Ok I know that some of you might think: “oh here we go! The boring mambo jumbo stuff from an audio guy”. But stop for a second and think about it: why audio in games shouldn't be important? Yes it's true that a good game (or a fun game whatever you wanna call it) is good 'cose of the way the mechanics are designed, BUT, there's something more that you have to achieve for having a great game…
USE SOUND EFFECTS FOR AN IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE“Sound design is what truly convinces the mind that is in a place; in other words, hearing is believing.”
- The Art of Game Design, Jesse SchellDid you ever think about Skyrim or Counter Strike without a sound? Yeah... maybe those games are enjoyable even without sounds, but without them you will lose part of the “connection”... every one out there that has played Skyrim with some headphones knows what I'm talking about.
Sometimes sfx are really part of the game: play Counter strike and try not to die 1000 times without audio! Hearing what your enemy is doing is part of the strategy to win, on that game.
So, please, don't say: “oh, yeah, this is not important yet, let's think about it at the end of the project, ok?” NO!!! THIS IS NOT OK!!!! Do brainstorming with your team (or your sound guy) and think about what type of sounds you want for your game. Have a little paragraph on your GDD that talks about sound design: it really helps out to know what IS the type of sounds you want in your game (and, of course, what you don't want). You're doing a game on a budget and you don't have the chance to have sound designer? It's ok to do it by yourself, but: are you really good enough to do that properly? If the answer is no, go and find a sound designer. In this days is not difficult to find one that fits your budget.
Skyrim USE MUSIC TO GIVE EMOTIONS TO THE PLAYERS“Music is the language of the soul. If your game are going to truly touch people, to immerse, and embrace them, they cannot do it without music.”
- The Art of Game Design, Jesse Schell
Now you and I will have a little play time… ok? Let's start! There's a youtube video down here, it's about Deadmau5 (he is an EDM producer) playing with his toys (damn, wish I had so many synths!!). Listen carefully and tell me: do you recognize the song that is coming out from his speakers?
Deadmau5 playing... Yes! of corse you did!* Now you see why you need a specific music for your game: the music is so well composed and produced that the people will recognize it and remember your game. And that's a big plus. Some other examples? Super Mario brothers theme, same thing. Zelda Theme? Also. Skyrim Theme? Also. Fez theme? Yeah that game too.
So, if you can do it, compose your music! But remember: there is some rule to compose a recognizable music theme (we will talk about that in another post).
* No?
man what's wrong with you? Ever played “Castelvania”?
BAD IMPLEMENTATION EQUALS BAD AUDIO
It's that simple. You can have the most beautiful music in the world and the best sound fx ever made on this planet, but if you implement them in a wrong way…. It will sounds like s**t!
So if you or your programmer can't deal with that, ask help to your sound guy and use a middleware software, like FMOD or Wwise, now they are free to use for indie devs.
Think creative about how to use music and sfx: it isn't only about a bunch of blips and loops. Down here you will see a good example on how to do thinks differently.
January by Disasterpiece
So tell me: how you're dealing with audio in your games? Do you make music and sfx by yourself or do you collaborate with a composer/sound designer?
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