Music–Instruments- Concerts- Gear- Fans- FAST

The Overall Game Audio Explosion - A Guide To Great Game Sound Part II: Music, FMVs And Audio Planning

V. MUSIC PRODUCTION

A. THE UNDERSCORE - INTERACTIVE VS. FILM MUSIC

Until recently, you merely could not compare game music to film music. Every
aspect involved in their production, from budgets to performance, managed to get an
impractical comparison. Today, both of these media possess a working relationship.
Games are created to support movies and films are made from successful
game franchises. Film composers are now writing for games, and some game
composers have made the transition to film. Hollywood orchestras and
orchestrators are now popular for game music scores. Why get this to
comparison? Because even though the considerations involved in their creation
are different, their effect and function are relatively the same.

B. STORY-DRIVEN/ROLEPLAYING GAMES

As the name suggests, the scores to story-driven games must primarily tell a
story. To tell a story musically is really a sublime art. A composer must be well
versed within the work of his predecessors to be able to know very well what constitutes
successful story telling using the language of music. Fortunately, centuries of
music have been written for this purpose, allowing today's composer a
foundation for developing this art. We now associate certain sonorities and
rhythms with specific actions, emotions or locations. Compositions like
Rossini's 'William Tell', Wagner's 'Tristan' and Holst's 'Planets' have laid the
groundwork of these non-verbal associations. Film and tv composers
have since expanded on these motifs to assist express the sun and rain within a
story.

A portion of story telling would be to define the environment, both time and place.
Musically, we draw influence from folk traditions for such a purpose. Through
ethnomusicology we are able to effectively represent locations and cycles by
incorporating traditional instruments, modes and progressions into the score.
For instance, a tabla, tambour or sitar is appropriate for describing an Indian
location. If such instruments aren't available, the music might be orchestrated
in a way regarding mimic these traditional sounds. Today's orchestra is
greatly enhanced through the addition of folk elements with regards to describing
a specific some time and place.

Characters within a story are supported with the growth and development of melodic
themes and motifs related to each character. Orchestrating the motifs
throughout various instruments will give you a sense of character development
as the game progresses. Additionally, varying the harmonic support of those
themes will reflect the character's physical, mental and emotional states.

Game music for the story and role genre must highlight the dramatic events in
the story in addition to drive the game-play. NIS and FMVs are the primary tools
for advancing the storyline and scoring to these videos is generally a
straightforward process. You have to consider, however, that game-play is also a
dramatic event that includes to the overall growth and development of the story. Herein
lies the careful balanced exercise of supporting the story along with the action,
without the music sounding repetitious. Cross fading alternate versions and
transitions, or layering individual tracks that are programmatically muted and
un-muted, will secure the musical effectiveness over long stretches. The
programming ways of manipulating music within a game are at night
intent of this article. Further reading from game development resources such
as 'gamasutra.com' will give you a closer inspection at a few of the programming
methods utilized in game music playback.

B. ACTION/ARCADE AND Sporting activities

The most basic function of game music is better exhibited in 'arcade' style
games in which the overall gaming experience is enhanced by the addition of
adrenaline-surging music. The background music helps to drive the action, thereby
heightening the concentration of the experience. Because of this, it is extremely common
for these games to license tracks from well-known, marketable artists with a
history of producing music that translates to the listener. The interactive
potential of the music, has so far been really low. However, as many artists
will also be avid gamers, they are beginning to show interest in lending their talent
toward interactive soundtrack design, otherwise producing tracks in their entirety.
In most cases, the interactivity from the music in arcade-style games rarely
moves beyond loops and stings. Oftentimes, this is everything is required.
However, since the complexity of arcade-style games grow, so must the level of
musical interactivity. The background music for these games should support any alterations in
game-play. Power-ups, signature moves and multiple damage are examples
commonly restricted to the sound design to immerse the player within the action,
but they are appropriately expressed through music as well. An in-depth understanding
of the game-play will show the composer, new areas to interactively
enhance a normally monotonous arcade soundtrack.

VI. FULL MOTION VIDEO (FMV)

Since the FMV is really a controlled environment, it's tempting for that sound
designer to elaborate about the sound clips. While in some cases, it may be
appropriate to heighten the dramatic impact from the story; great care should be
maintained to be consistent with the in-game sound design. An incredible-
sounding FMV is undoubtedly a joy to behold, however, if the in-game sounds don't
support the FMVs, the playing experience is going to be diminished. The purpose of
the FMV would be to dramatically move the tale, and also to give a burglary the
action. Since Most FMVs occur after completing a level, there is an inherent
a feeling of reward when viewing the FMV. The sound design should pay respect
for this as long as it does not stray too far in the in-game sound. The FMV
should behave as a seamless transition into and out of the action. During my
opinion, it is advisable to use in-game sounds within the FMV wherever in-game
movements or actions are present.

