Game Audio at GDC 2019 Asbjoern Andersen


Like an alarm clock that rings and throws you bolt-upright out of bed, this year’s Game Developers Conference is swiftly upon us. Packed with more presentations that you can shake a stick at, this year’s hot tips focus on things happening outside the conference and are (mostly) accessible to anyone in San Francisco who is up for some good ol’ game audio. Here’s what’s happening!


Guest post by Damian Kastbauer



 
Sunday, February 26th
DesigningSound.Org Meetup
4:00pm-7:00pm

Maybe you’re hitting the town early, soaking up the San Francisco ambience. If you’re not too busy exploring the Musée Mécanique or drifting away with the Wave Organ, drop by the DesigningSound.org meetup on Sunday afternoon and kick the week off celebrating the scene with some of the folks behind this incredible resource.

RSVP recommended but not required. Details here.

Monday through Saturday
Sightglass Game Audio Podcast Meetups
7:00am-9:00am

Arriving bleary-eyed at 7am for coffee and conversation during the week at GDC is the best/worst thing you could do for yourself throughout the conference. Best, because the brew at Sightglass (7th & Folsom) is worth talking about for the rest of the year. They also allow a motley crew of game audio folks to ascend to their 2nd floor balcony and hold court and wax philosophically about the unfolding day’s game audio epiphanies. Worst, because 7-9am amirite? (I bet you don’t have anything else scheduled during that time though, do you?)

 
[tweet_box]Damian Kastbauer’s Guide to Game Audio at GDC 2017[/tweet_box]  
Monday through Friday
Carousel Con
Lunchtime (Behind the Carousel on the Grassy Knoll)
12:00pm-2:00pm

Brown-bag your way behind the carousel on the corner of 4th & Howard to the concrete stairs for an informal gathering of folks bursting with inspiration. This is a chance to stretch out in the sun (hopefully), grab a bite, and soak up some of the knowledge folks have gleaned throughout the morning’s presentations or adventures. Some of my favorite memories have come from deep conversations shared by anyone and everyone who coagulates. (Bonus points for the mass carousel ride at the end of Friday’s lunchtime.)
This year marks the first Carousel Con, a micro-talk formatted conference that will take place simultaneously off in a corner of the area and will feature speakers sharing their game audio knowledge (in short-form 10 minute bursts) with a circle of interested people. Organized by Matthew Marteinsson, Mike Csurics, Fryda Wolff (and a little help from me), there will be buttons, ribbons, and opportunities for folks to walk up and submit a talk for a chance to jump on the stump and share your passions.

Tuesday, February 28th
Audio Bootcamp
10:00am-6:00pm

Tuesday’s Audio Bootcamp signals the official start of the Audio Track at GDC and is a powerhouse of professionals prepared to submerge the packed room in a comprehensive game audio master class. Matthew Lee Johnston kicks it off with an alarm call for audio developers in his talk titled “GREAT AUDIO DESIGN: BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY” followed quickly by Tomas Neumann (one of the audio programmers on Overwatch) breaking down “AUDIO TECH 101”. We’re then treated to a presentation by Steve Green, Lead Sound Designer and Music Implementor, which leverages his experience on ABZÛ titled “INTERACTIVE MUSIC APPROACHES”. This takes us right into the “LUNCHTIME SURGERIES” where tables full of bootcamp attendees have an opportunity to chat casual-like with all of the presenters while noshing.

The afternoon lineup has some wonders to share! Khris Brown gets the crowd revved up with “FIGHTING LEGOS: AUDIO CHOREOGRAPHY FOR BATTLE DESIGN” which promises to be a workout of vocalization sound, and then Matt Piersall will demonstrate “PERFORMANCE BASED SOUND DESIGN” drawing from his experience creating sound for AAA games. One of the forerunners of VR Audio, Sally Kellaway, will be speaking on “APPROACHING AND DESIGNING AUDIO FOR INTERACTIVE VR APPLICATIONS” and will be sharing experience gleaned from her time working in VR, and then Leonard Paul will bring his considerable expertise as a game composer and educator to explain “DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO GAME MUSIC”. Rounding out the day is Bonnie Bogovich and her presentation “PARTY OF ONE: HOW TO BE ‘THE AUDIO DEPARTMENT'”. All-in-all, a tremendous breadth of information from every corner of the game audio universe. All of these are absolute musts!


