Pretty good read about sound effects

[Deleted]

I can't see how are those sound effects anything outstanding, the explosion sound actually sounds really bad as if it came from those old games. It's just loud as fuck, it isn't hard to make stuff loud.

[Tithonus]

Heres a different video with the trebuchet firing as a comparison to the video in the OP(I'm still certain the audio in that video was amplified, by the recorder, too much for its own good). http://youtu.be/T8FF3_dYWLU?t=8m48s

[eucatastrophe]

Doesn't make it any less fake. In fact in reality you wouldn't ever hear a stone flung make any sound at all (except for when it hits). So that missile sound is very out of place.

If it was a cannon shooting I might actually accept it, but it's not...

It adds to the aesthetic and gives the viewer/audience a visceral connection to vicariously experience the event. Swords don't go "zinggggg!" either when you unsheath them. But it's about sucking the audience in to the fantasy.

The sounds are loud but this has been mentioned by the press for the whole game itself.

[grandpab]

Heres a different video with the trebuchet firing as a comparison to the video in the OP(I'm still certain the audio in that video was amplified, by the recorder, too much for its own good). http://youtu.be/T8FF3_dYWLU?t=8m48s

I love having a sub too. I can feel the impacts lol...maybe that's why I like these sound effects more than others.

[Deleted]

*Sigh*

People will really complain or be a critic about ANYTHING these days, regardless of how small the matter is. Its either too much or too little.

So what is it you people wanna do about this particular sound effect? Anet devs build a real Trebuchet, put a flaming rock on it, shoot it and record the SE? Reason I say this is because:

I apologize for sounding like a smartass, but nit-picky people is honestly one of my pet peeves irl.

If people didn't tell what they thought about the game, and just let the devs do whatever they wanted, I don't think Guild Wars 2 would be the game we want today (maybe...)

Let's say if no one said anything about the particle effect, and when we play the game these huge-ass monsters gets a burning condition and your whole screen lights up and you're unable to see anything due the particle effect being too damn high party.

That's why we want them to tune it down, and they know this as well.

You can't please everyone in everything, and i'm not pleased with the sound. Note that this isn't gamebreaking, I won't quit the game, I honestly don't care ''that much'' about it. Though I love sound effects, and it's a big part of the game, I think ArenaNet have done a great job with the sound effects.

That trebuchet sound, didn't sound too good to me, and there is a lot of sounds in the game that is done very good.*It's like saying ''People sure whine about anything. Whining about whining posts'' It doesn't really make you any different then.

[Hellgaunt]

*Sigh*

People will really complain or be a critic about ANYTHING these days, regardless of how small the matter is. Its either too much or too little.

So what is it you people wanna do about this particular sound effect? Anet devs build a real Trebuchet, put a flaming rock on it, shoot it and record the SE?

I apologize for sounding like a smartass, but nit-picky people is honestly one of my pet peeves irl.

Oh wauw, bringing up feedback that you disagree with is nit-picky? You don't get out a lot do you?

Reason I say this is:

Out here in the real world, people have different opinions and that isn't nit-picking. And actually you know what, nit-picking is why Apple is now the wealthiest most successful company in the world... you should think about that before you go hating on nit-picky people that actually offer constructive feedback (as opposed to: "I just don't like it no matter what is done").

And building a real trebuchet and fire it and record the sound of impact would be an awesome (and not even super expensive) idea - Anet really should do that.

[MrSerious]

And building a real trebuchet and fire it and record the sound of impact would be an awesome (and not even super expensive) idea - Anet really should do that.

lol! wot?! that's just getting stupid.

[Hellgaunt]

lol! wot?! that's just getting stupid.

Why? They could drag out their entire team of 200+ people and use it as a team-building get-together event. BBC did it just 4 people in one of their shows about the Roman Empire.

[Deleted]

And building a real trebuchet and fire it and record the sound of impact would be an awesome (and not even super expensive) idea - Anet really should do that.

