Principles of Game Audio and Sound Design Sound Design and Audio Implementation for Interactive and Immersive Media

Principles of Game Audio and Sound Design is a comprehensive introduction to the art of sound for games and interactive media using Unity. This accessible guide encompasses both the conceptual challenges of the artform as well as the technical and creative aspects, such as sound design, spatial audio, scripting, implementation and mixing.

Beginning with basic techniques, including linear and interactive sound design, before moving on to advanced techniques, such as procedural audio, Principles of Game Audio and Sound Design is supplemented by a host of digital resources, including a library of ready-to-use, adaptable scripts. This thorough introduction provides the reader with the skills and tools to combat the potential challenges of game audio independently.

Principles of Game Audio and Sound Design is the perfect primer for beginner- to intermediate-level readers with a basic understanding of audio production and Unity who want to learn how to gain a foothold in the exciting world of game and interactive audio.

Chapter 1: Introduction

1. The Genesis of Audio In Games
2. From Sample Playback to Procedural Audio
3. How to Use this book

Chapter 2: The Role of Audio in Interactive and Immersive Environments

1. Inform, Entertain, Immerse
2. Challenges of Game Audio

Chapter 3: The Game Engine Paradigm

1. What is a Game Engine
2. SubSystems

Chapter 4: The Audio Engine and Spatial Audio

1. Listener, Audio Clips and Audio Sources
2. Audio Localization and Distance Cues

Chapter 5: Sound Design, The Art of Effectively Communicating with Sound

1. The Art of Sound Design:
2. Basic Techniques

Chapter 6: Practical Sound Design

1. Setting Up a Sound Design Session and Signal Flow
2. Practical Sound Design and Prototyping

Chapter 7: Coding For Game Audio

1. Why Learn to Code?
2. An intro to C#: Syntax and Basics
3. Playing Audio In Unity

Chapter 8: Implementing Audio: Common Scenarios

1. Before You Start: Preparing Your Assets
2. Ambiences and Loops

Chapter 9: Environmental Modeling

1. What is Environmental Modeling
2. Distance Modeling
3. Additional Factors

Chapter 10: Procedural Audio: Beyond Samples

1. Introduction, benefits and drawbacks.
2. Practical Procedural Audio: A Wind Machine and a Sword Collision Model

Chapter 11: Adaptive Mixing

1. What’s in a Mix? Inform and Entertain (again).
2. The Unity Audio Mixer
3. Snapshots, Automation and Game States
4. Good Practices

Chapter 12: Audio Data Reduction

1. Digital Audio: A Quick Review
2. Data Reduction Strategies
3. Data Reduction Good Practices
4. Data Reduction In Unity

Jean-Luc Sinclair has been a pioneer in the field of game audio since the mid-1990s. He has worked with visionaries such as Trent Reznor and Id Software and has been an active producer and sound designer in New York since the early 2000s. He is currently a professor at Berklee College of Music in Boston and at New York University, where he has designed several classes on the topic of game audio, sound design and software synthesis.