Popular on A Sound Effect right now - article continues below:


Trending right now:

  • Rock / Stone Sound Effects Rocks Momentum Play Track 1100+ sounds included $37

    The Rocks Momentum sound effects library gets you more than 1100 sounds of rocks, bricks, wood logs, stones, impacting on different surfaces, rolling, being scraped one against the other and so on. The library was recorded in the Italian alps, and in Inverness, Scotland. Defective construction materials were used for the recording of bricks, roofing tiles, cement blocks etc.

    Bonus: Two extra libraries included for free:
    This library also includes two additional releases from Mattia Cellotto - for free: Crunch Mode delivers 230 crunchy sounds made with a variety of vegetables, fresh bread, pizza crust and a selection of frozen goods. The Borax Experiment gets you 158 squishy, gory, slimy and gooey sounds.
  • Another electromechanical-focused library from SkewSound! Our reel2reel Sound Library features a professional tape machine from the 1980s. We captured all the sounds this little (well, actually quite large and heavy) piece of gear could create.

    DC motors, servos, tape spinning, metal impacts, and more can be found within this library.

    And if you are on the hunt for some huge, analog style mechanical buttons, you should hear what this library has to offer.

    75 %
    OFF
  • The ROCKS Library is a collection of more than 700 designed rock and stone sound effects, ready to use.
    From single stone impacts to large heavy collapsing rocks, avalanches, rockslides sounds, rolling and falling stones, debris sounds….

    Originally recorded at 192 kHz with two Sennheiser MKH8040, a Sanken CO-100K and a Sound devices Mixpre 6. Delivered at 96Khz.

    Each sound file has been carefully named and tagged for easy search in Soundminer and is Universal Category System (UCS) compliant.

    (see the full track list below).

  • This sound library was carefully recorded, processed and crafted to offer a unique toolset for your ice-cold freezing design needs.

    Great for fantasy genre with ice based magic, enchantment and supernatural elements, shining motion graphics, time lapse and flow motion freeze sequences.

    Bonus Aztec death whistle recordings processed by glass and icy textures.

    This Sound Library is a part of the Slava Pogorelsky – Complete Bundle.

    WHAT SOUND PROFESSIONALS SAY:

    Victor Mercader – AAA Sound Designer (Apex Legends)
    “I find myself continuously using Slava’s SFX libraries to blend it’s pristine and detailed sound designs into my own sounds. They always add that cutting edge I am missing and make my sound designs more unique and pristine.”

    Enos Desjardins – Sound Designer/Sound Effects Editor (Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, Black Mirror)
    “Slava has been creating some really cool libraries which I find myself using time and again. Really high quality recordings to start with but then the cool processing he has used for example in his cinematic whoosh libraries really stand out. They are not just your standard generic whoosh sounds but are loaded with character and have a unique feel to them that is really fresh and cuts through in the nicest of ways.”

    Bjørn Jacobsen – AAA Sound Designer (CyberPunk 2077, HITMAN, DARQ)
    “Slava has for several years made high quality sound effects for me to play with. I use his sound libraries across multiple projects as lego blocks of my creations.”

    Ginno Legaspi – SoundBytes Music Magazine‎
    “As far as the sound goes ‘Cinematic Magical Ice’ is both beautiful and mystical. I happen to like the icy textures that are oozing with coldness. Overall, this sound library boasts a good variety of effect samples ready to drop in various cinematic projects.”

