While the goals of game audio production are the same as film audio production, there are some key differences that make game audio particularly challenging for sound designers. The best sound design in video games tends to go unnoticed, as it seamlessly adds to the overall immersion experience. That said, let’s look deeper into game audio to better understand what it entails.
Game Audio Production
Game audio producers work with the design and animation team to create rich audio that matches the quality and aesthetic of the overall production. In that sense, game audio production is all about teamwork. In fact, sound designers also collaborate with music composers, who are typically outsourced. It’s the sound design team’s responsibility to ensure the composer understands the overall vision for the game, and that the music blends well with the rest of the production.
The audio engineers behind games are also responsible for sourcing any sound effects needed for the game. These could be real or invented sounds. For examples, some shooting games utilize the sounds of real guns that are recorded and optimized by the engineer. Once all the sounds effects are sourced, it’s the audio engineer’s role to edit, mix, and master all the sounds for the finished game.
Game audio differs from other types of audio simply because there is no fixed sound or music. Games are interactive and dynamic, so game audio needs to respond to the player’s movements and actions. As such, sound designers must create layers of audio that match the player’s movements and engagements within the game. This makes game audio particularly challenging for sound designers.
The Importance of Video Game Audio
Much like the visual design that goes into video game production, quality audio production can enhance the immersion of a game. That said, audio is quickly overlooked by those playing the game. That’s because at its best, game audio should be seamless and practically unnoticeable. But music and sound effects are an extremely powerful tool when it comes to evoking emotion from players, and well-produced game audio usually ends up being one of the more memorable aspects of a game.
Work with Creative Media Design
As you can see, game audio is a vital part of the overall production and execution of games. And it’s essential to the overall immersion and player experience.
If you’re interested in learning more about game audio, or working with Creative Media Design, feel free to contact us today. You can also call us at 212.213.9420.
