Brown originally voiced this trailer for the original PC release before joining the cast in The Final Cut. Disco Elysium (YouTube)

The biggest change to Disco Elysium: The Final Cut comes from the addition of new voice acting, including Brown’s fantastic work as both the game’s ever-present narrator and the main character’s inner monologue. In-game, the personifications of concepts like Logic and Empathy constantly contextualize actions taken by the player and discuss the world around them. This amounts to around 350,000 words of dialogue, a daunting task even for the most experienced voice actor.

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Interestingly enough, it was Brown’s background as a rapper that helped him establish the cadence of Disco Elysium’s constant narration.

“I rap and sing, so I have to write rhymes to fit into a bar,” Brown said. “I decided when I was recording the lines, I was gonna do it with rhythm, but not on the beat. I could easily take it and make it into a rap, but I pushed myself away from that, but still kept some of that rhythm. I was looking for a flow. I have to make sure I’m reading it right, to find the rhythm. That’s what made it easier for me.”

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Having played Disco Elysium when it originally released on PC in 2019 and now on console with The Final Cut update, I have to say that Brown vastly improved a game that was pretty damn good to begin with. I already loved the voice acting present in the launch version, but Brown’s almost lyrical vocals add an additional layer of pathos to the crumbling psyche of the game’s protagonist. His work has further kept me from mindlessly skipping dialogue as fast as I can read it, which goes a long way in a game as dense as Disco Elysium. And it sounds like it was a good experience for Brown too.

“I’m really grateful for the game, because I wouldn’t have been doing much without it. [Maroon Town’s] got some gigs coming up, but for the last year, obviously, we haven’t been doing much. It hasn’t been a good year for a lot of people, but I got something out of it.”