Sonic Design: Final Project

13.11.2024 - 05.01.2025 / Week 11 - Week 14

Sylvia Lau / 0356130

Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media

Sonic Design: Final Project

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INSTRUCTION

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Final Project: Game Audio

For our last project, we were given a few examples of games, then from the chosen one, we needed to create the sound and bring the game to life. We would have to plan and organize our studio recording session for Foley and voice recording. 

By starting the project, our lecturer suggested us to create an audio storyboard to organize the sound effects, as it helps to visually map out how sound interacts with the visuals. My selected game is Battle Block Theater. 

After completing the storyboard, I gained a clearer understanding of the sound effects needed for the entire project. The next step is to find suitable objects or materials to create or acquire these sounds.

In addition, I also look for inspiration on YouTube by watching tutorials on sound effect creation. For example, Josh Harmon’s videos showed me that many everyday items can be used to produce unique sound effects. Inspired by this, I plan to use household items such as kitchen tools, toys, or natural materials, and even my own voice, to create the required effects.

Recording Progress:

Since I couldn’t access the school’s recording studio during that time, I had to record at home instead. To improve sound quality and reduce ambient noise, I set up a simple recording space at home. I stacked three layers of thick fabric over a chair and crawled inside to record. Below were the tools that I had prepared for recording.

Figure 1.2 Tools #1

By tapping the rim of a cup, I was able to create some sound effects. Taller cups produced a deeper tone, while smaller cups created crisper sounds. This sound effect will be used for the character's jumping action.

Figure 1.3 Tools #2

In the final part, where a metal door is shown closing, I decided to create the sound effect by rubbing a metal container with a chain to mimic the desired noise.

Figure 1.4 Tools #3

For the sound effect of collecting diamonds, I used the sound of coins. I experimented with different methods to create various coin-related sounds, such as shaking a coin pouch, dropping coins, placing them down, and rubbing them together. This gave me more options to work with when editing the final sound effects.

Figure 1.5 Tools #4

Next, for the character’s running sound, since the character appears to be running on wooden planks in the game, I found a sturdy box and tapped it with my fingers. For the sound of landing from a high jump, I used two fingers to hit the box more forcefully.

Figure 1.6 Tools #5

For the sound effects of the character reaching the saving point and the exit, I wanted a "sparkly" sound. However, since I didn’t have any relevant instruments, I used a metal ring and spun it on the tiled floor, which produced a sound close to what I had in mind. To differentiate the exit sound, I used my bracelet, as its tone is sharper and more distinct.

Figure 1.7 Tools #6

For the explosion sound, I used a larger Tupperware container and slapped it firmly, as it could produce a resonant sound.

Figure 1.8 Tools #7

In the final scene, there are sound effects like a curtain dropping, paper flipping, stamping, wooden cracking, and placing a badge. I used the tools mentioned above to create these sounds.

Figure 1.9 Recorded Audio Tracks

Some sound effects were created using my own voice, such as the sound of a flying disc, the character fighting, boost jumping action, and the wind blowing as the ambiance.

Editing Progress:

Teleportation:

Figure 2.1 Generate Tone

Figure 2.2 Phaser

Figure 2.3 Selected Part

Figure 2.4 Teleportation Audio Track

Figure 2.5 Pitch Shifter

Figure 2.6 Teleportation Sound

In a previous tutorial class, the lecturer introduced a tool for generating tones. Since the game I chose requires sound effects with a cute style, and I’m not sure which objects would perfectly produce these sounds, I decided to experiment with the tool to create sound effect.

This was my first attempt, where I followed a video tutorial to generate a tone. As I’m still unfamiliar with the tone generation tools, I wasn’t able to precisely achieve the desired tone. Initially, I intended this sound to be used as the jumping effect for the character, but upon completion, I found the tone slightly different from what I expected. After some adjustments and consideration, I decided to save it as a sound effect for the teleportation portal instead.

