102 replies to this topic

[CyclonerM]

I like the menu music enough, it is supposed to create an atmosphere, not to pump you for the battle. If i had to listen to something like Highway to the Dangerzone for 1 hour while configuring my 'Mechs, i might just get mad

For that, you can put some EDM/Metal/Dubstep/yourfavoritegenreofmusic on Youtube.. Or even the MW2 soundtrack.

Edited by CyclonerM, 01 September 2015 - 04:51 AM.

[Sadist Cain]

CyclonerM, on 01 September 2015 - 04:50 AM, said:

I like the menu music enough, it is supposed to create an atmosphere, not to pump you for the battle. If i had to listen to something like Highway to the Dangerzone for 1 hour while configuring my 'Mechs, i might just get mad

For that, you can put some EDM/Metal/Dubstep/yourfavoritegenreofmusic on Youtube.. Or even the MW2 soundtrack.

Certainly so, not suggesting the launch music should be in place of the menu music (though I would still prefer that)
The downside of the music is the atmosphere it creates is that my mech is waiting in the doctors office for a proctologists examination.

Here's an example of one of my favourite pieces of menu music
It doesn't have to be highway to the danger zone to get you pumped for battle

You can hear the inspiration from hans zimmer, the two steps from hell vibe. It need not be hard 80s rock to be uplifting and war like.
The soundtrack is a very important reflection of the game.

It's a bit pointless to have youtube open for the purposes of working in the mechlab and to alt tab & hit play whenever I win/lose a match, messes with the immersion even more so than the feeling my atlas is going to get a crane up its exhaust

I know not of a single soul who plays this game who has ever said the menu music is "good" can't even find sound bites for the victory & defeat clips, which says something in itself seeing as you can normally find any sound from a game on youtube due to its popularity as its played so often.

The attitude to bad music is either don't care or don't listen, which is hardly an avenue for improvement. However when you have good music that brings the whole level of the game up and in some cases the music even surpasses the game itself.

Edited by Sadist Cain, 01 September 2015 - 05:16 AM.

[Zordicron]

Somewhere along the lines, between the HUD and the sounds, PGI forgot battletech atmosphere has always been a sort of low tech trying to be high tech type of "retro" sci -fi. Thats a mouthful. What I mean is, while the idea is everything is "high tech" we are talking high tech in the sense of 1987, where green text on black(like the matrix) and static/non-perfect resolution CRT screens are the norm.

Our HUD is like an Ipad, polished plasma screens, cool, soft looking fonts and looks that look more like Star Trek the Next Generation then battletech.

Mechwarrior always had some "grit". Go watch MW3 music, intros, videos showing the menus and mechlab. MW2 also, but that can be somewhat limited by game tech of the era. Even MW4 tried to keep the feel, they might have used smoother fonts, but they kept some "broken" and "beat up" type of look to the menu in mechlab, or at worst some "rusty" looking themes in the background.

Maybe I am too old school, but I always felt PGI should have stiuck with tradition on these things.

[Vandul]

Alexander Garden, on 28 August 2015 - 09:58 PM, said:

Need to rain on the parade a little bit here, unfortunately.

The modification of game PAK files is not permitted in any form. This restriction extends to modifications that may not provide any tactical advantage, such as a sound pack.

We all agree that custom sound packs would be a sweet feature to implement, but we do not currently have plans to do so. As far as I'm aware the file system is not designed to support end-user modification right now, and with all the other tasks currently at hand we don't have the development resources available that would be required for implementing that kind of functionality.

Regarding dynamic/functional cockpit monitors, well....I've seen some things.....

/thread

[Oethe]

I personally do not think most of the MW2 sounds are an improvement of PGI. I do agree that somethings are done wrong. Like was mentioned about the fade and muted feeling of MWOs sounds. I also can not stand the lack of MW-style music and always have a playlist on of all MW music going while I wage war.

As I see it does not overwrite or modify the pak files, it in theory is not a mod nor a modification of the game files. In that sense I think PGI could allow it. There word however is final and if not changed, stands.

Edited by Oethe, 30 September 2015 - 12:25 PM.

[Saint Scarlett Johan]

Aresye Kerensky, on 31 August 2015 - 08:57 PM, said:

Exactly how does it "outperform" the current sounds? I mean, from an engineering perspective, everything about MWO's sounds is higher sample rate, higher bit rate, and overall better in terms of quality and dynamic range.

You could say you "enjoy" the MW2 sounds more, but in terms of "performance," MWO's sounds are WAYYYYY more advanced.

Higher bit, sample rates, quality, and dynamic range does not equate to better sounds.

Having the proper sound at the proper time makes a much larger impact than the quality of the sample rate, quality, ranges, etc.

I'm hearing impaired, there are days where my hearing is so bad I can hardly hear the weapons with my left ear. On good days I can JUUUUUSTTTT make out some of the more subtle sounds (or if I crank everything up).

I'm not sure if you're military or not, but the game doesn't have a warlike or military feel to it. Hell, sometimes I have the game muted for days on end without even realizing it.

