's ones, I mean, no one cared about me. And I didn't really know what my identity on social media was because, like, you'd follow me if you'd seen some of my TV shows. But ultimately, like, no one really cared because the communities weren't that active on social media.

You know, if I was in a midsummer murders or if I was in Jamestown or Dickensian, there's no one who wants to engage with you on there. And then the video game community is on social media. That's where they exist. That's where they're able to express themselves and talk about their love for stuff. So there was something so engaging about it. And that's why I felt like I was able to play. I looked back recently. And there was a tweet of me saying,

I demand a remake of Dunstan Checks In. And I'm like, that is... Dustin checks in, baby. I rented that from Blockbuster, an embarrassing amount of times. Yeah, that film, that film, on the basis of they want to get the elusive sixth star, it's a hotel, and then an orangutan

comes in and causes havoc because it's an orangutan thief? Bring back those films. Where are those films at the box office? So that was my social media. There wasn't one, and I felt like I had... Do you know what? I talk about permissions. I have permission

to be an idiot because people resonated with the character of Clive. People liked the performance, they liked what I'd done, so I went great. I feel like I can talk about this but I also want to speak to video games as a whole because I also recognize at the time it was a PlayStation 5 exclusive

not everyone was going to play that game not everyone was going to experience the character and me as a person so I was like okay I have more people come up to me saying I have never played Final Fantasy 16 but my friend has showed me clips or but I saw you do this I saw you dress up as Tifa or Mario

or I saw you at this like I was on I have so many people come up to me and say I've seen you on Kind of Funny. Amazing. And they're like, I'm also a kind of funny best friend. And that's instantly something that we have in common. And so I feel like doing all of this stuff, people know me from outside of it.

And it's just been a jumping off point, but that's always, Clive has always been my anchor. And, God, I love that so much. Were you in any video games before 16? Yeah, I was. Really? Yeah. I was in, the first game I ever did was Assorted Voices in Quantum Break.

That's awesome. And Sam and I have a joke, which is... That's great. He misspelled my name. He did and they did. And think on my IMDB, it's Ben Starr, aka Ben Starr with 1R, because in Quantum Break,

I'm credited as Ben Starr with 1R. And I was like, fuck you, remedy. Yeah, and I thought that was so cool because I was an actor doing film TV stage, and I loved video games. So I remember thinking, wow, I'm going to add my voice to Quantum Break. to a remedy game.

That's so cool. And what Quantum Break at the time was doing was like, it's a TV show and it's a this and that, that's incredible. And then I did a way out. I did a sordid voices and a way out. So I was in a booth at Joseph Fares, which was crazy.

And I remember meeting him and being like, this man is energy. So I met him for like an hour and then kind of nothing and then Final Fantasy. I was like such an in-and-out actor Like, I would just kind of do bits, and I just kind of seized it. I mean, yeah.

Like, so outside of the acting and game and stuff, clearly, you've been a gamer your whole life. Like, gaming is your, like, through blood. Yes. Were you, did you have outlets to talk about it or did you anything about it? Like, did you have a friend group that was playing? Or was the post-Farmed Fantasy 16 life that you have now, like, now you get to be with your people? Honestly, I had friends who I would talk about video games with. not really.

Video games was such a thing that I would have for myself and it's why I think I don't really play a lot of multiplayer games because I never had a crew to kind of you know, play FIFA with or card or whatever you know, I just, I love those games and I would have loved to have played them

and the multiplayer games were never something I really wanted to do because it was almost and I'm kind of ashamed to say this now but I think it's, I think it's good to say I felt like I was made to feel like it was a dirty secret you know

and I would always go to these like dinners and then you go, you're an actor. And they always think you're a bit weird, and they go, what, they've seen you when you're only validated, if they've seen you in anything that you do. But I remember talking to so many people about the power of video games. They go, what do you do outside of acting? I'd always say video games.