In the multitrack session, I adjusted the pitch shifter to make the tone higher because I wanted the sound to better match the playful feel of the scene, aligning with the overall style of the game.

Running and Landing:

Figure 3.1 Selected Audio Part

Figure 3.2 Echo

Figure 3.3 Running and Landing Sound

I applied a noise reduction process to the previously recorded audio files. However, after the noise reduction, there was still some echo-like effect. To address this, I tried adjusting the settings to minimize the echo. 

In the same audio file, I had recorded both the running and landing sounds. I selected specific portions of the track and synchronized the sound effects with the corresponding timestamps in the video.

Collect Diamond:

Figure 4.1 Selected Audio Part

Figure 4.2 Pitch Shifter

Figure 4.3 Echo

Figure 4.4 EQ

Figure 4.5 Collecting Diamond Sound 

For the sound effect of collecting diamonds, I selected a segment from my recording and enhanced it using EQ, echo, and pitch shifter. 

Passing Saving Point:

Figure 5.1 Selected Audio Part

Figure 5.2 Pitch Shifter

Figure 5.3 EQ

Figure 5.4 Echo

Figure 5.5 Saving Point Sound

For the character reaching the saving point, I selected only the tail end of the audio because the initial sound was too sharp. Then, I added effects like EQ, pitch shifter, and echo to refine the sound and make it smoother and more fitting for the scene.

Explosion:

Figure 6.1 Selected Audio Part

Figure 6.2 EQ

Figure 6.3 Pitch Shifter

Figure 6.4 Echo

Figure 6.5 Stretch

Figure 6.6 Selected Audio Part

Figure 6.7 EQ

Figure 6.8 Pitch Shifter

Figure 6.9 Explosion Sound

For the explosion sound effect, I added several effects, such as EQ, pitch shifter, echo, and stretch. The stretch tool helped enhance the sense of impact and made the explosion feel more dramatic.

In addition, I recorded a "puff" sound using my own voice because I felt that an explosion sound shouldn’t just be a simple "boom." Adding a tail-end sound makes it feel more realistic and dynamic.

Sound Effects from two characters fighting:

Figure 7.1 Selected Audio Part (Stomping)

Figure 7.2 Pitch Shifter (Stomping)

Figure 7.3 Selected Audio Part (Punch)

Figure 7.4 Pitch Shifter (Punch)

Figure 7.5 Selected Audio Part (Sound for Characters)

Figure 7.6 Pitch Shifter (Sound for Characters)

Figure 7.7 Selected Audio Part (Slapping)

Figure 7.8 Pitch Shifter (Slapping)

Figure 7.9 Character Fighting Sound

For the character fighting scene, I used sounds I accidentally made while recording, like a cough, as the base for the sound effects. For example, the punch sound was created by modifying the cough with a pitch shifter. Additionally, I applied a reverse effect to create variations.

One audio file, originally intended for the character being hit, became too chaotic after adding effects. Instead, I repurposed it for moments when the character is pushed back or falls down, as it fit better in those contexts.

Jumping and Boost Jumping:

Figure 8.1 Selected Audio Part (Normal Jumping)

Figure 8.2 Pitch Shifter (Normal Jumping)

Figure 8.3 Selected Audio Part (Boost Jumping)

Figure 8.4 Pitch Shifter (Boost Jumping)

Figure 8.5 Selected Audio Part (Bell Ringing)

Figure 8.6 Pitch Shifter (Bell Chimes)

Figure 8.7 Echo (Bell Chimes)

Figure 8.8 Jumping and Boost Jumping Sound

For the jumping sound effect, I used the sound created from a glass cup, which closely matched my expectations. The only adjustment needed was increasing the pitch slightly using a pitch shifter.

However, for the boost jumping effect, I found it challenging to imagine the sound and figure out how to create it. I ended up using my own voice to produce a "Bruingg" sound. After speeding it up with time stretching and adjusting the pitch using a pitch shifter, I felt it still lacked distinctiveness. To enhance it, I added sparkly sound effects, like bell chimes, to make it more recognizable and fitting for the action.

