@SpindleyQ I remember some developer commentary (maybe in the Roberta Williams Anthology CD-ROM package?) where they explained that the purpose of all the heavy accents and dialects was to make it clear who was speaking in scenes where you eavesdrop on unseen conversations, even if you don't have sound enabled.
Maybe that's true, maybe it's after-the-fact rationalization. But even if true, it takes a Sierra to think it was a good solution to the problem.