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You don't need a destruction system for immersive sound. COD games could see so many improvements if they had ANY interest at all in improving the games sound. They've used the same explosion for multiple types of explosives for like 5 games in a row now...
Maybe kind of unrelated, but before they really get into great sound design, the gaming industry should first learn about standards, reference levels and calibration.
I was about to call him Captain Obvious, but then I read the part about destruction sounds and can't help but think he's missed the point
I agree that sound is very important(my favorite part about game design actually), but better sounding explosions isn't really the first thing that came to mind.
He's completely right, but its also -I hate to say- a completely "no shit Sherlock" thing to say.
People really hate to equate this industry to the movie industry, but when you're dealing with visual storytelling, specially over a similar medium (the TV) the same rules are pretty much made universal across the board. Movies, TV, Games, all need immersive sound to be truly effective.
Problem happens to be when any one of those 3 industries makes the mistake of assuming everyones got a sound system hooked to their TV set. Immervise sound doesn't need 72.1 surround to be great. It helps, sure, but it hurts the experience for a major chunk of the audience when studios in any of these mediums decide that they're only going to cater to those with the most toys. Sound calibration starts at the stereo level, not the THX level, and always should.
People really hate to equate this industry to the movie industry, but when you're dealing with visual storytelling, specially over a similar medium (the TV) the same rules are pretty much made universal across the board. Movies, TV, Games, all need immersive sound to be truly effective.
Problem happens to be when any one of those 3 industries makes the mistake of assuming everyones got a sound system hooked to their TV set. Immervise sound doesn't need 72.1 surround to be great. It helps, sure, but it hurts the experience for a major chunk of the audience when studios in any of these mediums decide that they're only going to cater to those with the most toys. Sound calibration starts at the stereo level, not the THX level, and always should.
I did notice some new sound effects in MW3 ( firing a weapon inside one of the concrete tubes on Hardhat comes to mind), but I gotta give it to Battlefield 3 for my sound-whore fix. That game with my Turtle Beaches is pure audio bliss.
DICE make incredible sounding games, the last few battlefield games have proved that. For me the sound makes the game.
I didn't rebuy it for this purpose but when I bought MW2 for my new PS3 and put on
my PS3 stereo headset it was fucking amazing. The destruction and mayhem from the sound alone made the game more exciting than it'd ever been.
my PS3 stereo headset it was fucking amazing. The destruction and mayhem from the sound alone made the game more exciting than it'd ever been.
I'm a VGM guy, and I'm a real sucker for sound effects that are excellent, so yes, sound makes or breaks the game, in my case. cod guns (not trying to start a flame war but it's just a fact) sound nothing like a gun, it sounds like a piece of paper being hit on by a flyswatter or something.
Sound design is generally overwatched today and it's a goddamned shame.
Sound design is generally overwatched today and it's a goddamned shame.
He must not play a lot of games, almost every AAA game this gen has outrageous sound, theres no "they should try doing that". It almost sounds like hes sugar-coating that he thinks games are inferior when they do sound better almost by default because the player sits in the enviornment how they please unlike a film.
Or something
Or something
Sound can do amazing things. Go play System Shock 2 with headphones in the dark. Even looking like it does today, you'll still shit your pants.
^true just adding a little bit of voice acting to the zombies make SS2 something more akin to a horror movie, same with the other monsters, that you can hear but you dont know where they are.
sound design is one of the worst aspects of many modern games since devs are fine with just putting in comms chatter and a loud machine gun (if its melee its groans) that drowns everything else out.
sound design is one of the worst aspects of many modern games since devs are fine with just putting in comms chatter and a loud machine gun (if its melee its groans) that drowns everything else out.
Next time you go play a game, turn the music off. Just listen to the sounds of your character running around with only ambiance to surround him. Skyrim gets thrice as awesome and many other games are also really awesome. Soundtracks are nice but nothing beats hearing the thud of a hammer connecting with a dude's head in a game.
Many people refer to Dead Space as a good example but I think it is the opposite. The sounds were repetitive after a short while and then they were no longer scary at all. If I hear a clank of a pipe or something in the background, it better be because something causing it otherwise you have just another "ghost" sound in a game. To me, a sound without a cause is like a light without a source in a game. Distracting, then annoying, then ugly. The sounds had no connection to the next attack from the zombies and because of that, I stopped paying attention to the sounds.
Skyrim isn't perfect but at least if you hear a sound you can use it to your advantage. A clink on the ground might mean someone has just shot an arrow at you and missed or it might mean kicked over a valuable potion. It might also mean you have just set off a trap and should dodge accordingly. Dead Space had none of this. Just a whole lot of bark and no bite. Well, the zombies bit but the sound didn't do much at all. I liked the game a lot and I even beat it with a smile but I could never look at the game as an example of good sound design.
Many people refer to Dead Space as a good example but I think it is the opposite. The sounds were repetitive after a short while and then they were no longer scary at all. If I hear a clank of a pipe or something in the background, it better be because something causing it otherwise you have just another "ghost" sound in a game. To me, a sound without a cause is like a light without a source in a game. Distracting, then annoying, then ugly. The sounds had no connection to the next attack from the zombies and because of that, I stopped paying attention to the sounds.
Skyrim isn't perfect but at least if you hear a sound you can use it to your advantage. A clink on the ground might mean someone has just shot an arrow at you and missed or it might mean kicked over a valuable potion. It might also mean you have just set off a trap and should dodge accordingly. Dead Space had none of this. Just a whole lot of bark and no bite. Well, the zombies bit but the sound didn't do much at all. I liked the game a lot and I even beat it with a smile but I could never look at the game as an example of good sound design.
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