Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
As I noted previously, games have a history of terrible dialogue. To create a
more realistic experience, many games now use writers to create dialogue. The
goal is natural language and delivery.
Cinematics
For audio work on cinematics and some cutscenes, the approach is more linear.
These elements are designed and produced much as they would be for film or
television. The experience for the gamer is to see a finished, polished, short
movie that is scripted from start to end. All dialogue, music, and other sounds
are planned to unfold in a controlled way.
sound-Based Computer Games
One area that has also been growing, in terms of audio production for games, is
sound-based games. These are made for the visually impaired; however, anyone
can play and enjoy them.
When approaching the design for a game of this type, the designer should be
aware that all information communicated to the player happens aurally with an
auditory interface. The majority of games we have looked at in this topic have dealt
with the creation of visual graphical interfaces. An auditory interface uses recorded
dialogue to provide information to the player about how to play the game.
It can become boring to continually listen to a recorded voice saying “turn
right, turn left, jump, pick up,” and so on. These types of games still need that
all-important gameplay to function well; so once the initial instructions are pro-
vided to the player, different audio cues along with music and recorded dialogue
can be used to clue the player when to turn, jump, pick up, and so on.
To further enhance the gameplay, these audio cues can change during game-
play: for example, if a puzzle is getting more difficult, then those cues can play
more quickly or increase in pitch to up the excitement.
These games tend to have large, simple, brightly colored graphics for players
who have some visual capabilities. The gameplay is really quite fun. You can find
gameplay styles, including word, strategy, puzzle, card, educational, racing, role-
playing games, adventure, trivia, and arcade.
