What are the features and objectives of sound games
Modern video games in terms of complexity and soundness of soundtrack are approaching motion pictures. We'll talk about the specifics of the game sound and how it is created.
Photo of George Becker / PD
Digital sound as such appeared rather late. Therefore, the first full-fledged computer game - Spacewar! 1962 release - was mute. The gameplay was accompanied only by noise from a PDP-1 comparable in size to the mini-computer refrigerator.
')
The first commercial game with sound was Computer Space - an arcade version of Spacewar !, which appeared in 1971. Minicomputers of that time were expensive, and the project budget was scanty - so the hardware for the arcade was created from scratch.
One of the creators of the game, Ted Dabney (Ted Dabney), having experience working on audio equipment at Ampex, was able to build into the device a simple audio generator by modern standards. Thanks to him, shots, explosions and noise of rocket engines are heard in the game.
The role of the sound chip in it was performed by the chip for synchronizing the video signal . Such chips usually operate at very high frequencies (approximately 4.4 MHz in PAL format systems and 3.6 MHz in NTSC format systems). If this frequency is reduced, the generated signal can be heard. This is what the creators of the game did.
With the growing popularity of home consoles, the race for the best sound moved to the living room. Atari 2600 77 year of release could boast a two-channel audio chip. In 1983, an external module for voice synthesis became available to users of Intellivision consoles. Then this functionality was built into the main system, to which Atari responded by releasing a model 5200 with a 4-channel POKEY chip.
A little later microcomputers entered the race. While Commodore PET , Apple II, and early IBM PCs were shipped with simple piezo emitters, the Commodore 64 contained a three-part digital synthesizer chip. The SID chip, which made such functionality possible, was loved by the public and was released in the company's products until 1989. The timbre of each of his three voices could be changed on the fly, creating the illusion of a more complex polyphony. Thanks to this breakthrough, the first gaming composers appeared.
In 1987, the home audio device market really exploded. IBM released the Music Feature Card , with a sound chip from the flagship synthesizer Yamaha DX-21 . This card cost almost $ 500 (more than a thousand modern dollars) and was aimed at professional musicians. A popular budget option was the Covox Speech Thing - an 8-bit DAC that sold for $ 80. And in the middle price segment Creative competed with AdLib products.
And though not all games were compatible with all sound cards, the excitement around gaming audio was useful to the industry - an increasing number of games paid attention to sound.
In the 90s, Creative realized that the future was digital sound recording and captured the lion’s share of the industry, putting emphasis on this. Sound Blaster 16 and later models brought PCM-audio CD-quality to the world of home PCs.
With the advent of soundtracks “like in the movies,” music for synthesizer chips became a niche hobby, and audio began to be used to create realistic sound environments. We speak about such audio when we are discussing the gaming sound now. What does it include?
The main difference between games and, say, cinema is in interactivity. The sound environment should inform the actions of the player, which, in turn, also affect it. Therefore, in games there are hypertrophied sounds that help the player to develop a strategy.
In horror and shooters clearly heard the steps of opponents, which allows to understand where they are. In Battlefield, the sound can be used to determine if a player has missiles at a player. In Legend Of Zelda, for NES, walls that can be pierced make a distinctive sound when struck with a sword. In the more modern games of the series, there is a whole range of dramatic sounds. Some do exist only for informative purposes. For example, coins in the games of Mario are ringing when you pick them up.
The developers of Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice innovatively approached the creation of information sounds. A character controlled by players hears voices in their heads . It is they who help the heroine in the battle, warning from which side the enemy is and when to attack. Such a voiceover immerses the player in the heroine’s schizophrenia as deeply as possible while providing important game information.
Photo by kanonn / CC BY-ND
For many players, sound is a critical source of game information, especially in team games. But to ensure immersion in the world of the game, these sounds must be balanced with decorative sounds.
Video game soundtracks have long been put on a par with movie music in terms of quality and emotional impact on the listener. In combination with interactive elements, they create an amazing effect of immersion in the artificial world of the game.
In horror, oppressive, gnashing, rustling melodies with sharp explosions of strings keep the player in suspense and make him listen to every slightest creak. The unexpected appearance of the enemy, accompanied by a sudden loud sound, scares noticeably stronger than without voice acting.
