Above. This is the shared folder I setup at the start of the unit, which each of us have been adding to over. Shared folders are an excellent way of keeping everything in one place therefore minimising confusion between the team. Although later on we didn’t need to use the folder as much, I found it of particular use when it came to collating all the files for the video walkthrough. I could simply sift through the sound files, select necessary ones and drop them into logic, thus maximising workflow and giving me more time to be creative. In the menu environment white bubbles float around the player, these are used to introduce the player to the picking up and dropping mechanics of the game. When the player grabs the bubble/orb it changes colour. Therefore I felt in order to signal contact and change of colour I used a simple Analog Bubble Synth, specifically a deep subby sound to emphasise the spherical, bobbing object.
In the original video walkthrough (created by the masters students) there was pretty much no ambience or atmosphere for both laboratory and forest environments. Here we can see the layering of Yusuf’ field recording and James’ arp experiment, which helped add depth to the lab. The atmos is tinny and intense in response to the bright lights and tech and the arp adds a deep drone to the room, hopefully creating a sense of unease for the player. Although not in this picture, I later added Yusuf’s menacing lab score underneath. I particularly liked Yusuf’s score as it added another dimension to the masters character, and the sounds sonified an evil character.
This picture focus’ on the forest ambience, all the sounds were recorded by James in Wales!