The second consideration for FMV sound is the mix of all the sound elements.
All dialog, sound clips and music ought to be mixed at comparable levels to
the in-game mix, unless there is a dramatic motivation for stressing one over
the other.

VII. SOUND REVIEWS

The Beta date is simply around the corner. Your sound team did countless
hours, and is nearing the finish line. You may think you're ready to examine the
sound for any necessary revisions. Well by now it's probably too late. As
mentioned earlier, the sound team is generally the last in line to begin creating
their content. Add to this, the truth that all previously missed deadlines
becomes their burden to make-up. Your sound team will likely be delivering
content up to the last minute. You will have to have in position a normal
and effective reviewing mechanism to stay on top of the direction of the game
sound.

Using the same group of reviewers employed for the demo phase (part 1 of article),
create a questionnaire that rates the general facets of the sound. Rating each
individual sound would be time-consuming, so use types of sounds and
include room for comments or explanations. By assembling the various
questionnaires, you will be able to develop a consensus opinion that will reveal
spots that need further attention. If this sounds like performed inside a timely and periodic
fashion, your sound team is going to be best able to manage the revisions, because they are
needed.

VIII. GOT YOUR SOUND BUDGET? ...USE IT!

A. YOUR SIMPLE CHECKLIST
Today's games are rivaling one another on every level. Sound is no
exception. You must secure the very best resources feasible for your sound team.
This will require that you use your budget wisely, and use everything.

Just before beginning the sound clips production, think about the following
questions.

1. Is the sound team complete? (i.e. sound designer(s), supervising/Lead
sound designer, composer, audio director and audio programmer)

2. Is each member of the sound team assigned a specific task uncompromised
by additional or overlapping roles?

3. Is the sound team assigned simply to your project?

4. Does your sound team have enough time to accomplish your project?

5. Does your sound team have the adequate resources essential for your
specific game? These include sonically treated work spaces, equipment,
software and sound effects libraries that are compatible with the requirements of your game.

6. Does your sound team have a demonstrated track record of producing
sound inside the style and genre of your project?

Should you answered "yes" to all of these questions, your sound design team is
properly equipped, prepared and ready for production. Answering "no" to any
of these questions will explain in which you will have to focus portions of your
budget.

B. OUTSOURCING

If the sound team is incomplete or perhaps in in whatever way compromised, you need to
consider outsourcing a suitable quantity of the workload to game audio
specialists. Search for companies the ones which have a powerful resume of
interactive sound production, and also have successfully produced sound for "high
profile" titles. If your game has special stylistic needs, then consider companies
that have a track record of producing sound for similar titles.

C. FOLEY

The overall 'theme' of the game can help dictate in which you may need
additional resources. A historically based game will need authenticity;
therefore consider obtaining fresh recordings of historically accurate weapons
and vehicles. In case your game focuses on destruction, a sizeable Foley session may
be appropriate to create original content unencumbered by overused sound
effects libraries. A little but well-organized recording session can give your
game lots of fresh spark having to break your budget.

IX. MARKETING YOUR SOUND

Game marketing has typically focused on the creator, developer or the voice
actors within the game. In many cases, sound can be used as a marketing tool
as well. For "The Incredible Hulk - Ultimate destruction" we hired some of
Hollywood's finest sound recordists to coordinate a Foley session that would
produce the raw destruction sounds we needed to create the sound effects
necessary for this game. Our session took place at an auto-dismantling yard in
a southern California desert. A giant forklift and bulldozer were used to drop,
drag and tear apart cars, vans and trailers. Multiple video cameras captured the
session for future use on the "Behind-the-scenes" reel. The added benefit was
the marketability achieved by everyone's dedication to producing the most
destructive sounding game to date. Your ability to market your game's sound
will also help raise any additional finances needed to bring your sound up to
the next level.

Beat Making Software "DUBTurbo" Review

Dune 2000 Dune 2000 is a real-time strategy game that requires gallant leadership, cunning tactics, and formidable military prowess to win the Emperor's challenge by being the first to harvest the most spice and take control of Dune. Three houses have arrived to claim the prize: the honorable House Atreides, the insidious House Ordos, and the vicious House Harkonnen. Whichever house you choose to lead, reme...

Claymation Studio 3.0 Deluxe $53.95 With Claymation Studio 3.0 Deluxe you can easily create stop-motion video. Capture images of clay action figures still photos and drawings to create your own stop-motion movie. USB PC Camera included!HD Support Resolution up to 1920 x 1080.Storyboard View the frames in sequence for easy editing. Import your photos from digital camera or PC.Display Screen Capture images using webcam camcorder and m...

Tags: No Comments