And I would talk about, you know, I'd give the examples of how, as an interactive medium, they are the most powerful way that we can tell stories because you are an active agent in that change. And whether it means that you can affect that change or you are along for the ride, you know, there's the bioshop way of would you kindly

which shows you kind of like how you don't have agency even though you think you do or there is the divergent paths of The Witcher or Boulder's Gate and you've got these things that video games can tell stories depending on how you interact with it and I would always talk about that and then people would be like sure sure sure

we've come a long way since you're like sure but I didn't have people that I could genuinely talk about it with on a oh you're a massive nerd too so I think maybe that That's one of the reasons why I've embraced this community so much because I said to you, I listened to games daily every single day in the gym. Every single day in the gym, I listen to you guys. And I listened to MinMax and Triple Quick and Friends per Second.

It was a huge, I was so nervous when 16 was going to be announced because I wanted to know what you guys thought about it. And I was like, I'm going to step in and is it going to be a don't meet your hero scenario? And now I get to not only be a part, perform for people, I get to actively talk about the thing that I love. I get to be like, hey, I'm playing, right now I'm playing Rise of the Golden Idol. I get to talk about how much I love that game. They're like incredible video games out there.

I got to speak about earlier in the year. Thank goodness you're here, which I think is just a, I think thank goodness here is a 10 out of 10 video game because you either love it or you hate it. And it's trying to be only one thing, which is itself. self and it's like a singular, well, by two people, it is a vision of a video game that I think is so perfectly executed and it's the power of what video games can do because that can exist in the same space as Assassin's Queen Shadows or whatever. It's the same thing, but they are telling it through different ways. And I get to talk to people about that who get it. I mean, dude, I'll never

forget it was like, I guess three or so months before 16 came out and me and Andy were in L.A. at the preview event. And I don't know what you knew, but you DM'd me. This was the first time you ever talked, like, I was even aware of you. You DM'd me as I was playing. And like, as, like, I was playing as Clive and you DM'd me and I looked at Andy, I'm like,

the voice actor, the main character, just, this is crazy. And then a couple months later at Summer Game Fest, like, we got to hang out and, like, seeing you at that giant bomb party was such a special memory for me, because I genuinely saw you be like, these are my people. It was a very weird, like, I feel like I bonded with you.

Like, I feel like I made a friend that day. Like a core friend that day. And that was something that I've met a lot of very cool people in this industry, but it's rare that, like, there's that level of like, this dude's awesome. People ask me, they're like, oh, do you want to go and do film and TV after this? I'm like, oh, really? And it's not that I don't think film and TV is something that I would really, you know, I wouldn't enjoy it.

I love it. I love performing. But there is just something so rewarding about this, about here, about this space. about what we can do in video games and how it can tell stories. And I am so aware that as an actor, I am a small, tiny part of that, but I love the fact that I get to contribute in my small way.

I'm not one of these people who's going to come and be like, acting is the most important part of a video game. It can massively enhance an experience, but also it is an essential to. Again, I've been playing the Golden Idol series, which I think Case of the Golden Idol tells one of the best stories of video games

in the past five years. I really think it is incredibly compelling, but there's no acting at all, and the same with vampire survivors, but at the same time you compare it to, you know, the power of what the cast of Boulder's Gate 3 have done and how they can accentuate these amazing stories, and they can complement the insanely complex

and brilliant writing of what Larian did. That's really powerful, you know? And, you know, to kind of circle back to kind of why I'm here with you today and being like, I got to have this weird moment when Kazan was announced and the kind of when, not announced,

but when people first heard my voice in the trailer, I had so many people friends messaging me being like, are you Kazan? And I was like, that's crazy. And it's only from like a two-minute trailer and people knew that. And then people were like, oh, I'm excited to play this game because Ben Starr's involved in it.

I am a small part of that game. Yes, I play the main character in it. But also, some people will come to that game because I am a part of it. But also, they're going to stay with that game because they get on with the complex mechanics because that team are so industrious, so hardworking. And I really want to give a shout-out to kind of what they've done because they have listened to audience feedback. They have done constant tests, like play tests.

And, you know, even from when it was first being played at Gamescom, and then it would be like, Now you can enter this test and we're going to take all your feedback and they've added an easy mode in. You know, they really want people to feel like they can access this game in a way that feels good for them. And they're just really, there is. What I worry about this game is that when you find him, he's completely naked. We're not completely naked. I love him in his silly hats. But, like, he doesn't have any shoes on and it's really, really cold.

And I'm like, Kazan, my boy, get some shoes. And because of the loop. You little toad thing, man. I swear to get it. Oh, my God, please. Are there batteries to lick in this game? Listen, if the tow community are looking for a spokesperson, I'm like, I'll talk about toes for you. Oh, man.