Another way to immerse a player in an imaginary world is to use surround sound. This technique is especially important for the increasingly popular VR and AR games. In them, the player physically takes the place of the character, and unrealistic audio can destroy this illusion. To create surround sound, developers use binaural and multichannel recordings, as well as special libraries that allow them to dynamically process game sound sources.
Binaural audio is used in the aforementioned game Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, as well as in the new Metro: Exodus. With such a recording, microphones are installed in the ears of the mannequin, and the sound for the right and left ears is read separately . The bulk of the result is instantly felt, without the need to use multi-channel equipment.
Multichannel audio is more common in games, but it requires special equipment that many do not dare to buy. Among the famous games that use 7-channel audio are both parts of the legendary Amnesia horror, the team game Rocket League and the new DOOM.
Even people who are far from video games will recognize the jingle passing level in Super Mario, the ringing of the little rings in Sonic The Hedgehog and the hit of the ball in Pong! .. Some soundtracks and game composers have achieved recognition outside the game world. Akira Yamaoka, author of music for the Silent Hill series of games, performs her works in concert halls and philharmonic halls.
At the same time, more “traditional” composers entered the game world, emphasizing the important role of video games in modern culture. For example, German composer Hans Zimmer wrote a soundtrack for one of the parts of Call Of Duty.
What awaits us in the future? The need for developers specializing in gaming audio is still high . Therefore, with the growing popularity of this sphere and the development of new technologies, there will undoubtedly be new ways to create an unforgettable gaming atmosphere.
Additional reading in our "World Hi-Fi":
Old school: what were the games on - we are discussing unusual carriers
How sounds and music make video games "live"
What is it: the Russian market of streaming services
Eight audio technologies that will fall into the hall of fame TECnology in 2019
How to turn a computer into a radio, and other ways to extract music from the calculus. systems
Photo of George Becker / PD
A bit of history
Digital sound as such appeared rather late. Therefore, the first full-fledged computer game - Spacewar! 1962 release - was mute. The gameplay was accompanied only by noise from a PDP-1 comparable in size to the mini-computer refrigerator.
')
The first commercial game with sound was Computer Space - an arcade version of Spacewar !, which appeared in 1971. Minicomputers of that time were expensive, and the project budget was scanty - so the hardware for the arcade was created from scratch.
One of the creators of the game, Ted Dabney (Ted Dabney), having experience working on audio equipment at Ampex, was able to build into the device a simple audio generator by modern standards. Thanks to him, shots, explosions and noise of rocket engines are heard in the game.
A year later, the creators of Computer Space, already under the name Atari released the legendary slot machine Pong! . He made the sound become an integral part of the games.
The role of the sound chip in it was performed by the chip for synchronizing the video signal . Such chips usually operate at very high frequencies (approximately 4.4 MHz in PAL format systems and 3.6 MHz in NTSC format systems). If this frequency is reduced, the generated signal can be heard. This is what the creators of the game did.
With the growing popularity of home consoles, the race for the best sound moved to the living room. Atari 2600 77 year of release could boast a two-channel audio chip. In 1983, an external module for voice synthesis became available to users of Intellivision consoles. Then this functionality was built into the main system, to which Atari responded by releasing a model 5200 with a 4-channel POKEY chip.
A little later microcomputers entered the race. While Commodore PET , Apple II, and early IBM PCs were shipped with simple piezo emitters, the Commodore 64 contained a three-part digital synthesizer chip. The SID chip, which made such functionality possible, was loved by the public and was released in the company's products until 1989. The timbre of each of his three voices could be changed on the fly, creating the illusion of a more complex polyphony. Thanks to this breakthrough, the first gaming composers appeared.
In 1987, the home audio device market really exploded. IBM released the Music Feature Card , with a sound chip from the flagship synthesizer Yamaha DX-21 . This card cost almost $ 500 (more than a thousand modern dollars) and was aimed at professional musicians. A popular budget option was the Covox Speech Thing - an 8-bit DAC that sold for $ 80. And in the middle price segment Creative competed with AdLib products.