    Yarron Katz – AAA Composer and Sound Designer
    “Slava makes some wonderful libraries. He’s relatively new on the scene and his libraries have come to critical acclaim. He takes some general ideas, like whooshes and he injects some extremely revolutionary and innovative ideas to them, so you’re not getting another whoosh library – you’re getting something very unique, very fresh. He brings some wonderful ideas to the table.”


Latest releases:

  • Motorcycle Sound Effects Scooters Play Track 197+ sounds included, 164 mins total $99

    SCOOTERS features various sound effects recorded from 7 different scooters, ranging from general scooters to a scooter with a modified exhaust. An old two-stroke scooter with high-pitched brake squealing sounds is also included, along with on-board riding sounds (including revving and speeding), pass-bys, idling, approaching, pull-away, engine cranking, and varied mechanism sounds. SCOOTERS sound library helps you create different types of scenes with scooter riding.

    The recorded scooters include:

    ・KYMCO VJR 110
    ・YAMAHA BW’S 125
    ・YAMAHA BW’S R 125
    ・YAMAHA FORCE 155
    ・YAMAHA Super Four (with a modified exhaust)
    ・YAMAHA VINO 50 (Two-stroke scooter)
    ・YAMAHA VINO 50 FI

    This library includes total 197 files, consisting of 170 mono files and 27 stereo files recorded in ORTF at 96 kHz. Approx. 2 hour and 44 minutes total.

    Certainly, this library was carefully tagged with rich Soundminer metadata, including marks in the recordings highlighting interesting sounds.

    All the recordings were recorded, edited and mastered with love and care.

  • City Life Sound Effects Quiet Streets 3d Play Track 100 sounds included, 580 mins total From: $135 From: $78

    Quiet Streets 3D is the latest chapter in Articulated’s Quiet Streets series, offering a meticulously crafted collection of quiet urban ambiences. Designed with both creativity and precision in mind, this library captures the essence of urban stillness through the advanced Schoeps 3D ORTF recording technique, resulting in multi-dimensional soundscapes that reveal both horizontal and vertical spatial details.

    This library features 100 files delivered at 96kHz/24-bit. With a total size of 74.8 GB and over 9 hours and 40 minutes of carefully curated ambiences, Quiet Streets 3D is a comprehensive resource for creating immersive urban soundscapes.

    A Global Journey Through Quietude

     

    The recordings span cities across three continents, capturing the unique characteristics of urban environments in Paris, London, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Bangkok, Naples, Kuala Lumpur, Montreal, Regensburg, Hong Kong, New Delhi, Strasbourg, Singapore, and more. Each location offers its own subtle yet distinct textures, from the hushed buzz of a late-night street in Bangkok to the subdued murmurs of a Parisian alley at dawn.

    A Commitment to Quality

     
    Over two years, our team travelled to these cities to document quiet moments in urban life. Recordings were made at various times of day and across seasons, capturing the interplay of natural and environmental sounds. The ambiences feature layers of biophony (birdsong, rustling leaves), geophony (wind, distant rain), and faint traces of anthropophony (passing footsteps, distant traffic). Care was taken to minimize intrusive noises, ensuring that these recordings integrate seamlessly into projects that require clarity for dialogue or sound effects. Note: at times some distinctive authentic events were kept in order to give the choice for the editor to use them in their projects. These are tagged as marker on the spectrogram.

    A Versatile Tool for Storytelling

     
    The library’s 8-channel 3D ORTF format provides an intricate sense of space, making it ideal for surround sound configurations in film, video games, and immersive media. For those working in stereo, we’ve included a high-quality downmixed version of every file, offering flexibility without compromising quality.

    Recorded with the acclaimed Schoeps 3d ORTF system, it has a total of 8 discreet channels, 4 on the lower plane arranged in 2 pair of ORTF similar to a IRT-Cross, and doubled with a higher plane of 4 more microphones. The channel layout of the sound recorded and delivered is as this: L R Ls Rs hL hR hLs hRs (whereas h stand for high). Learn more about this configuration here: https://schoeps.de/en/products/surround-3d/ortf-3d/ortf-3d-outdoor-set.html

    Every file is embedded with UCS-compliant metadata, allowing for intuitive searching and streamlined integration into your workflow. The metadata includes detailed descriptors, location names, and environmental characteristics, making it easy to find the perfect ambience for any scene.