But yeah, this. Scarpeino has a five out of five on Wiki feet. No way. It's a true story. Greg doesn't. I don't think I'm on Wiki feet. Yeah. I don't know if you want to be, but you could be.

There you go. There you go, everybody. But yeah, I feel really lucky, and the team have really responded. So if you've seen any, like, Kazan trailers recently or here, there's a, there's a thing. that they're doing in the Monaco, Boss Week, where it goes, hi, I'm Ben Starr, the voice of Kazan and this. And it's this really kind of weird thing where the team have been so responsive to me. I've been like, oh, cool, we can use Ben to promote this game.

As marketing. As marketing. Again, that goes back to being authentic, where there's a value to that because people trust you, you know, because you play games. I have a lot of people actually ask me what it is that I did. And I'm like, I don't know, just like games. Like games and understand the culture. You'd be surprised, right?

Like that goes so far. But again, I think it's so important. This episode is brought to you by BetterHelp. We all know that therapy can feel like a lofty investment, but we also know that there's nothing better to invest in than yourself. The state of your mind is just as important as for physical health. Let's talk numbers. Traditional in-person therapy can cost anywhere from 100 to 250 per session,

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Visit betterhelp.com slash Kind of Funny to get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHelp, h-E-L-P dot com slash kind of funny. BetterHelp.com slash kind of funny. A big question I have for you, are you playing more or less games now? Less games.

Yeah. That's why I got Steam Deck so I can actually just play more because I am a PlayStation player and I'm in a console player, but like I was in the PlayStation ecosystem. And yeah, yeah, I wish I could play more.

You know, I was, you know, obviously back in COVID days, I mean, I was just mainlining stuff. I think we spoke about the other day that I got the platinum trophy on Crash Team Racing NitroFueled, which I think has like a 0.8% that platinum trophy is insane to get. But I was dedicated to that. But I wish I could play more games. But also we're in an age where when a AAA game comes out, they're going, hey, we've got a spare 100 hours than it is.

But I'm really looking to kind of smaller experiences that I can complete in a short amount of time. And also I'm playing more games, but I'm playing less of them. So I'm not completing them as much because I want to experience the work of my colleagues and peers and speak to that.

There will be games that I will go all the way to completion. But like, I think I looked at my PlayStation stats and I had thousands of hours in, you know, 2023. and then it really fell off last year, which I feel like it's a shame, but it's because I'm doing all of this stuff. No, you can't.

There's only so many hours in the day. Yeah, and every now, like, you know, there's obviously games, it's Ballotra, there's Astrobat, and it's like, I'm always going to try and play games that are very much centered in the zeitgeist, so at least I can have an understanding of what the work is, and I'm a voting BAFTA member, so I have to play the games that I vote on.

But, yeah, I wish I could play more, but that seems to be the universal thing. It is. Yeah. Are you, what's the, what are some recent platyms you've gotten, if any? I wish I had my phone. I can't, oh God, no, I've got quite a few. The most, I mean, I got the platinum on Dragon Age recently,

which is a game that I spent a lot of time on because I started it really, really early, and then kind of like, I've got the platinum on Case of the Golden Idol, which I just, I know I keep talking about it, but I just think. Very, loves the tears. I think it's a near perfect game for what it's trying to achieve. It's so, I think the art style is incredible. I think it's grotesque, but it's brilliant and the storytelling is so compelling. Yeah, there it is, there it is.

Well made, clever, fantastic style. I'd heard so many people talk about it and you look at this and you go, why is this so good? And it's because it draws you in. And if you're, if you've played it for an hour and you're still playing it, you'll become obsessed over it. And I know a game is good when I'm pulling out a pen and paper and working out puzzles and piecing stuff together. And the best part of like the puzzling isn't like obviously like putting the words together and stuff is great. But the puzzle of putting the pieces together of what's being told between the scenes that actually is. The story, I mean, how it develops its story is so incredibly brilliant.

