Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
intensity. Its original title was 'Man Getting Eaten by Alligator, and
it originally came from the 1951 movie
Distant Drums
. However, the
name 'Wilhelm' came from a character in a later i lm from 1953 called
Charge At Feather River
, which used the same sound for a scene where
he gets struck by an arrow in the leg. You can thank Ben Burtt, the
sound designer of the
Star Wars
i lms, for the revived popularity of the
Wilhelm Scream. The Wilhelm Scream is used in every
Star Wars
movie—
sometimes more than once!
In all cases, spend time polishing your sounds and making them as
creative and original as possible. Elegant design takes time and is well
worth the ef ort. You will also want to spend time i tting your sounds into
the smallest footprint possible. Tight editing and i le size conservation is
always at the top of the list for game sound—i le size matters!
Meet the Team
Over the years, the team of sound designers dedicated to game projects
has grown. The following is a short list of the dif erent jobs performed
by sound designers on a range of games, from mobile games to AAA
titles. Keep in mind that in smaller companies, many of these jobs are
done by the same person. For the purposes of this level, we are breaking
them out into the most general categories that you are likely to i nd out
in the i eld.
Audio Director
The audio director oversees teams of audio designers, and usually directs
those teams as they work on multiple titles simultaneously. The audio
director will deal with everything from resources and schedules, to
hiring talent. Most importantly, the audio director works with the game
designer and producers to develop a coherent overall vision and sonic
concept for the game, then translates that vision to the audio leads and
designers who will bring it to life inside the game.
Audio Lead
The audio lead coordinates all the audio for a single game title. In
smaller companies, where there is not as much simultaneous game
development, the audio director and audio lead may in fact be the same
person. It is not uncommon for an audio lead to create game assets, as
well as meet with the game designers and producers on a regular basis
during the production cycle.