    A Timeless Collection for Any Project

     
    Whether you need the intimate quiet of a European alley or the expansive stillness of an Asian metropolis, Quiet Streets 3D provides a rich palette of urban soundscapes. This library is not just a collection of audio files—it’s a carefully curated journey through the subtleties of urban life, designed to enhance the emotional depth and spatial realism of your projects.

    With Quiet Streets 3D, you’re investing in a resource that will remain relevant across countless future projects.

    42 %
    OFF
    28 %
    OFF
    28 %
    OFF
  • 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.

  • Electricity Sound Effects Massive Thunder Play Track 616 sounds included, 217 mins total $29.99

    MASSIVE THUNDER – 616 files of Thunder sound effects, at varying distances and intensities. From low and slow rolling distant rumbles to violently fast and bombastic direct cracking impacts. Massive Thunder comes in at over 3 hours and 37 minutes of short and long scenes of thunder and lightning for every occasion. Recorded during several storm seasons and dozens of independent thunderstorms, with indoors and outdoors perspectives. Massive Thunder’s filenames are in the Universal Category System format with additional Metadata baked-in.

    Don’t need a Massive amount of Thunder and Lightning sound effects? We offer ‘Mini’ sound effect libraries as companions for all of our ‘Massive’ sound effect libraries. All recordings are unique to each library with no overlap. Go Mini today, and upgrade to the corresponding Massive library later, when you need more of that particular sound effect.

    40 %
    OFF
  • Car Sound Effects Jaguar XJ 2010 full size car Play Track 46 sounds included, 60 mins total $65

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

Need specific sound effects? Try a search below:


Wednesday, March 1
IASIG Meetup @ Thirsty Bear (661 Howard St)
6:00pm-9:00pm

The IASIG continues to throw one of the best-attended parties during GDC at the Thirsty Bear. For over 20 years, the organization has been a lightning rod for technically-minded interactive audio folks and has been at the forefront of standardization and publications. Mingling with some of the finest minds after the first full day of the Expo Hall is sure to inspire some engaging conversations about some of the exciting things on the show floor. How do the new Nuendo 8 game audio workflows look? What fun is to be had with the new Wwise Authoring Application API? Is there a demo (and how long is the line) for the Valve “Steam Audio” Solution? This will be the first chance to dig deep after submerging in the newest offerings, and it’s a great group of folks to get down with.

Wednesday, March 1
Game Audio Karaoke (177 Eddy St)
Pandora Karaoke
8:00pm-11:00pm

Follow the sound of wild falsetto and pitch-perfect celebrity vocal impressions to the first official(?) Game Audio Karaoke night. Organized by Luca Fusi, this is exactly the kind of bonding experience you might be looking for after a long day of hustle and flow. Bring your setlist, jump in the cue, and sing your life!

Wednesday, March 1
17th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards
6:30pm-8:30pm

The glitz and glam of the Game Developers Choice awards Wednesday night is the hot-ticket to see all of the coolest indies and accomplished developers. With the comedy of Tim Schafer and wit of Nina Freeman celebrating Oscar-style across every game genre and specialty, it’s the perfect opportunity to soak up some paparazzi and party like a game developer rock star.

Thursday, March 2
15th Annual Game Audio Network Guild Awards
7:30pm-9:30pm

The focus on Game Music and Audio makes this an event worth attending. A room full of folks all looking to honor the accomplishments of the last years game audio accomplishments: what could be better than elevating the art of audio to make you feel like part of something much bigger than yourself. This is a great feeling to cultivate because you’ll find that the conference is a great way to understand the role you play (or could play) in developing games.

