Surviving Audio Layoffs Asbjoern Andersen


Working in game audio offers fantastic opportunities for audio professionals, but game development is also a volatile industry where mass layoffs and sudden studio closures are all-too-frequent. How do you deal with a layoff in game audio? What are the crucial next steps to take? How do you bounce back? That's what we're looking to help with in this new series.

We're looking at it from a game audio perspective, but the vast majority of advice in this series will apply to anyone working in audio:


By Jennifer Walden and Asbjoern Andersen
Please share:
Part 1: Insights from Damian Kastbauer

Damian Kastbauer
In this first installment, we talk to Damian Kastbauer — a Software Product Manager at Audiokinetic who is currently working to grow Wwise audio authoring with help from the interactive audio community. He spent years as a technical sound designer bridging the gap between content creators and game engines, striving towards a realization of dynamic sound.

He is the co-founder of the Game Audio Podcast and author of a two-volume collection of articles titled “Tales of a Technical Sound Designer”

Here, Kastbauer shares his experience of and advice for surviving a layoff:

 

Change is Good


You hear it all the time, coupled with the realization that change is also: difficult, stressful, transformative, and ultimately a good thing. When a layoff comes around (as it has for me twice over the last 5 years since making the jump from freelance to in-house), it’s been equal parts frightening and exhilarating. Many of us have felt that “fear of the unknown” and been sent spiraling out-of-control towards dark places where employment and happiness don’t exist.

Meanwhile, the excitement of what challenges await are often enough to send the mind reeling in a million directions all at once towards a choose-your-own-adventure of possibilities that may exist in the real world. How one passes through this maelstrom of mega-meta-heaviness is a personal journey. Here are a few things that have helped me in my time.
 

Slow Down Time


Every moment counts, but you won’t get through a layoff by counting the moments. Whatever you can do to slow the feeling of time passing will be to your benefit. This doesn’t have to mean idleness and deliberation but you should recognize the opportunity to re-frame the flow of time now that you’ve been forcibly removed from the normalcy of the working-week. Watch the foliage sway for longer than you’d usually feel comfortable; take a prolific walk; build a routine around savoring the moments between being productive at job hunting.

You should recognize the opportunity to re-frame the flow of time now that you’ve been forcibly removed from the normalcy of the working-week

The first layoff I experienced found me rewiring my guitar effects pedalboard. The second afforded some time to give the upstairs bathroom a long-overdue glow-up. These focus-opportunities operate on two levels — they provide a space to work through the thoughts in your head in-between accomplishing a task and, if you’re lucky, the successful completion of said task will help reinforce your feelings of ability and competency.

When you look back at your time in between jobs, there should be some space where you allowed yourself to embrace the change quietly and contemplatively while also feeding a feeling of tiny victories and accomplishments.
 

Get Outside Your Head


Flooded with ideas, concerns, opportunities, potentials, and fear you might find yourself reaching a saturation point. There is only so much that a one-sided conversation inside your own head can advance these things during the process of finding a new way of life. Find people who can allow for your internal process to unfold in whatever way you’re able to express it.

There is only so much that a one-sided conversation inside your own head can advance these things during the process of finding a new way of life

These conversations might dead-end on a moment’s notice once spoken out-loud or more often be lent a valuable perspective from someone outside of the situation. Within the art of conversation there lies a delicate dance between output and input; make sure you’re spending as much time actively listening as you are translating the words rattling around in your head to speech. Find the right moments to jump off the deep end into these discussions and leave space in between for processing.

Regardless of what you take away from these conversations, be sure to honor the process by bringing your honesty into the equation and valuing the contributions of those you involve both personally and professionally.
 

[tweet_box]Guide: How to Survive a Game Audio Layoff – insights from Damian Kastbauer[/tweet_box]

Recognize Your Value


It’s difficult not to take a layoff personally. The feeling of rejection and being unneeded by an employer can strike a blow at a person’s vitality. While a business arrives at a layoff for a myriad of reasons, they are not often personally directed — which is to say that their decision to lay people off is not usually a reflection of the persons affected. Find a way to acknowledge and move through the feelings that accompany the change and recognize the contribution you bring to the industry. Take time to catalog your successes and use them as a jumping-off point in the direction of your next endeavor.

While a business arrives at a layoff for a myriad of reasons, they are not often personally directed — which is to say that their decision to lay people off is not usually a reflection of the persons affected

These accomplishments might just lead the way towards the next fulfilling opportunity, or at least help the healing process as you move forward.

A layoff doesn’t change the good work that you’ve done or the path that you’re on professionally; it is a moment of destabilization in a long-running career that stretches out before you.
 

Dream the Big Dream


Unshackled from the day-to-day, let your mind wander in the direction of pure bliss. Entertain the what-if scenarios you may have set aside while gainfully employed. Breathe life into the dreams that have been waiting in the wings for a chance to fly and imagine the possibilities. Build bridges to those desirable futures in whatever way you’re able; talk about potentials with colleagues and find clarity towards paths that might motivate your pursuit of these dreams. A layoff is a moment to employ the concept of radical acceptance; embrace the circumstances, look at your immediate surroundings, quickly come to terms with the current state of affairs, and be ready to meet the road as it rises to meet your feet.