Yes. Because it does, and there is a fantastic twist, and it feels really, really good. And actually, one thing, I mean, I prefer Case, because it's a bit like saying I prefer Doom 2016. But I think Rise does some really interesting stuff where it takes the same idea and it transposes it into kind of a brutalist 1970s kind of world. And, you know, this is a very kind of like, I think it's like 1870 or something when it's set in a fictional world. But it's the way that this game can tell stories in unique ways. It takes the mechanics that it learns through the first game. And you can see kind of the graphical upgrade and how the visuals have changed,

but they do a thing where at the end of each section, you don't just complete the scenarios. You have to then explain what you've seen over the four scenarios and go, have you got the whole vision of the whole story? It's so trippy and so weird, and I love that video games like this can exist. And I play Case on my PlayStation 5, but I knew I was going to be traveling and wanted to play Rise,

so I played Rise with my Steen deck, and it's great because you can just kind of move stuff around. I love it. I think it's super, super good. Do you have any desire to make a game yourself? Sure, I'd love to make a game. I'll just go and do that. I would love to. I don't think I have it in me right now to do that. Also, I don't think that's where my talents are best used. I feel very, I'd love to, but I think I'd probably get distracted and do all this stuff.

I like feeling like I can be a... cog in the wheel that can do really cool stuff, but I don't really necessarily want to be the spearhead of that thing. There are so many amazing, talented people out there, like my friend Abu, Maid Zhao, is like doing really cool stuff. Always doing cool stuff. He's another great example of a guy that gets it, and the way that he does the marketing. Like, even for Tales, he put out that short film that was beautiful, like a beautiful, beautiful story.

He and I worked on a TV show called Jamestown together, and I remember he was like my game friend. That's awesome. My gamer friend. And we would, in between, you know, we were out there for six months in Budapest filming. And he told me his grand ambitions to work in video games. And I think he'd just done, he'd just done Assassin's Creed Origins.

It wasn't out yet, but he had finished, you know, recording for it. And he was like, I really want to do more stuff in this space. And I felt so proud and jealous of him, actually, that he was able to do that. and, you know, the fact that we now get to talk about video games as friends, again, it felt like a little secret. We'd go away and talk about it, but now we get to speak about it loud and proud and be like, guys, they're just the best. Yeah.

They're just the best. And both of you as faces of some of the biggest, most storied franchises in gaming history. Yeah. Cool, isn't it? Cool. That's pretty cool. Yeah. Yeah.

So are you Final Fantasy doubt? It's so weird. It's so weird. No, because I will be. day, I'm a diehard day one to every Final Fantasy. Like it's, it's it's weird. It's weird, you know, I have a different relationship with that franchise now. It's shifted and I don't think for worse, I think it's just, I never expected.

I'm not final, I'll never be Final Fantasy now. I think it's just the power of those games is testament to their longevity. Their longevity is testament to their power. It is really, really, really, super, super special. But I don't know, yeah. We'll see. We'll see. I feel so lucky that I get to be a part of it.

And I pinch myself every single day. And I want to do cool other stuff. People keep being like, are you going to bring back a final fan? Final fans are going to be remade. Who would you play? Definitive answer, I would play Laguna. Thank you.

Give it to them. Thank you. That's it. That's the question answer. Have you done cosplay of that? Because I feel like, come on. I haven't. I'd love to.

Oh, my God. Again, shout out to cosplayers. I have been so fortunate to see the most inventive cosplayers. I can't wait to see people cosplay Kazan. I can't wait to see people cosplay Verso. And the Prometheus stuff is amazing. Also the artists when I was in, oh, okay. So good.

There he is. There's my boy. Tifa looks amazing. I have seen that picture of you so many times. The one that's second row, Barrett, towards the right. Yeah, that one. Your headshot. Yeah, that's my headshot.

It's just so, you look so, this is pre-video game. Yeah. It is, yeah. I've started making them use a different headshot of me. Yeah, it's, I need to get any headshot clearly. It's a weird thing, but I love when people feel compelled to create their art inspired by whatever it is that I have contributed to what other people have. Like when I was announced as Prometheus in Hades 2, shout out to Super Giant.

The reason I don't really have my voice is because I was doing karaoke with them until 2 a.m. They, people were doing artwork that was combined Prometheus and Clive artwork. You know, people were doing this most stunning Prometheus stuff. And I think that Gen Z, who does the art for Supergiant, you know, iconic in what she has done. Also one of the nicest people also has the most insane singing voice. Everyone at Supergiant can sing. Why are they just so talented? Everyone at Supergiant can sing.

