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"Many students and even audio professionals not directly involved in video game sound design often ask me 'how do I get into creating sound design for video games?' This question is definitely a tough one for many people to answer. One thought that a colleague once impressed upon me was: "your education and tenacity is what gets your foot in the door, it's your talent that keeps it there." This saying is one that has stuck with me throughout the years and I'll delve into the exact meaning in this article." |
"We knew that we had moments of extremely high action to moments of nerve-wracking anticipation. The way we approached this was to write 'sets' of musical pieces. There were straight ahead action oriented combat pieces featuring fast drumming and orchestral instruments; moderately paced pieces featuring various percussion instruments that told the player not to let his/her guard down just yet; ambient pieces featuring synth pads and sound design elements that helped to heighten the creepiness of Hayden's explorations. All of these varieties had to come together to reflect the current atmosphere." |
"We as game designers can learn a lot from film. Quite often we are asked to design sounds based around very specific characters. This task often carries a lot of importance, and if done right will help to immerse the player in the world we are trying to create." |
"Over the last five or so years, interactive mixing has developed considerably. From basic dialogue ducking systems to full blown interactive mixer snapshots and side-chain style auto-ducking systems, there is currently a wide variety of mixing technologies, techniques and applications within the game development environment." |
"It is for this very reason that designing and implementing sound for a video game should not be based upon events that 'happen next' but rather, 'events that may happen next'. This is why the great majority of games have their sounds broken down into chunks that are easily played back at the exact moment they are needed; at run time." |
"We all use equalization, foley, reverb, and field recordings. But these things are not enough, even when properly executed, to form great sound design...we need more than just techniques and technical prowess. We need an idea." |
"Using silence or near-silence can often elicit a more emotional response from the player. Because we are constantly bombarded with sensory information in the average first or third person shooter, silence can result in an incredibly powerful moment of clarity for the player. There is no music or other extraneous noise to tell the player how to feel about the given situation." |
"Many video game publishers require their titles to be localized for a host of major markets. Localization is a very big deal to publishers and the bottom line considering that sometimes up to 50% of a AAA title's sales can be outside of North America." |
"In this article I'll let you in on over 10 years of experience in the studio. I've recorded probably close to 700 unique actors as well as had my fair share in directing sessions and casting auditions. Even if you are not the one that will be directing the talent for your studio's next project the guidelines below will definitely help you to get a leg up on the often hidden world of voice direction." |
© 2009-2010 gamesounddesign.com |
"A video game based on the Scarface license was always going to be a huge challenge to get right. The license itself has a huge following, not only among the original fans of the movie, but among a newer more urban audience who identify directly with the character of Tony Montana in terms of their own experience of rising from nothing, particularly among the hip hop community." |
In this first installment of an exclusive series to gamesounddesign.com entitled "Anonymous Confessions of a Game Sound Designer" we introduce you to our guest writer. This first article discusses the hows and whys of collaboration in the game industry. |
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In this second installment of an exclusive series to gamesounddesign.com entitled "Anonymous Confessions of a Game Sound Designer" our guest writer pens an open letter to the makers of FMOD; iteration is the key to successful sound design... and successful software. |
In this article we dive deep into the often experienced yet most misunderstood aspect of sound design... writer's block. We've got tips and ideas for those times when you're banging your head against the wall during crunch and that deadline is forever looming. |
In this next installment of the exclusive series entitled "Anonymous Confessions of a Game Sound Designer" our guest writer puts forth a call to action to a couple of the biggest game audio organizations around today - the Game Audio Network Guild (GANG) and the Interactive Audio Special Interest Group (IASIG). |
There are many things you can do to improve your audio design skills. We have compiled a list of the most popular ones here. One of them will really surprise you... |