The Question: What are the most fascinating recent innovations when it comes to sound design in games and what could they mean for the wider dev community?
Having recently shipped Shadow of the Tomb Raider, the experience of implementing and thinking about true 3D spatial sound, (Dolby Atmos Home Theatre, Atmos for Headphones, Windows Sonic for Headphones, and Sony’s 3D audio for the platinum headset), has given me a true moment of reflection as a director and sound designer for where the medium of games are headed and how sound contributes to that future.
My initial thoughts - before - hearing spatial audio were that it was just going to be a gimmick, an ‘effect’ that made things feel slightly different, that didn’t change the fundamentals of the experience we wanted to put on screen... however, after first hooking everything up in our pipeline, and adding height speakers to our small audio room, and playing the first jungle environment in our game, moving the camera around the environment - the visceral impact was clear, immediate, and jaw-dropping. It was one of those extremely rare, and genuine, “wow” moments. I recall grabbing folks from the development team to also come in and listen, to gauge their reactions - and it’s something I’ve been doing at every chance I get ever since - you just can’t beat that feeling of seeing someone go from cynicism or disinterest, to a ‘wow’ moment. It never gets old.
In terms of development, the way we built our levels completely changed in terms of sound, we moved every sound object we could to a 3D point - we were now actively looking for moments and spaces where we could add sounds above the player, high up above ambiences, or more immediate and threatening sounds created by the presence of enemies or predators. Not only this, but as a team we were now actively also looking for opportunities to exaggerate the sounds in the environments above the players... what we came to refer to after-the-fact as ‘vertical spectacle’.
As we move into a development environment where spatial audio is available on more platforms and with technical breakthroughs constantly pushing the fidelity of what it is possible for our audiences to hear, I believe developers are going to continue to push the spatial elements in the games themselves, from increased vertical navigation (away from flat environments) in 3D games, and even into developing more tools and techniques to indicate with total accuracy if a sound is close by, in the mid distance, or far, far away. The medium of 3D games has such an advantage over other storytelling media such as film when it comes to spatial storytelling- our Audience can participate in and navigate our spaces to find the source of sounds around them - and the more technical and hardware resources are made available to support this wonderfully immersive and spectacular art form, the more games experiences will be able to define themselves as separate from cinema.
Rob is giving the Audio Keynote - Game Audio Culture: The Big Picture - on Thursday 11 July.
Find out more...
Develop:Brighton offers you an inspiring mix of top-notch speakers, practical how-to sessions, insights into the latest trends and technologies, plus fantastic networking opportunities. Find out about the different conference pass options and prices here or...
Register NowDevelop is an excellent way of catching up with people – there’s a really nice community feel here.
Mike Bithell
Mike Bithell Games
Develop always gets put in the diary. There are many reasons to be here, not just the talks, but the networking, people exchanging ideas about where the industry is right now and where it’s going to. It’s pretty essential to be here I think.
Ian Livingstone, CBE
Develop is important – the networking is very important. And go to talks they’re inspiring and get your creative juices flowing, they can make you think and you’ll learn how other people do things.
Jason Kingsley
Rebellion
I’ve felt a big passion here at Develop!
Tetsuya Mizuguchi
Enhance Games
We are so lucky to have Develop here in the UK. It’s a unique event where you can come and discover new things with people who care passionately about video games. It’s a sea full of new ideas.
Jonathan Smith
TT Games
I absolutely love coming to Develop, it’s a brilliant, brilliant conference – you just know you’re guaranteed to meet everyone.
Jo Twist, OBE
Ukie
Develop is the must-attend event for the games industry in the UK. It’s where we all come together and learn from each other. It’s the best way into the industry and it’s the best place to learn from your colleagues.
Hannah Flynn
Failbetter Games
Building games is hard and it’s taxing physically, mentally and emotionally. So being around a community that understands that is great – there’s a comraderie here.
Haden Blackman
Hangar 13
It’s fantastic to have such an event that provides this opportunity for all the game devs, indie devs and other organisations to get together to showcase what they do, meet and interact.
Rebecca Sampson
Hangar 13
People should come to Develop because it’s where the UK games industry meets.
Maria Sayans
ustwo
There are many ways you can be part of Develop:Brighton - including taking a booth in the Expo or choosing one of the many sponsorship opporunities during the event or at the Star Awards.
Contact us now!