It seems to me not many people play with sound on, and I don't have a good way of making non-drum music due to NO programs being able to mimic a piano/keyboard/guitar-ish sound.
So I ask this: Is it worth trying to look for any programs like that? I don't even know if any exist (that're free, it's stupid to spend money on a game that's freeware...).
ID:265938
 Sep 18 2009, 12:36 am
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Sep 18 2009, 12:45 am
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Mega fart cannon
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I depends on what you're going for. You can create some pretty nice .midi tunes using Anvil Studio or you can go all out with high quality module (.mob, .xm, .it, etc.) tunes using something like Protracker.
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Both of them provide demos which you can pretty much live with without losing too much functionality from the full version. Anvil Studio uses your standard Grand Scale, while tracker programs use alphanumerical keys with hexadecimal parameters.
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I find that sound helps a lot to provide feedback. Simple things like confirmations of buttons presses and other event alerts seem to go a long way.
That said, I don't feel the same way about background audio. Ambient sounds are fine, but I turn music off. Even if the songs are not annoying, my computer offers plenty of other options for music (or podcasts) and I probably like them better. While I sometimes get a kick out of hearing my own music in my games, my experience as a player has told me not to make it a priority. | |
Vic Rattlehead wrote:
It seems to me not many people play with sound on, and I don't have a good way of making non-drum music due to NO programs being able to mimic a piano/keyboard/guitar-ish sound. You seem to be unfamiliar with module-format music, which BYOND has supported for some time now. The module formats (.mod, .xm, .it, .s3m) are basically similar to MIDI files but they contain instrument samples that provide realistic sounds, or even vocals. I've heard some high-quality MIDIs but with MIDI you have to accept certain limitations--not just which instruments you can use but that the file will sound different on each computer. With modules the sound should be the same each time. A typical module-format file is considerably smaller than an .mp3 and because most of the file length is taken up by samples, you can make a fairly long background music track with hardly any impact on file size. So I ask this: Is it worth trying to look for any programs like that? I don't even know if any exist (that're free, it's stupid to spend money on a game that's freeware...). Yes, it is worth looking for such programs. If you have any compositional skill whatsoever (and that's the sticking point, really--it's why my games don't have music yet) you can use a free tracker program like ModPlug Tracker or such to create modules. Typically mod authors get samples from other mods they hear. You can find a lot of good ones at modarchive.org. Now as to the central question if music and sound effects are important: Sound yes, music maybe. The only reason Incursion has never had sound effects is that I could never figure out an appropriate set of sounds to use there. SotS II is loaded with sound effects and would benefit from even more. I think music can highly add to the atmosphere or experience of a game, but I would recommend having a way for players to turn it off. Lummox JR | |
Lummox JR wrote:
I think music can highly add to the atmosphere or experience of a game, but I would recommend having a way for players to turn it off. It can also add another gameplay dynamic such as being able to hear people approaching (even if you cannot see them) or hear landmarks around (such as Foomer's stream hearing issues). The problem I have with that is I never have sound on, so I'd be missing out. :( | |
Vic Rattlehead wrote:
I only have a drum set. No guitar to make guitar sounds, sadly. And just drums isn't too exciting. I realize that Lummox can sometimes give very lengthy and in depth answers, but it is usually for a good reason. Take the time to read and you will more often than not come out enlightened on the topic of discussion. Lummox JR wrote: ... The module formats (.mod, .xm, .it, .s3m) are basically similar to MIDI files but they contain instrument samples that provide realistic sounds, or even vocals. | |
I have 56 different sound files (30 effects, 21 voice, 5 music) for my game and they make a HUGE difference. The game just feels flat without sound.
I've recently started messing with MAGIX Music Maker. It's surprisingly simple to use and you don't really need any prior knowledge making music. It's kinda like a midi maker with prerecorded sound clips. A lot of the songs you see floating around Newgrounds were made with it. | |
AJX wrote:
It can also add another gameplay dynamic such as being able to hear people approaching [...] Notice you're talking about sound effects, while the part you quoted was talking about [background] music. The two are different. | |
Kaioken wrote:
AJX wrote: Duly noted. I thought he was talking about 'sound' in general. Probably should actually pay attention. -.- | |
Vic Rattlehead wrote:
It doesn't really help that it can play those if I'm incapable of recording any sounds similar! Unless you get samples from somewhere other than recording them yourself. There are sites on the internet with that sort of stuff. There's even a couple of creative commons licenses that are designed for sampling. | |
Lummox JR wrote:
If you have any compositional skill whatsoever (and that's the sticking point, really--it's why my games don't have music yet) you can use a free tracker program like ModPlug Tracker or such to create modules. Ooh! Ooh! Do I have compositional skill? | |
Jon88 wrote:
Vic Rattlehead wrote: As has been mentioned multiple times in this thread: There are publicly available tools for what you're describing... You don't need to record anything. | |
I'd just pluck some good music out of modarchive.org and use those. I also feel that good sounds effects (not music) are very important to create atmosphere in a game. I wouldn't be surprised if people play with sound off because most BYOND games have crappy, crappy sound and music. Give people a reason to turn their sound on and maybe they will.
If you provide an in-game way to adjust sound and music volume/on/off separately, then perhaps they'll leave the sound on and turn the music off if they want to play their own. The fact that people often like to play their own music makes it less essential, but people don't generally play their own sound effects for games. The bottom line: If you can do a good job of it, sound and music are DEFINITELY important to a game. If you can't do it right, or you can only do one and not the other, then do what you can do well, and leave the rest out. No sound is better than bad sound. But you should certainly endeavor to try and include something. | |
Foomer wrote:
The fact that people often like to play their own music makes it less essential, but people don't generally play their own sound effects for games. I can just imagine some eccentric BYONDer with pots and pans and random gadgets making noises every time something happens in a game. O.o | |
AJX wrote:
Foomer wrote: *puts his head down and looks around nervously* Have you ever seen how they make a lot of sound effects for games and movies? They do crazy stuff like that. | |
Without looking at any other post. Absolutely yes. There are rare exceptions to experiences without sound but they specialize and are designed that way. Everything else should try to keep our senses busy-busy.
ts | |