Friday, March 3rd
SoVGA Meetup – The Hall SF (1028 Market)
5:00pm
Friday Night Foley
(Coordination)

The School of Video Game Audio has been inviting folks for a final hurrah on the last day of GDC in what has become a final meeting before the explosion of a thousand tiny stars that signals the end. Wobble out from the lobby of Moscone one-last-time with people who will be reticent to let the good vibes and experiences go. It’s a time to plan for later in the evening, or for the future of game audio.

Cody Predum & Emily Meo are pulling together an open invitation to let loose on the streets of San Francisco as a wild pack of sound designers with portable recorders. I imagine hanging off fire escapes to capture the perfect squeak, cardboard box physics impact simulations, and plenty of camaraderie. Find them at the SoVGA Party and climb on board…and don’t forget your recorder!

There’s just too much, and there’s something about the max-saturation, living-in-the-moment slip-stream that makes the best laid plans superfluous. So bring your flexibility, your dynamic personality, and above all your kindness and compassion. The best thing is to go with the flow.

See you on the other side!
Damian

A big thanks to Damian for all the great information!
 

Please share this:


 



 
 
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 Rummage Play Track 733+ sounds included $12.80

    Rummage is a collaborative sound library from SoundBits and Glitchedtones with a focus on unsystematic searches through everyday items.
    Created especially for projects calling for careful, hasty or frantic rummaging, these 733 files offer up plenty of variation to cover a wide range of scenarios. Featuring searches through paper, pockets, trash, wallets, retro media, wood, tools, bags, wardrobes, metal and lots more… your movie scene, game environment or even music production in need of some Rummage, is covered, or more appropriately, uncovered!”.

    60 %
    OFF
  • Just Whoosh 3  brings you 575 recorded whoosh sound effects. Some of the props used include: Cloth blankets, jeans, leather and nylon jackets, fishing rods, boom poles, bamboo/wood/metal/plastic sticks + ropes with things like spatulas attached to one end (!), chains, a torch, and some cars passing by.

    50 %
    OFF
  • Another electromechanical-focused library from SkewSound! Our reel2reel Sound Library features a professional tape machine from the 1980s. We captured all the sounds this little (well, actually quite large and heavy) piece of gear could create.

    DC motors, servos, tape spinning, metal impacts, and more can be found within this library.

    And if you are on the hunt for some huge, analog style mechanical buttons, you should hear what this library has to offer.

    75 %
    OFF
Explore the full, unique collection here

Latest sound effects libraries:
 
  • Motorcycle Sound Effects Scooters Play Track 197+ sounds included, 164 mins total $99

    SCOOTERS features various sound effects recorded from 7 different scooters, ranging from general scooters to a scooter with a modified exhaust. An old two-stroke scooter with high-pitched brake squealing sounds is also included, along with on-board riding sounds (including revving and speeding), pass-bys, idling, approaching, pull-away, engine cranking, and varied mechanism sounds. SCOOTERS sound library helps you create different types of scenes with scooter riding.

    The recorded scooters include:

    ・KYMCO VJR 110
    ・YAMAHA BW’S 125
    ・YAMAHA BW’S R 125
    ・YAMAHA FORCE 155
    ・YAMAHA Super Four (with a modified exhaust)
    ・YAMAHA VINO 50 (Two-stroke scooter)
    ・YAMAHA VINO 50 FI

    This library includes total 197 files, consisting of 170 mono files and 27 stereo files recorded in ORTF at 96 kHz. Approx. 2 hour and 44 minutes total.

    Certainly, this library was carefully tagged with rich Soundminer metadata, including marks in the recordings highlighting interesting sounds.

    All the recordings were recorded, edited and mastered with love and care.

  • City Life Sound Effects Quiet Streets 3d Play Track 100 sounds included, 580 mins total From: $135 From: $78

    Quiet Streets 3D is the latest chapter in Articulated’s Quiet Streets series, offering a meticulously crafted collection of quiet urban ambiences. Designed with both creativity and precision in mind, this library captures the essence of urban stillness through the advanced Schoeps 3D ORTF recording technique, resulting in multi-dimensional soundscapes that reveal both horizontal and vertical spatial details.