Character throws a flying bomb:

Figure 9.1 Selected Audio Part (Throw)

Figure 9.2 Pitch Shifter (Throw)

Figure 9.3 Selected Audio Part (Beep)

Figure 9.4 Pitch Shifter (Beep)

Figure 9.5 Selected Audio Part (Explode)

Figure 9.6 EQ (Explode)

Figure 9.7 Throwing Flying Bomb

There’s a scene where the character throws a frisbee-like explosive. For the moment it’s thrown, I added a "Phiew" sound, which I recorded myself because it was quicker and I knew exactly the tone I wanted.

When the frisbee lands, the screen shows it flashing red lights. This gave me the idea to add a "Beep Beep Beep" sound effect. Coincidentally, I had an oximeter at home that produced a beeping sound when turned on. After recording this sound, I used a pitch shifter to raise the pitch, as the original tone was too deep and didn’t resemble the urgent warning beeps often heard in movies right before an explosion.

When the explosion happened, I used a pre-recorded “Puff” sound file, but I adjusted the sound level through EQ to make it louder.

Sound effects after the game:

Figure 10.1 Sounds for the closing part

Figure 10.2 Pitch Shifter (Exit)

Figure 10.3 Pitch Shifter (Gate)

Figure 10.4 Sound for the closing part

Figure 10.5 Pitch Shifter (Ding)

Figure 10.6 Wooden Crackling Sound for "Scene Clear"

Figure 10.7 Pitch Shifter (Bell ringing for "Scene Clear")

After the game ends, there’s a short animation with sounds like a gate closing, curtains, and a stamp. These sounds are quite direct and can be achieved with tools and post-production sound design. I didn't adjust the sound for the curtains and the stamp; however, when the character jumped into the exit, I added some special effects, which I later adjusted using pitch shifters and time stretching. As for the sound of the gate closing, my original recording was too high-pitched, so I used a pitch shifter to make it deeper and more resonant.

There’s also a part where a wooden "Scene Clear" sign falls from above, so I used a sound similar to the collision of wooden puppets to represent this effect. Additionally, I included a clinking sound from glass to add a sense of sparkle and excitement, because the wood sound alone felt too flat and didn’t convey the “congratulations on clearing the level” vibe.

Next, there’s a part where a character places a badge, and for that, I used the "ding" sound from tapping a glass to represent it.

Ambiance Sound:

Figure 11.1 Ambiance

Once all the sound effects were settled, I moved on to the ambient sounds. Since I saw that the game scene had the sky and clouds, I decided to use the sound of wind as the background. The source of the sound was simply me blowing into my phone.

Additionally, there is also water in the game, so I recorded sounds by shaking a water bottle filled with water and pouring the water into a cup while stirring it. However, since the stirring sound was affected by the glass’s echo, I chose another source for that. During editing, I realized the character doesn’t always move close to the water, so I had to adjust the volume depending on the character's distance from the water.

Final Submission:

Audio Track Mixdown

Game with Audio Track

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REFLECTION

This project was a completely new experience for me. During the process of exploring everyday objects, I realized that anything around me could be transformed into unique sound effects for a game, which I found incredibly fascinating. For instance, I discovered from a YouTuber’s video that tapping the rim of a glass could create the sound for a jumping effect. Originally, I had planned to generate tones for this sound, but this method saved me the time and effort of generating tones.

However, finding sounds that fit the game’s needs was also quite challenging. I spent a significant amount of time searching, recording, and editing these sounds. While editing, I experimented with various tools and pitch adjustments to achieve the best possible outcome.

This process taught me that creating game sound effects requires not only creativity but also patience and attention to detail. If I had more time, I would further refine the boost jumping sound effect, as I believe it could be improved to make it even more impactful.