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Perth Facebook star Ozzy Man gets gig voicing Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare

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Liam CroyThe West Australian
VideoYouTube sensation Ozzy Man has lent his unique stylings to one of the biggest video games on the planet

He's a man you want at your side in a virtual war.

Ozzy Man, aka Ethan Marrell, has lent his not-so-dulcet tones to the latest instalment of the all-conquering Call of Duty video game franchise.

Game developer Activision asked the loveable larrikin to produce a voice-over pack to sell as downloadable content.​

Now players can go into battle with Ozzy Man passing on intelligence and providing a running commentary.

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It can get quite stressful when you have no one left on your team in a game of Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare.

But Ozzy Man helps lighten the mood when he tells you it's "just like in real life".

5.5 million Facebook followers...and counting.
Camera Icon5.5 million Facebook followers...and counting. Credit: Michael Wilson, The West Australian

For the millions of people who play Call of Duty online, a new voice narrating every game is a big change.

In past years Activision has used the likes of Snoop Dogg and actor R. Lee Ermey.

In March, they released a pack for Infinite Warfare voiced by Wu-Tang Clan rapper Method Man.

Method Man won a Grammy Award in 1996, but his measly 421,000 Facebook followers can't compete with Ozzy Man's legion of 5.5m on Facebook and 1.3m on YouTube

"We did over 700 bits of dialogue across two recording sessions," Mr Marrell told thewest.com.au.

"I had the standard script and I could improvise on top of that and give it the Ozzy Man flavour which is a lot more swearing and the Australian slang.

"When you’re doing well I call you "a bunch of bloody beautiful wankers".

"When you destroy a hostile enemy vulture I'll say it's been sent to "destination f*cked".

Mr Marrell has built a thriving business on the back of his Ozzy Man persona and video commentary.

When thewest.com.au last caught up with him in January — revealing for the first time his Perth origins — he had 4.3m Facebook fans. He has gained 1.2m since then and his rise to fame shows no signs of slowing down.

When you’re doing well I call you "a bunch of bloody beautiful wankers.

VideoPerth man Ethan Marrell is the man behind the popular online persona “Ozzy Man”.

The videos he "reviews" range from a dog trying to pick up a toy to episodes of Game of Thrones.

It might sound like easy money but his success is no accident.

The 30-year-old completed a master of internet communications at Curtin University in 2015 after years of stand-up comedy and filmmaking.

In recent months he's worked with Paramount and the BBC.

War is a full on topic. Just having him bring a bit of levity to it, I think that's a good thing.

The Call of Duty partnership was a comfortable fit because he's no stranger to the franchise or the target audience.

"It's a mature age game so they weren’t restrictive on the kind of language I could use or anything like that," Mr Marrell said.

"They know their fanbase and they know they don’t want to be mollycoddled or censored."

The payoff for players is that Ozzy Man's quips give you a laugh when you need it most.

From a Perth study to voicing Call of Duty, Ozzy Man has really hit the big time.
Camera IconFrom a Perth study to voicing Call of Duty, Ozzy Man has really hit the big time. Credit: Michael Wilson, The West Australian

If the enemy has surveillance drones tracking your every move, he complains about them "having a f*cking stickybeak".

If there's a deadly airstrike on the way, he tells you not to "sh*t your daks".

"I think what Ozzy Man brings to it is a lot of additional humour," Mr Marrell said.

"The Infinite Warfare game can be quite intense and he brings a layer of humour to the intensity.

"War is a full on topic. Just having him bring a bit of levity to it, I think that's a good thing."

Author's note - If anyone from Wicked Witch Software is reading this, a voice-over pack for AFL Evolution would be centimetre-perfect.

VideoHe's made a full-time job of being brilliantly crude.

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