You should actually take in record that in fantasy worlds, games/movies and such, they'll amplify the sounds to enhance the feeling. Like dragging up a sword will have a "ziing"-sound around it to make it feel better.
So using a real trebuchet with a fireball could be a good idea but I don't know if the sound gives the enhanced feeling of war that you want in a game to make the gamer feel even more epic inside a epic warzone.
I do agree to an extent, the trebuchet could've better sound-effect but... Nothing can be perfect and I pretty much feel like it's good in it's current state

The underwater harpoon-gun is what's annoying me, I hope we'll get to lower the sound-effects for underwater combat :P

[Hellgaunt]

They could also tweak their existing sounds and downtone the missile/metallic sound it has. A trebuchet is about rope and wood - and no metal. The 'woosh' sound when it fires is awesome. Impact sound should be more 'earth-y' and 'rock-y', and the fire should go 'woosh-y' instead of 'kaboom-y' but hey it's just my humble opinion.

The harpoon gun is a bit annoying as well - but I don't have any better suggestions

[Deleted]

They could also tweak their existing sounds and downtone the missile/metallic sound it has. A trebuchet is about rope and wood - and no metal. The 'woosh' sound when it fires is awesome. Impact sound should be more 'earth-y' and 'rock-y', and the fire should go 'woosh-y' instead of 'kaboom-y' but hey it's just my humble opinion.

The harpoon gun is a bit annoying as well - but I don't have any better suggestions

Agreed. I would rather have a shattering rock kind of sound than an actual explosion.

Doesn't make it any less fake. In fact in reality you wouldn't ever hear a stone flung make any sound at all (except for when it hits). So that missile sound is very out of place.

If it was a cannon shooting I might actually accept it, but it's not...

Saying a rock that is on fire doesn't make any sound while flying is pretty stupid. Try lighting up a tennis ball and toss it around, makes a pretty loud noise while flying.

[Hellgaunt]

I'm not sure exactly what those fireballs the trebuchets flings are - but historically you wouldn't set a rock/stone on fire simply because it wouldn't be practical (you don't get the substance spread) as the rock would break rather than shatter, thus not spreading the fire.

Instead you'd use a clay jar filled with your burning substance - in that case the 'howling' of the fireball could concievably sound like a spinning jar travelling at high velocity towards it's target. It still wouldn't make much sense for the character standing at that distance to hear it this loud. It should be mumbled down a bit.

On a far fetched sidenote - the fireball could be magically solidified matter that has an audible effect tied to it to stir terror in the enemy. In which case the sound and the level is perfectly okay

[Larynx]

I'm not sure exactly what those fireballs the trebuchets flings are - but historically you wouldn't set a rock/stone on fire simply because it wouldn't be practical (you don't get the substance spread) as the rock would break rather than shatter, thus not spreading the fire.

Instead you'd use a clay jar filled with your burning substance - in that case the 'howling' of the fireball could concievably sound like a spinning jar travelling at high velocity towards it's target. It still wouldn't make much sense for the character standing at that distance to hear it this loud. It should be mumbled down a bit.

On a far fetched sidenote - the fireball could be magically solidified matter that has an audible effect tied to it to stir terror in the enemy. In which case the sound and the level is perfectly okay

It's actually hundreds of burning Asuras they're shooting. The sound is just their screams.

[Lucky_]

There is an actual, logical explanation to why sounds are so loud. Modern computers mostly use mostly utterly crappy software codecs embedded on motherboards optimized for efficiency rather then quality. As a result, they tend to have issues like low dynamic range (difference between loudest and quietest sound they can generate) and some others.

Then there's the issue of youtobe often re-compressing audio. I don't recall ever hearing audio track with proper 5.1 on youtube, while most modern games support directional sound up to at least to 5.1.


That said, they really did use a sound of fireworks rocket for trebuchet... C'mon it doesn't have a rocket engine, if you absolutely have to make a sound for the ballistic projective in the air, it's a whistling sound. Silly mistake really.

Anyway, sound quality is something that really can't be tested for quality (beyond the silliness of some sounds) based on youtube videos. You need an actual decent computer with a sound card that can properly record the output and then you need to upload somewhere that doesn't mangle the sound with compression, like youtube does.

P.S. I speak with an authority of someone who has aimed to never use a software based codec and has a pretty good 5.1 setup currently hooked on emu10k2 DSP based card for almost a decade now (I can make doors and windows shake/vibrate noticeably at around 1/4 subwoofer volume [/audiophile epeen]). If you have a decent discreet DSP card, most modern games support proper directional audio, decent dynamic range and audio post-processing. I don't see any reason to assume that GW2 would be different.