Cortez needs to work at Super Giant. Yes. You know what he means? Yes. He deserves it. Like, I turn up. They had a mixer and, you know, I've obviously worked a lot with Darren and Greg. And then they were like, we're going to go back to the studio.

So we went out to the studio. And we've set up the things as a karaoke. And suddenly, everyone's singing like they're a Broadway singer. Like, I'm listening to Les Mizz. And Greg and Darren are singing at Les Mises. I'm like, what's going on? Like, Ben, do you sing? I'm like, not like that.

I don't. And then Judy, who plays Malinui, she is like, her voice is just so beautiful. She's like got this amazing tone and can sing jazz and then power ballads. And she was singing Phantom of the Opera last night. I was like, this is wild. Dude Phantom of the Opera at karaoke is a statement.

And they didn't just do one. I think they did the whole music. I was like, oh, okay, we're doing all. We're doing all of it. Like, Lloyd Webber's getting his getting a run out. That sounds like a good theater nerd crew right there. Yeah. Like, they're all, they're all, I mean, what an amazing, what an amazing studio.

What did you sing? I sang Iris by the Goo Goo Goo Dolls. And they also sang Drops of Jupiter by train. I feel like I'm just so, I'm so white middle-aged man. I'll do that. But also I realized as I was singing, they went, oh, these are high. Oh, oh, oh, I know most the lyrics. Don't know.

Oh, we're out of part. I know the lyrics. I just didn't know how high it was going to be in my voice. I was like, oh, God, tell me, then it's all across the sun. Okay, you're here for GDC, which is awesome. And it's been an amazing and the longest week of my life in the best ways. Yes.

You must be absolutely exhausted. Yes. Give me some highlights of who'd you get to see, what did you get to do? Simple highlight for me was Austin, Wintery does this really cool thing where it's a concert of video game music in the main hall and I got to perform at that. I did Raphael's final act from Boulder's Gate 3 which is very cool and actually afterwards people went I didn't know you were in Boulder's Gate 3 and I'm like I'm not but I'm such a little crossover yeah I'm such a huge fan of Austin Wintersy as a journey I think is when

people ask me what is the first game you should ever, first video game I should ever play. I will always say journey. I think it is the the perfect entry point of teaching you how to play games, how you can interface with games, the simplicity of what games are asking you to do. And I think that is also because of Austin's score. And when I got to meet him for the first time, I was just fan-boying out. And now we have a wonderful relationship. And he asked me to, you know, be a part of this concert. And so I had the great pleasure of sitting in and all the rehearsals. and watching a full orchestra play the Mass Effect music, play. I mean, I got to see the song that's about my character from Hades 2 being played

with Darren on, you know, Darren on guitar. It was so amazing in thinking, wow, the power of video game music is explosive. And that place was packed because I think, you know, you're never, You're never not at a video game concept. Yeah. And when I arrived, you were at the Final 57 Rebirth one. Exactly. Yeah.

So the funniest thing is, I mean, you got lunch a couple days ago, and you were giving me a little sneak peek. You're like, hey, I'm going to be at this orchestra thing. And I was like, oh, my God, I'm going to that. And I was waiting for you to come out the whole time, and you never came out. I was at a different one. Yeah. Like, I was at the Davy Symphony Hall one.

And then I realized, and I was like, oh, and it's funny because Austin came out there. And they played the Hades music. And their whole band was there. And I was like, where's back? I know. I know. I came out a snack on the other one, but I'd love to do more of that. I did a thing, Carnegie Hall earlier in the year, where they played the Final Fantasy 16 music for the first time live. At Carnegie Hall. Yeah, and I was, so I flew myself out because I really wanted to go.

And then Soken said, would you like to come on stage? And we did the L3 and R3 to accept the truth. And it was why, like, I'm not a rock star, but I felt like a rock star because that place was packed. And I walked out and it was like, I got. I got to tell you, like, I've watched that clip on YouTube, like, dozens of times. Yeah. If you're doing that and then playing the song, I'm so happy. If you don't know, distant worlds, the Final Fantasy album, Seven, is out now.

