Halo in particular has Red vs Blue, a fan series filmed in the fucking game, as proof that the barest effort can convey who’s talking and how they feel.

All the Spartans should’ve been the tallest stage actors they could find. Big ol’ dudes who can do enough with body language that the cheap seats know what’s going on… and then get in the recording booth and project like they’re used to talking through an inch of armor. Even in the games, the story is mostly told by normal-sized people dwarfed by these walking tanks.