In the original D&D there was a rule that there was a 10% chance that anything spoke common.
Read literally, that meant anything, even inanimate objects. We had an encounter where the party thief was listening at a door. There wasn't anything on the other side, but the door (having met that 10% chance) hating to disappoint, started making sounds so the Thief would have something to listen to. And as each person stopped to listen it made a different sound. Just for variety, you understand.
Note that, just because something can talk doesn't mean it can see or move, so asking random objects where the Orcs went, or where the commander hid the key to the chest was a universally fruitless endeavor.
But it did make for a fun game.