Roger Craig Smith just turned 50, and the gamers went crazy. The official Dying Light Twitter account gave the actor a happy birthday shoutout that went viral, with the replies being all about players throwing in Crane quotes with birthday greetings, speculating on whether the actor would return for Dying Light: The Beast.
This is another one of those moments when the resume should include him jokingly saying, “One name: Ezio Auditore, Assassin’s Creed, Sonic the Hedgehog, Chris Redfield, Resident Evil, Batman- Arkham Origins,” half of a childhood flies away. Now? All anyone wanted was the return of that gruff voice cutting through the mayhem of zombies.
Another chaos rose in the replies, with some deep dives right into quotes like Crane’s iconic “One of these days I’m gonna land on a bag of rusty knives”—which, mood. Others went straight up with the classics “Oh shit” or this great one: “This fucking thing just fucking slobbered something fucking on me.” Those take me back to stubbing my toe around 3 in the morning.
But it wasn’t just a meme exchange. There were showers of nostalgia about how Smith was only 38 when he first voiced Crane back in Dying Light in 2015. Well, now he is coming back after almost a decade, and it is hitting home. Another very obvious joke concerning Crane “getting a good ending this time” was thrown in there, referring to the tragic finale we never truly got past.
There’s also some terribly hyped chatter for Dying Light: The Beast. Talks about secret blueprints and wishing it felt more like the first one than Dying Light 2’s Ubisoft style reveal a community parched for some classic Harran chaos. And with Smith back on the mic, it is straight vibes.
The birthday wishes came from all directions: from the very “Happy Birthday!” to elaborate cake emoji threads. Dying Light’s family and even the voice actor himself would have appreciated replies such as “Happy birthday Kain! I mean Roger!”, a sly nod to Legacy of Kain for the true OGs!
By now, one thing has become quite clear about the entire affair: Roger Craig Smith is not just a voice actor—with these players, he is the guy who made them believe there was a rugged GRE agent fighting through zombie hell. And with The Beast bringing him back? That gravelly voice is going to give a whole new generation of parkour panic attacks a soundtrack.
Happy 50th to the man who taught us all how to swear at volatiles in style. The return of Kyle Crane, with a crate full of rusty knives that has no emotional baggage, and, well, that’s what we’re dreaming about.