    This library features 100 files delivered at 96kHz/24-bit. With a total size of 74.8 GB and over 9 hours and 40 minutes of carefully curated ambiences, Quiet Streets 3D is a comprehensive resource for creating immersive urban soundscapes.

    A Global Journey Through Quietude

     

    The recordings span cities across three continents, capturing the unique characteristics of urban environments in Paris, London, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Bangkok, Naples, Kuala Lumpur, Montreal, Regensburg, Hong Kong, New Delhi, Strasbourg, Singapore, and more. Each location offers its own subtle yet distinct textures, from the hushed buzz of a late-night street in Bangkok to the subdued murmurs of a Parisian alley at dawn.

    A Commitment to Quality

     
    Over two years, our team travelled to these cities to document quiet moments in urban life. Recordings were made at various times of day and across seasons, capturing the interplay of natural and environmental sounds. The ambiences feature layers of biophony (birdsong, rustling leaves), geophony (wind, distant rain), and faint traces of anthropophony (passing footsteps, distant traffic). Care was taken to minimize intrusive noises, ensuring that these recordings integrate seamlessly into projects that require clarity for dialogue or sound effects. Note: at times some distinctive authentic events were kept in order to give the choice for the editor to use them in their projects. These are tagged as marker on the spectrogram.

    A Versatile Tool for Storytelling

     
    The library’s 8-channel 3D ORTF format provides an intricate sense of space, making it ideal for surround sound configurations in film, video games, and immersive media. For those working in stereo, we’ve included a high-quality downmixed version of every file, offering flexibility without compromising quality.

    Recorded with the acclaimed Schoeps 3d ORTF system, it has a total of 8 discreet channels, 4 on the lower plane arranged in 2 pair of ORTF similar to a IRT-Cross, and doubled with a higher plane of 4 more microphones. The channel layout of the sound recorded and delivered is as this: L R Ls Rs hL hR hLs hRs (whereas h stand for high). Learn more about this configuration here: https://schoeps.de/en/products/surround-3d/ortf-3d/ortf-3d-outdoor-set.html

    Every file is embedded with UCS-compliant metadata, allowing for intuitive searching and streamlined integration into your workflow. The metadata includes detailed descriptors, location names, and environmental characteristics, making it easy to find the perfect ambience for any scene.

    A Timeless Collection for Any Project

     
    Whether you need the intimate quiet of a European alley or the expansive stillness of an Asian metropolis, Quiet Streets 3D provides a rich palette of urban soundscapes. This library is not just a collection of audio files—it’s a carefully curated journey through the subtleties of urban life, designed to enhance the emotional depth and spatial realism of your projects.

    With Quiet Streets 3D, you’re investing in a resource that will remain relevant across countless future projects.

    42 %
    OFF
    28 %
    OFF
    28 %
    OFF
  • 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.

  • Electricity Sound Effects Massive Thunder Play Track 616 sounds included, 217 mins total $29.99

    MASSIVE THUNDER – 616 files of Thunder sound effects, at varying distances and intensities. From low and slow rolling distant rumbles to violently fast and bombastic direct cracking impacts. Massive Thunder comes in at over 3 hours and 37 minutes of short and long scenes of thunder and lightning for every occasion. Recorded during several storm seasons and dozens of independent thunderstorms, with indoors and outdoors perspectives. Massive Thunder’s filenames are in the Universal Category System format with additional Metadata baked-in.

    Don’t need a Massive amount of Thunder and Lightning sound effects? We offer ‘Mini’ sound effect libraries as companions for all of our ‘Massive’ sound effect libraries. All recordings are unique to each library with no overlap. Go Mini today, and upgrade to the corresponding Massive library later, when you need more of that particular sound effect.

    40 %
    OFF
  • Car Sound Effects Jaguar XJ 2010 full size car Play Track 46 sounds included, 60 mins total $65

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


   

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