And though not all games were compatible with all sound cards, the excitement around gaming audio was useful to the industry - an increasing number of games paid attention to sound.
In the 90s, Creative realized that the future was digital sound recording and captured the lion’s share of the industry, putting emphasis on this. Sound Blaster 16 and later models brought PCM-audio CD-quality to the world of home PCs.
With the advent of soundtracks “like in the movies,” music for synthesizer chips became a niche hobby, and audio began to be used to create realistic sound environments. We speak about such audio when we are discussing the gaming sound now. What does it include?
Sound as a source of information
The main difference between games and, say, cinema is in interactivity. The sound environment should inform the actions of the player, which, in turn, also affect it. Therefore, in games there are hypertrophied sounds that help the player to develop a strategy.
In horror and shooters clearly heard the steps of opponents, which allows to understand where they are. In Battlefield, the sound can be used to determine if a player has missiles at a player. In Legend Of Zelda, for NES, walls that can be pierced make a distinctive sound when struck with a sword. In the more modern games of the series, there is a whole range of dramatic sounds. Some do exist only for informative purposes. For example, coins in the games of Mario are ringing when you pick them up.
The developers of Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice innovatively approached the creation of information sounds. A character controlled by players hears voices in their heads . It is they who help the heroine in the battle, warning from which side the enemy is and when to attack. Such a voiceover immerses the player in the heroine’s schizophrenia as deeply as possible while providing important game information.
Photo by kanonn / CC BY-ND
For many players, sound is a critical source of game information, especially in team games. But to ensure immersion in the world of the game, these sounds must be balanced with decorative sounds.
Music and atmosphere
Video game soundtracks have long been put on a par with movie music in terms of quality and emotional impact on the listener. In combination with interactive elements, they create an amazing effect of immersion in the artificial world of the game.
In horror, oppressive, gnashing, rustling melodies with sharp explosions of strings keep the player in suspense and make him listen to every slightest creak. The unexpected appearance of the enemy, accompanied by a sudden loud sound, scares noticeably stronger than without voice acting.
In No Man's Sky, a procedurally generated soundtrack from the British post-rock band 65daysofstatic shows the infinity of the universe. Each planet, each galaxy has its own melody, assembled from different pieces by a special algorithm, and unlike the others.
Surround sound
Another way to immerse a player in an imaginary world is to use surround sound. This technique is especially important for the increasingly popular VR and AR games. In them, the player physically takes the place of the character, and unrealistic audio can destroy this illusion. To create surround sound, developers use binaural and multichannel recordings, as well as special libraries that allow them to dynamically process game sound sources.
Binaural audio is used in the aforementioned game Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, as well as in the new Metro: Exodus. With such a recording, microphones are installed in the ears of the mannequin, and the sound for the right and left ears is read separately . The bulk of the result is instantly felt, without the need to use multi-channel equipment.
Multichannel audio is more common in games, but it requires special equipment that many do not dare to buy. Among the famous games that use 7-channel audio are both parts of the legendary Amnesia horror, the team game Rocket League and the new DOOM.
Gaming sound outside gaming culture
Even people who are far from video games will recognize the jingle passing level in Super Mario, the ringing of the little rings in Sonic The Hedgehog and the hit of the ball in Pong! .. Some soundtracks and game composers have achieved recognition outside the game world. Akira Yamaoka, author of music for the Silent Hill series of games, performs her works in concert halls and philharmonic halls.
At the same time, more “traditional” composers entered the game world, emphasizing the important role of video games in modern culture. For example, German composer Hans Zimmer wrote a soundtrack for one of the parts of Call Of Duty.
What awaits us in the future? The need for developers specializing in gaming audio is still high . Therefore, with the growing popularity of this sphere and the development of new technologies, there will undoubtedly be new ways to create an unforgettable gaming atmosphere.
Additional reading in our "World Hi-Fi":
Old school: what were the games on - we are discussing unusual carriers How sounds and music make video games "live" What is it: the Russian market of streaming services Eight audio technologies that will fall into the hall of fame TECnology in 2019 How to turn a computer into a radio, and other ways to extract music from the calculus. systemsSource: https://habr.com/ru/post/442366/
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