Audio Guild Master - Intros and Exercises

Hello everyone,

I am glad to hear there are people interested in sound design but I would like to quickly correct a common misconception. The reason there are two guild masters in audio is because sound design is not just music. It is also not just sound effects or dialogue. Sound design is a combination of all three. A sound designer is the person responsible for the creative control of the audio. That means they know what the game should sound like and should be able to balance the music, sound effects and dialogue.

All right, with that out of the way let's get started. Every sound heard in a game is put in by the audio team. Whether it's the grunt from a person getting hit, the beeping of a life bar when it gets low, the footsteps of a person going from pavement to grass and even the sound of the birds in the background.

A lot of things will determine how you will design the audio of a game. When you play a game or watch a film from the horror genre you will notice it sounds drastically different from that of the western or the adventure genre. A puzzle game will sound different from a simulation game. So, when trying to decide what the sound of a game should be you should first consider the genre and type of game being created. Characters, music, dialogue and even the system the game is destined for will also determine which way you'll want to go.

I'm going to start off with some basic exercises you can do to introduce yourself into sound design.

1. When your in your room, outside, in the union, in a restaurant or where ever you'd like, get out a piece of paper and pencil. Then for about a minute close your eyes and just listen to every sound around you. Once the minute is over write down every sound you heard. Then go to another spot and do the same thing. Compare what you heard in different places. These are what make up the ambiance of different places.

2. Usually a sound is made up of a combination of several sounds. Think of the sound of a soda can opening. What did you hear? Did you notice the sound of the tab when you raised it? How about when it hit the top of the can? Did you hear the crack of the seal? There are more but you get the idea of what to do. Think about the combination of sounds when you open your car door, make your bed or any other sound you like.

3. Find a scene out of your favorite movie or video game and watch it. As you do so listen to everything, the dialogue, sound effects and music. How loud was everything comparatively? What sounds did you hear? How did the music add to the scene? Were there any swells to the music at any point? What sound effects were exaggerated or brought out? What did the background noise sound like?

In order for me to start different projects and exercises I need to know what software and equipment all of you have access to if any at all. Also, if anyone has any suggestions or ideas of what they'd like me to cover or any questions at all feel free to ask.

I have access to Audacity and Reaper (Well, everybody does). Also I can use Adobe Audition at the audio labs at the rtvf building.

I was finally able to check out the programs. I use ProTools which is pretty much industry standard for sound design but I don't expect others to have it because it's a pretty expensive program. You can use it in the RTVF labs but only if you're in Adv. Audio or in Saul's Post Sound class.

I prefer Reaper over Audacity and I think it would probably be better anyway considering that sometimes you have to layer a lot for a sound effect. I don't care much for Adobe Audition but it's probably because I'm used to ProTools.

Wow, Alena we have so much in common. Everything you listed is everything I do all the time!