Creating 14,000 Sound Effects For 'Unpacking' - Jeff And Angela Van Dyck Talk Game Audio With Emily Reese:

Witch Beam's Unpacking is a big hit, in no small part thanks to the development team's meticulous attention to detail, including the game's audio. Hear Emily Reese's great interview with Jeff and Angela van Dyck on how that excellent sound was made. And as a bonus, we've also included Jeff van Dyck's 54 minute GDC talk on the sound of the game, the soundtrack & more.

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Interview with Jeff and Angela van Dyck • Unpacking: The Fun Behind the Foley • Unpacking trailer • Get the game • Hear the soundtrack • Hear more from the Audio Podcast Alliance

Here’s Level with Emily Reese’s official introduction:

There are 14,000 sound effects (aka “Foley”) in the game . That’s a handful. And what a charming game, no dialog, just art and sound. You learn the story as you unpack the belongings of a young girl as she grows up, goes to college, moves in with friends, then experiences different relationships in adult life.
Jeff and Angela van Dyck are responsible for the audio, and Jeff wrote gleefully chill, melodic and thoughtful music to represent various phases of the woman’s life. I love it so very much. Get the full album on Bandcamp here.

Hear the interview here:

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Behind the Foley for Unpacking:

For much more on the sound for the game, check out Jeff Dyck’s GDC Talk ‘Unpacking’: The Fun Behind the Foley below:

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If you’re not familiar with Unpacking, check out the trailer below:

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Get Unpacking below:

Steam • Nintendo Switch • Xbox One • Playstation • Humble Store • Soundtrack

Hear the soundtrack for Unpacking below:

Hear the soundtrack for the game below, and be sure to support the artists by getting the full album on Bandcamp here.

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Level with Emily Reese is part of the Audio Podcast Alliance, featuring a hand-picked selection of the very best podcasts about sound. Check out the full list of Audio Podcast Alliance members below, and click a on podcast name to go directly to their latest episode:

AMPS Podcast • CAS In Conversation • Field & Foley • Immersive Audio Podcast • LA Post Production Sound Design • Level with Emily Reese • Location Sound Podcast • Sound Business • Soundbytes Podcast • SoundGirls Podcast • Soundtrack Show • Soundworks Collection • The A Sound Effect Podcast • The Dolby Institute Podcast • The Game Audio Journey • The Sound Architect Podcast • Tonebenders • Twenty Thousand Hertz

Hear more audio-related podcasts here

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THE WORLD’S EASIEST WAY TO GET INDEPENDENT SOUND EFFECTS:

A Sound Effect gives you easy access to an absolutely huge sound effects catalog from a myriad of independent sound creators, all covered by one license agreement - a few highlights:

Foley Sound Effects Grenade Foley Play Track 1374 sounds included $15

A focused collection of grenade foley, captured with precision using replica units. This library provides the essential, clean sounds of tactical handling, interaction, and impacts.

Recorded at 96kHz/24-bit across various surfaces including steel plates, carpet, wood floorings, soil, and grass, this library offers variation for different environments. The recordings feature grenade shakes, surface impacts and rolls, pin pulls, spoon lever ejections, spoon drops, and tactical gear foley, all captured with Lewitt LCT 540 S and Shure SM7B.

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Car Sound Effects Toyota MR2 1984 sports car Play Track 228 sounds included, 44 mins total $65

All files are recorded 32bit, 192 kHz, with RØDE NTG1, Line Audio Omni1 and FEL Clippy XLR EM272 microphones, Sound Devices MixPre-6 II recorder. Library contains wav files of driving, interior and exterior foley, mechanical and electrical sounds. It is also available in UCS.

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Animal Sound Effects Collections Botswana Play Track 49+ sounds included, 136 mins total From: $60

Botswana Faunethic sound library is a unique collection of 49 sounds recorded through several national parks of the country (Okavango, Chobe,…). All these sounds has been recorded and produced with high quality equipment in multichannel.

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If you want to hear more about this field recording trip, feel free to check this post.
The multichannel version contains 40 tracks in native 4.0 and 9 tracks recorded in stereo only.

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Latest sound effects libraries:

Bundles Quietsub FX Complete Bundle Play Track 15055 sounds included $379
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Quietsub FX is a library of 15,055 sound effects at 24 bit 96,000 BWF. The library is organized into a number of collections related to specific categories, and a large miscellaneous category. The library was recorded to be as comprehensive as possible with an emphasis on quality and choice for users.

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Travel & Transportation Quietsub FX Transportation Play Track 1321 sounds included $59
Quietsub FX Transportation

An extensive collection of 1,321 Transportation sounds. If it has means of movement to carry people or goods, whether by engine or human propulsion, you’ll likely find it here.

This collection comes in two parts. The transportation portion, and Transit Chimes.

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Transportation: People are always going somewhere. And they sure make lots of noise doing it. Just about anything that moves people or freight can be found here.

Recording for this category is outside the studio affair. A tremendous amount of time driving and walking around, as well as planting yourself in strategic locations where vehicles do their thing.
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Whoosh Sound Effects Quietsub FX Video Transition Sound Effects Play Track 128 sounds included $25

Quietsub FX Video Transition Sound Effects

A great collection of 128 Video Transition Sound Effects. These are designed to be used at video edit points to add impact.

Video Editors will enjoy these video transition effects. In recent years, sound effects began appearing in videos to accompany the actual visual edit. This was the inspiration for creating this collection.

There’s no better way to add depth to video edits than with short sounds and ramps. These work great with short video breakup visuals and flashes.

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Sci-Fi Sound Effects Quietsub FX Sci-Fi Sounds Play Track 192 sounds included $25
Quietsub FX Sci-Fi Sounds

A collection of 192 Sci-Fi Sounds.

There’s lots of science fiction out there, but still no little green men. Possibly that’s what makes sci-fi so popular. The dream of something you think may exist, but cannot be proven. Sci-Fi, of course, has its own sounds. In this collection of 183 sound effects, you will find most of what you will need to outfit your next spacecraft.

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Materials & Texture Sound Effects Quietsub FX Mechanical Parts Play Track 159 sounds included $39
Quietsub FX Mechanical Parts

A collection of 159 mechanical sounds made by small motors. This is the result of a massive editing job involving small metal and plastic parts, and any other item made by humans and others.

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