The sound quality isn't the issue, it's that the sounds don't even fit.

The ballistic weapons don't sound like ballistic weapons, the missiles don't sound like missiles, the mech doesn't sound large, the cockpit is a sound booth, the lasers sound like Star Trek.

The IS PPCs and Pulse lasers are the only thing that even remotely feels "right."

Warfare is punchy sounding, weapons are punchy sounding, warnings are abrupt and attention getting, radios are unique sounding enough to pick up in the all the action, large machines rumble. I feel most of the sounds at my job more than hear them (partly due the ear pro), but the military specifically chooses sounds that are simple and purpose driven.

The sounds need an overhaul. Badly. The game shouldn't feel the same muted as it does at full volume, and it does.


EDIT: typo

Edited by Lord Scarlett Johan, 30 September 2015 - 01:13 PM.

[Saint Scarlett Johan]

Alright, now that I'm at the house...

Here's the first set of videos.





Both of those games, main menu themes make you feel like you're in the TOC. You can hear the radio chatter in the background and other ambient sounds that you'd hear in a military TOC as a layer underneath the the soft music that has a military middle eastern vibe.

Then there's the WoT garage theme that makes you feel as if you're in, well, a garage...



Then in a second layer loop, you have garage ambient sounds... where you hear garage sounds like pneumatic tools running, tools and parts being picked up and set down, and welding/cutting torches.





Then there are the sounds of weapons.

For starters, guns sound VERY different depending on your location to the muzzle of the weapon. So here's a video illustrating that.


Notice the reverberation and the echo the cannons have and how they sound different from the varying angles from which they are being fired from?

Here are some good videos with some rockets:

As you can tell, those AT-4s, RPGs, and TOWs sound radically different than the SRMs we have, and the video also highlights the location of the weapon sounds in relation to the camera. Best way to describe rockets and missiles is a "pop" followed by a long "whoosh." In MWO, we have a short "whoosh" and that's it.







None of the sounds in MWO feel right. An AC sounds the same from my cockpit as it does being fired at me as it does being fired beside, behind, below, or above, and they all sound the same. The ballistics all sound like pans being crashed together (IS) or like someone is pulling their fingers from a tube (Clan). The missiles sound like dudded rocket boosters from the model rockets I built and launched as a child. The mechlab sounds more like a museum than a hangar. The cockpit reminds me more of a ride on a jet airliner than sitting in a military vehicle.

It's just... sad...

[Falcore]

These sound great and it makes me kinda sad.

[Burktross]

Sadist Cain, on 01 September 2015 - 04:45 AM, said:

Not a question of enjoyment, the amount of information you can glean from MWO's sounds does not reflect the high quality with which they were made.
Recording a **** at studio quality doesn't stop it being a ****. (really, a word filter that picks up a word that rhymes with "burd" to describe excrement... Bible belt word filter?)

Things like the alert tones for important events such as heat, critical damage, targets popping up and whatnot have not been designed as an "alert" sound, they've been designed to be soft on the ears for gamers and fade into the background.

It shows with the pointless cockpit beeps that have no reference and bear no importance to the game, they're just there for bleeping sake to make it sound like there's things going on. Whereas if the sounds are designed properly you don't need to add extraneous bloops and bleeps because its obvious that it will controvert the level of importance of other sounds coming through.

Lots of bass with distorted fade outs, very little treble, no abrupt starts or finishes to the sound events they've all just been crafted to fade into the background gently and not be too strenuous for the player to listen to.

The result in combat is a hot mess of sounds that just mush together and don't offer as much as they should in regards to conveying their message to the player or reflecting the environment of sounds one is experiencing. Because there's been too much focus on being oozer friendlee most sounds have been neutered and muted down to the point of irrelevance.

Even Bettys tone is held around the same levels as the autocannons, srms + explosions whereupon she jsut fades into insignificance during any level of engagement.

It's not that they're incapable, they've just been over zealous with avoiding audio fatigue from too much going on but what they've done here is go way to far in the opposite direction to create a soundbank that results in audio sludge in any game and gets just as draining.

Lastly, who can honestly listen to the Gothic funeral march that plays on the menu and say that makes them feel in the mood to smash giant mechs together on the battlefield?

Does this honestly get you or anyone pumped for battle? It's just bloody depressing,

Isn't a matter of taste or opinion. From a technical standpoint & musical theory standpoint the sound effects are too muted and mushed to be of much use in a game outside of background noise and the game music does not insight a feeling of enthusiasm or anticipation for the game.

Except for the defeat music, they've got that bang on.

And this of course...

we need music like the trailer to play ingame...
So glorious....

[Robot Kenshiro]

I want closed beta graphics.....

[Whatzituyah]

Robot Kenshiro, on 20 October 2015 - 04:25 PM, said:

I want closed beta graphics.....

I wonder what closed beta clan graphics and sounds be like.

