Ben Starr tells Matthew Mercer about landing his role in Final Fantasy XVI

Ben Starr (Final Fantasy XVI) and Matthew Mercer (Final Fantasy VII Rebirth) sit down to discuss their respective characters Clive & Vincent, video games, their careers in gaming and more.

Welcome to Square Enix Party Chat, bringing together some of the talent behind our beloved games.

[fonzylopez]

The idea of him being alone and freaking out when he realized he was being cast as the lead in a final fantasy game is genuinely great.

[TheGewnSkwaad]

Pretty sure this was Ben's first big gig and the fact he got nominated for best performance for it just goes to show what a talented actor he is! Hope to see him in more projects!!

[irritableindian]

Seeing Matt’s enthusiasm and pure joy for Ben is the most wholesome thing ever. Straight up infectious

[synacky]

I think that's a pretty normal reaction for a long time fan 😂😂

[Kairamek]

Keeping his expectations in check was wise. Matt's first FF roll was Cid... in a Chocobo spinoff.

[deathbykonami]

When Ben said he thought he was auditioning for Tiamat (the git Clive kills in the first 10 minutes after the prologue), but was given Clive's lines, the look on Matt's face, who had the same scenario when he got cast as Vincent.

[writer_man]

So both Ben and Matt got surprised with awesome roles in big Final Fantasy games.

[UnlimitedFlyers]

That was a reaction on the same level of Tidus' laughter. A fan finally getting his wish. And Ben turned out to be INCREDIBLE in the role. Congrats!

[RaideDuku]

Ben's an awesome dude. Had an honor to talk to him (and the VA's for Joshua, Dion, and Benedikta!). I also smacked him upside the head.

[Lukeormaybenath]

Ben Starr is one of the reasons why Clive is my favorite Final Fantasy protagonist. He did a fantastic job as Clive's voice.

[xspeczy]

He's such a dork and I love him so much for it! Can't wait to see him in other roles in the future

[ERFMXVCC]

He did amazing as Clive, so glad he got the part

[super-engineer]

Clive Rosefield and Vincent Valentine having a cool conversation. This is pure perfection!! 😆😆😆

[HellGatyr]

when he said "this is your final fantasy" to last boss fight
i feel it

[mrroboshadow]

Imagine reading the wrong lines while sleep deprived and that landing you the lead in one of your favorite franchises
I think id actually pass out

[NoctLightCloud]

he absolutely killed it in that role!! To be honest, Sqex has been nailing the English VA for a long time already, probably since XIII.

[kidchaos]

They knew what they were doing to him with that Lol

[sam.]

and ended up being one of the best protagonist VAs of the franchise (if not the best)

[Cloudnerd]

Ben was absolutely perfect for Clive. He made the character for me!

[ratpongkraiwiwat]

He is the GOAT of the series hands down.

And I've played every single Final Fantasy main title.