10 replies to this topic

[Squid von Torgar]

A couple of patches ago, Environmental sounds got implemented into the game. Before playing I was very excited as this was a feature I had looked forward to. However the implementation of them could be better IMHO.

What environmental sounds I hear you say? Well thats a fair point because they are almost impossible to hear, but are there.

Actually a good example of environmental sounds done well would be River City. Here we can clearly hear the swoosh of Aerospaces fighters and distant explosions. This creates a battlescape feeling which complements the war torn look of the map.

The Question is though, why can you only hear these noises by the upper base?

Similarly Forest Colony has the sound of waves lapping against a lakeside. Ok cool, but what about the 500 ft waterfall near the archway?

Why not this?


Frozen city does have a wind effect, but its so quiet you cant hear it. One only has to look at the weather on this place to think it would be louder.

Something akin to this?



Terra Therma is a Volcano map (as is Caustic) why not have volcano sound effects, lava bubbling and steam rising (for caustic)

For Terra Therma what about something like this?



And caustic caldera what about this?



What about this for Tormaline Desert?



(that strange howling you hear is the sound of crystals vibrating in the wind)

The point is here that these sort of effects contribute massively to the ambiance of a map. They help create a sense of being there and immersion.

Each map should have a unique soundscape, something to reinforce the nature of the map. Of course sounds of combat should be louder but in the background the noise and ambiance should be there.

The best thing about it is its incredibly easy to implement and their are gazillions of royalty free samples on the interweb. Id do it myself in around 30 mins.

Whats the chances PGI?

Edited by Squid von Torgar, 07 October 2013 - 03:30 AM.

[Squid von Torgar]

**cough**

[Rhaythe]

I'm actually hoping for the opposite for the moon base map that's coming. I would absolutely *love* it if the game doesn't generate sounds in the vacuum. Some reduced-volumn sounds for impacts against your own mech are fine, but I hope the devs watched "Gravity" over the weekend and saw how intense silence can be.

[Squid von Torgar]

Absolutely, the "odd thing" about the moon map would be a total absence of sound. You could hear you own weapons fire but not those of the enemy. (as the sound transmits through your mech but not the vacuum)

But the thing is that Caustic is might as well be in a vacuum too. These are meant to be strange alien worlds. Sound effects can massively contribute to the feeling of being on a weird planet.

[Rhaythe]

Agreed. They did add some ambiance, but some bona-fide sound effects would be nice. There were rumors going around about a lush jungle map (on the Crysis engine?! NO WAI!!!one!), so that would be a prime opportunity to make it seem alien.

[mekabuser]

not only that, but since we have a limited number of maps, it would be great if there were effects or "events" that could happen at certain points in time during a match,
Say, 8 minutes into a terra therma match, there is a 33% chance of a volcanic eruption.
Something dynamic.

Also my first thought about "enviromental " sound effects would be that your mech makes sound when its backing up into a wall of stone, or another mech.
Its beyond silly at this point that there is no sound effect for running into a solid object.

I can honestly understand why they put the hammer down on mwll. . THey had and have so many things that this game still does not.
Great soundtrack, opening cinematic.... check.. mwo .. zero.
enviromental sounds check.. mwo.. almost zero.
dynamic maps, check , including day/night. mwo.. limited at best.

say what you will about the mwll nuke, it was a dynamic that added great depth to the gameplay

[Squid von Torgar]

Quote

Also my first thought about "enviromental " sound effects would be that your mech makes sound when its backing up into a wall of stone, or another mech.

Thats actually a great point. A part of new player disorientation is often due to them crashing into stuff and not working out why they cant move. Apart from the important part of actually feeling you are in a mech it would help indicate you are backing onto a building for example. Not to mention all those times there is a huge traffic jam near the center of Terra Therma.

I guess its all about polish. Whilst I appreciate there are huge things that are being worked on (UI2 and CW) adding stuff like this shouldnt detract from that, but would add that much needed slickness that MWO sometimes lacks. Putting in soundomes isnt really that time consuming, but the impact would be epic.

[Phoenix Branson]

I support this 100%. The developers should make the maps feel alive. Make it happen PGI.

[Rhaythe]

mekabuser, on 07 October 2013 - 07:08 AM, said:

say what you will about the mwll nuke, it was a dynamic that added great depth to the gameplay

Not to mention a whole bunch of "Oh, shieeeeeeet!!" moments. And there's really something satisfying about that bright flash.

[Squid von Torgar]

Id be happy with Stackpolling provided it was rare. Say a 1% chance

[Oppresor]

I believe that in many ways the sound effects and in some cases atmospheric music are absolutely critical to game immersion. In MWO they could and should give realism to the surroundings; the waterfall is a really good example. Mood music, if appropriate can make or break a game. A great example in terms of getting it right can be found in Need for Speed Underground.