Sound is a very
important aspect of game design. When you think about game design you tend to
skim over the sound area as you don’t necessarily pay much attention. Hearing
is more of a passive sense, therefore making sound something where you don’t
tend to notice it is there but if there’s no sound or incorrect sounding then
you realise.
Sounds are used in
games to help provoke an emotional response in the audience. Whether it be,
fear, anger, sadness ect. This is done by using different strategies to convey
meaning. For instance, sharp, high jolted notes are used, in essence with
disjointed silence, to scare and disorientate the audience. Whereas, soft, long
notes are often used in sad or dramatic sounds. For example;
Listen to the incoherent shuffling tones, which seem to have
no sort of rhythm too. The human brain is conditioned to respond to rhythmic
noises, so the lack of flow in the music and sound creates an eerie confusion
for the brain to handle.
Diegetic and non
diegetic sound is used in the gaming world. As well as the music you must
have item response noises. To create a
convincing level you must integrate the appropriate sound convincingly. For
example, a dripping tap wouldn’t look right if you couldn’t here the water
dropping. Our eyes and ears have to work together to get a sense of realism,
without one, the other one becomes distorted.
Theme tunes are also
useful for gaining recognition.
Some key composers
working in industry are;
-Harry
Gregson Williams – who created the theme tunes for Metal Gear Solid 2, 3 and 4.
- Inon Zur – who created the theme tunes for games
such as fallout 3.
- Koji Kondo – Who created the theme tunes for
Zelda: Orarina of Time, Super Mario Bros and Super Mario 64.
- Michiru Oshima – Legend of Zelda: Twilight
Princess.
All of these inspiring composers use interesting
melodies to create the desired effect. For example, the melancholy tones of the
fallout 3 music differs greatly from the adventurous music for Zelda.
As I play
a lot of horror games, sound is one of the most iconic aspects of a horror
game. It is used to create tension and
to scare the audience. In addition with interesting visual components, this can
create a very frightful, heart-pounding experience. Some key sound aspects for
me, come from games such as FEAR (As I spoke previously about) and games like
amnesia. Here are some links to gameplays of some of my favourite horror games
with amazing sound techniques;
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArJlSWm8bTc
In regards to the
quote “Nile Rodgers/Bernard Edwards composition 'Good Times' is the most
influential recording made in the 20th Century”, I believe that this quote is
purely based on the individual. I personally disagree, as I listened to the
music I tried to think of what it had been in. I couldn’t think of much, to be
influenced by something is a personal thing. I’m influenced by horror stories,
people and life in general. This is not true to everyone, it is a matter of
opinion.
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