[Red Shrike]

Kh0rn, on 28 August 2015 - 11:19 AM, said:

This is the MWO MW2 sound mod you can download different packages whether all sound effects or just the betty.

I want one with MW4:Mercs sounds! Pls?

[Vellron2005]

I wish we could choose what stuff sounds like, and apply sound packs..

Why does the "Betty" always have to be a female sound? Why not the sound of Captain Adams? Or perhaps a gentle, toned, male sound that has "Clan superiority" associated with it? (Like the voice of Star Commander NIkolai from the Battletech Cartoon)

This game need soooo much fluff and immersion its not even funny anymore...

[lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol]

Eldagore, on 01 September 2015 - 06:59 AM, said:

Maybe I am too old school, but I always felt PGI should have stiuck with tradition on these things.

There are people who enjoy and are passionate about Battletech and Mechwarrior games, Lore, and nostalgia.

then...

There are people who fill a role to get paid.

Not saying PGI as a whole represents one or the other... but you all can tell who are in the first category, and who are in the latter.

Also... speaking of grit... it's not like PGI didn't have an inkling of what got people drooling in the first place



Had the feel of war machines going balls out unsure of how the battle was going to go... the bitching betty sounded perfect for an IS mech in a broken up "Speak and Spell" old school sort of way, music had a tense military action sound to it, and the sound effects of missle lock warning of incomming missiles, roar of outgoing missiles, critical sounds...

Dammit now I'm depressed.

It's like they took Mad Max and tried to make it Star Trek.

[Karamarka]

All i can say is the sounds are much more visceral in the older pack

[Dakkss]

The problem with MWO is that there are so many audio cues that are a. too silent, b. non-existent, or c. wrong.

Getting locked and having missiles approach should not elicit Betty to talk. A loud siren should blare.
Mechs are completely silent upon falling over after destruction
Having a component ripped off is so silent you don't even know it's happened until you check out your paperdoll
All Betty voices and sounds are way too softly spoken and human. MW2, 3 and 4's Betty's were either stern, staticy/robotic, and/or single word phrases put together to make up a full sentence (ala MW2. "GROUP fire ENGAGED," "Temperature is THREE. ZERO. FOUR. KELVIN"

MechWarrior has always been a war machine simulator until MWO.

Edited by Dak Darklighter, 22 October 2015 - 05:29 AM.

[Red Shrike]

Dak Darklighter, on 22 October 2015 - 12:57 AM, said:

The problem with MWO is that there are so many audio cues that are a) too silent, non-existent, or c) wrong.

Getting locked and having missiles approach should not illicit Betty to talk. A loud siren should blare.
Mechs are completely silent upon falling over after destruction
Having a component ripped off is so silent you don't even know it's happened until you check out your paperdoll
All Betty voices and sounds are way too softly spoken and human. MW2, 3 and 4's Betty's were either stern, staticy/robotic, and/or single word phrases put together to make up a full sentence (ala MW2. "GROUP fire ENGAGED," "Temperature is THREE. ZERO. FOUR. KELVIN"

MechWarrior has always been a war machine simulator until MWO.

I love the Betty from MW4. Also because she says things that the MWO Betty doesn't. (which she should)

[Joshua McEvedy]

Eldagore, on 29 August 2015 - 07:56 AM, said:

Alex, please pass on to the crew there how important sound, and yes music too, are to immersion and the polish of the game. The whole MWO game is based on battletech and draws it's playerbase, and especially it's funding(for sure initialy) from the older players. What is Mechwarrior if not a giant nostalgia trip? Mechpacks sell because of the games history. Otherwise it just isn't battletech. Sound and music etc is all part of that.

I agree 100% with what has been said here. I just found the Youtube videos showing the old MW2 music and sounds, including Betty, and was just awed by them. I actually had adrenaline pumping just watching those battles with the old music and sounds..they brought back tremendous memories from the 1990s. The sound files for the current game are somewhat bland and I don't like the metalesque style of the music which ends as soon as your mech is dropped into the spawn point.

Like others on this thread and elsewhere, I would pay good money for these sound files to be sold for MCs and integrated into the game as a player option. I do hope that PGI considers the value of them and takes into consideration the interest of the community as a whole to get access to them under the ToS.

Just MHO...

Edited by Joshua McEvedy, 14 January 2016 - 08:23 AM.

[Oderint dum Metuant]

Eh the ToS talks about modifying game files not adding to them.

It's not like they run a file check on every launch so unless you go advertising it on twitch or videos... They aren't going to know.

[ColdPsyker1]

Vellron2005, on 21 October 2015 - 03:51 AM, said:

Why does the "Betty" always have to be a female sound? Why not the sound of Captain Adams? Or perhaps a gentle, toned, male sound that has "Clan superiority" associated with it? (Like the voice of Star Commander NIkolai from the Battletech Cartoon)

This game need soooo much fluff and immersion its not even funny anymore...

THERE ARE INCOMING MISSILES! TAKE COVER YOU INCOMPETENT LITTLE FREEBIRTH!