It is. Which includes Final Fantasy 16 music, and I've had that on loop. Also, I don't know, I don't know when this is going out, but the next Saturday, so maybe this Saturday coming, I'm going to be at the... I'm absolutely doxing myself, aren't I? I will be going to distant worlds because they're doing a kind of... kind of a new thing at the Apollo in London. So I will be attending that.

So if you're a fan, I will see you there on stage. Maybe I don't know. That's awesome. But yeah, the week's been amazing. Meeting people's been awesome. It's just cool as hell. And I'm ultimately here to talk about, you know, Kazan as well. And it's like that thing where they have enabled me to be here.

Because they were like, yeah, sure, we'd watch you here. Wouldn't you talk about the game? when you talk about it. And so, like, it's very cool because it's not just like, I'm doing stuff, I'm actively promoting a game that is about to come out. Yeah.

You know, and so that's just really neat. And I get to be like, there's this really, really cool game that I'm a part of, and then I'm about to go and do Expedition 33, and I'm about to go and do all that. Yeah. I just feel super, super lucky.

This is not a gotcha. So you can just, like, hit me. So you're not going to answer. Are there? What's the right word here? Hit me. Are there many,

many projects that you can't talk about. Yes. That you can't wait to talk about. I love that for you. I love that for you. Are you all taking care of yourself? Are you okay? Is there enough hours in the day for Ben Starr to be okay?

I'm not well. I'm still looking batteries for joy. Let me taste of batteries. I am right now I'm in the thick of it, you know, and I've got some really great things that I'm going to do over the next couple of months, and I really want to kind of take a lot. advantage of those opportunities and also just you know kind of give back to people who've given a lot to me And also I'm just proud of the work

I am proud of this work and I get out in front of it because I'm going I want to talk about it I want people to play this stuff I'm I'm proud of what I did in Kazan I'm really proud of what I did in Expedition 33 And I think that is it's amazing how excited people are about that video game And I think it needs to be said that as a 30-person team It's it's unbelievable that game's real man like and I really want people to recognize that like when they play that game. They're playing a game that has been made with love and joy and passion and reverence for the material that it iterates on and expands upon. When I saw that world map, Ben, I was like, was that you? Guillaume, I asked, is there a world map when we were

recording? And he went, yes. And the first time I ever saw it, he sent me something that he created, which was the characters running around the world map to Bluefields from Final Fantasy and he was like, this is for you. He knows how to get you. He knows how to get you. And it's just, it's just, it's just cool. And I don't feel worthy of it. So I just kind of don't think about it and I just do it and I keep going.

And I just want to keep kind of being like, hey, guys, it's okay to be a nerd. You can kind of be a nerd at the same time as like, you know, it's great. This place is amazing. Acting's cool. I get some people asking me how to get into voice acting. I don't know, just do it. You know, like, it's to get yourself a microphone and learn the craft of doing it

and then place yourself out there in ways. Train, you know, try and get yourself an agent and then just pursue it from there because you never know what's going to happen because I never knew that I would be here. Yeah, and here you are? Here I am. And I hope you're here forever, man.

Forever? I want to die at some point. Yeah, yeah. I hope not. You're like keeping me alive. I'm like a thousand years old. It's like, Tim won't let me die. I won't let him die.

We'll let him die. Before I let you go, any final thoughts? No, I just want to say, go and play Kazan. Go and play Kazan out on the 27th. I believe it's 27th. It's not just me. The incredible Anthony Howell, who you'll know as Margit from Elder Ring plays Blade Phantom.

I think he has one of the best voices in video games and is also a sensational actor. And I want to give him his flowers because I really, really think it's special. and his performance as Blade Phantom is really, really hold it together. As much as I'm Kazan, he is, you know, really a main character in this game. You know, if you've never played a hardcore action RPG before, pick it up because, you know, it's cool. It's a cool game.

Check it out, everybody. And remember, follow Ben Starr on all social media, all of that stuff. Ben, thank you so much for hanging out. And it's so funny because we're recording all this stuff out of order. So this is live. But that means last week, you already saw him on Game Showdown. and games daily. Yeah, yeah, but I'll be wearing a different top

because I want you to change out of it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So go watch the past video, see the different topies in. Otherwise, thank you so much for hanging out. Until next time, love you all. Goodbye.