[Razeo]

Oh wauw, bringing up feedback that you disagree with is nit-picky? You don't get out a lot do you?

Reason I say this is:

Out here in the real world, people have different opinions and that isn't nit-picking. And actually you know what, nit-picking is why Apple is now the wealthiest most successful company in the world... you should think about that before you go hating on nit-picky people that actually offer constructive feedback (as opposed to: "I just don't like it no matter what is done").

And building a real trebuchet and fire it and record the sound of impact would be an awesome (and not even super expensive) idea - Anet really should do that.

Lol, Now that's funny....... no i'm quite the contrary actually, having a family does that to you. But then again, what does that have to do with anything? It's so cute how forum goers always bring out the "RL card" to bring a point across. You can certainly have a difference of opinion without being nit-picky. My wife can have a difference of opinion but she certainly isn't nit-picky, my 3 yr old son can have a difference of opinion but I know for a fact he isn't nit picky. My buddies can have a difference of opinion but they aren't nit-picky.

"I think watching action movies over drama.", "I think apples taste better than oranges.", "MMA is more entertaining to watch than boxing." <~~~Opinion

"I'd rather wear crimson red instead of scarlet red.", "I won't buy that TV. It only has 20k megapixels and not 25k." <~~~ Nit picky

[Kelzúl]

Wow, that is actually overkill. It sounds like a damn missile launcher, not a trebuchet. I know it is launching a flaming rock, but the rock isn't being propelled by the fire. It's just a level and fulcrum. I do agree sounds help make a game, but I feel that sound is very out of place.

I agree! That is totally unrealistic! I mean the shooting fireballs and spells I agree with, but fack me..

Douche.

Please refrain from insulting other posters. Infracted. -Edge

[Hellgaunt]

Lol, Now that's funny....... no i'm quite the contrary actually, having a family does that to you. But then again, what does that have to do with anything? It's so cute how forum goers always bring out the "RL card" to bring a point across. [...]

Indeed what does that have to do with anything that you have a family? So do I? Care much? No, thought so.

Anyway I cut out all your unnecessary chatter. Please explain (based on your own examples) how not liking the sounds they put in for the trebuchet is nit-picky?


PS: In a TV you really don't rate it by the megapixel (but by resolution 1920 x 1080 is standard now), instead you'd look for contrast, MHz and aspect ratio (some newer SmartTVs also has a new technology to improve the visual display of high speed movement - Clear Motion Rate).

[Wrathonia]

I take it none of you have seen Return of the King? Those trebuchets sounded fine to me. Sorry for saying a sound seemed completely out of place, but from the little i know of trebuchets they shouldn't sound like a L.A.W.

[grandpab]

It's actually hundreds of burning Asuras their shooting. The sound is just their screams.

lol that's awesome

[Razeo]

Indeed what does that have to do with anything that you have a family? So do I? Care much? No, thought so.

Actually I was responding to your first sentence from your last post. You sound like a smart guy, you should've figured that out.

Anyway I cut out all your unnecessary chatter. Please explain (based on your own examples) how not liking the sounds they put in for the trebuchet is nit-picky?

Its pretty easy to compare and contrast exactly what I meant from my previous examples as to how not liking the sound on the treb is a bit nit-picky when compared to not liking game breaking stuff, or maybe it's just the way people worded their complaints. Or maybe i'm just a bit more understanding than other people, considering as to how far Anet would go to recording mere sound effects just from watching that video I just posted. That no matter how off beat the SE's sound like, I still wouldn't care? Maybe i'm just not as choosy?

w/e , I'm not going to derail this thread into discussing the politics of "nit-pickiness", choosy or whatever the hell you wanna call it. I'm gonna be the bigger person here and just get back on the subject.

PS: In a TV you really don't rate it by the megapixel (but by resolution 1920 x 1080 is standard now), instead you'd look for contrast, MHz and aspect ratio (some newer SmartTVs also has a new technology to improve the visual display of high speed movement - Clear Motion Rate).

Thanks for the advice, i'll use it next time I buy a TV.

I take it none of you have seen Return of the King? Those trebuchets sounded fine to me. Sorry for saying a sound seemed completely out of place, but from the little i know of trebuchets they shouldn't sound like a L.A.W.

Totally forgot about Rotk, but yea.. as far as I can remember from those scenes it sounded not different from that video.