10 Video Game Acting Performances Worthy Of An Oscar

3. David Hayter - Solid Snake (Metal Gear Solid)

There is a reason many people were unhappy that Kiefer Sutherland took over from David Hayter in Metal Gear Solid 5. Aside from feeling that Hayter was dumped rather unceremoniously, this was supposed to be the game that tied everything up and filled in all the blanks in the Metal Gear universe.

And for that to be done in the most effective way, we really needed the man who has played Snake since the PS1 days. Hayter is magnificent as Snake; managing to pull off some otherwise cringeworthy dialogue and actually making it sound plausible. His gruff delivery is a perfect accompaniment to the grizzled exterior we are presented with, and you really get the feeling that Snake is a battle-hardened legend of the battlefield.

Hideo Kojima is infamous for his occasionally self-indulgent cut scenes, which to work, require real investment in characters like Snake. Without Hayter’s performance, Snake had the potential to become a parody of himself; and luckily this does not prove to be the case.