Sometimes knowing the “what” can help shed light on the “how” when it comes to lining up the next thing. The more clarity you have on the question of where you want to end up, the easier it can be to chart a path to it.


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


Trending right now:

  • Seismic Core is a modern sound effects library crafted to give your sound design its defining foundation. Every element in this collection is built for layering. Designed not to dominate, but to enhance, shape, and energize your creations. Whether you’re working on cinematic hits, trailers, motion design, game audio, or abstract sonic branding, Seismic Core delivers the essential low-end weight, transient snap, and textured grit that bring your designs to life.

    These sounds are meticulously processed and polished, yet intentionally left with enough space to sit perfectly under your own layers. They’re bold enough to add instant character, but subtle enough to leave room for further creativity. This makes Seismic Core not just a toolkit, but a true starting point for powerful, flexible, and unique sound design.

    This collection of Building Blocks contains following categories:

    • IMPACT *
    • BREAK *
    • WHOOSH *
    • SUSTAIN *
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    * Also including HEAVY & SUB variants

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    Think You Don’t Need a Library of Toys? Think Again.

    This release might just change your mind—and blow your mind at the same time! TOYED is an exclusive sound library from the Founder of SoundMorph, Jason Cushing. With a 25-year career spanning AAA games, anime, cartoons, and film, Jason has designed for Electronic Arts, BioWare, and Epic Games, contributing to titles like the Mass Effect Trilogy, Skate Trilogy, and Unreal Engine’s weapon sound design. His deep expertise in cinematic sound design, UI creation, ambient textures, and weapons makes TOYED a versatile, high-end collection of professionally crafted sounds.
    Jason’s meticulous approach to field recording and sound selection ensures that this library isn’t just about capturing toy sounds—it’s about unlocking rich, unique sonic textures that are ideal for games, film, animation, and futuristic sound design. With contributions from longtime SoundMorph sound designers Andrew Pals, Tibo Csuko, and Vincent Fliniaux (GORE 2, WATER, Robotic Lifeforms 2), TOYED is built to deliver exceptional quality and usability across multiple production styles.

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    Inside, you’ll find a wide variety of magical types:
    🔥 Fire
    💧 Water
    🌪️ Air
    🌍 Earth
    Electricity
    ❄️ Ice
    ☠️ Poison, Mud, Rocks
    ✨ As well as Arcane, Dark, Monstrous, and other mystical spell types.

    Each category is organized into individual folders, with multiple variations for every spell, giving you complete flexibility to choose the perfect sound for each moment, All this makes a total of 44 different spells.
    Just like in Volume 1, every sound in this collection was recorded, edited, and mastered at 192 kHz / 24-bit, ensuring top-tier quality and adaptability—perfect for professional sound designers or anyone looking for drag-and-drop magical effects for games, trailers, animations, or any audio-visual production.

    More about the pack
    – Intuitive file naming
    – All you’ll ever need regarding magical sounds [Use them again & again
    – Use the sound effects over and over, in any of your projects or productions, forever without any additional fees or royalties. Use the SFX in your game, in your trailer, in a Kickstarter campaign, wherever you need to, as much as you want to.
    – Totally mono compatibility
    – All sounds have several variations.
    – Use your imagination and feel free to use any sound for a creature other than the one described, remember that the world of sound is totally subjective.
    – For any questions or problems: khronstudio@gmail.com

    Features
    – 405 spell sounds
    – Format: 192KHz / 24 bits
    – Win/Mac: Yes
    – Minutes of audio provided: 22:26

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    Excited Objects – a sound object library by Marc Hasselbalch


     

    Synthetic sources such as sinewaves and noisy, stochastic waveforms were routed to the transducer and is exciting objects such as long springs, pieces of scrap metal, a prepared mini-guitar and a cheese grater.
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    A large range of METAL SODA CAN Impacts, Friction, Hand Pats, Movement Foley, Crushing Sounds and much more…
    Recorded and processed at 192khz using MKE600, EM272 and Zoom F3 32-bit Float. 

    • Over 350 sounds! 
    • All assets have been processed including noise reduction
    • Over 15 minutes of content 
    • Universal Category System (UCS) Compliant 
    • Deliverables of 192khz, 24 bit, Stereo WAV files
    • Royalty-Free for Commercial Use 
    • Full Embedded Metadata 
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  • This sound library presents a rich collection of natural recordings from a mixed European forest in spring. Captured across several locations and times of day, it ranges from vibrant morning bird choruses to the gentle rustling of leaves and subtle nocturnal ambiences.

    The library includes distinct ambiences from early morning, morning, evening, late evening, and midnight hours — each with its own tonal character and wildlife activity.

    All sounds are provided in stereo format.

  • Ethno Instruments Urban Gongs Play Track 128 sounds included, 68 mins total $10.20

    Urban Gongs is a field recording collection of 128 sounds of metal and glass objects struck with a variety of mallets and hands and recorded with top end contact microphones and geophones.

    The results are rich and resonant gong like tones perfect for sound design, ambient compositions, cinematic soundscapes or adding unique character to your creative projects.

     

    Recorder : Sound Devices Mix Pre 10II and Zoom F3

    Microphones : LOM Geofon, Stille and Klang, Organic Audio Cjossul

    Microphone Perspective : Magnet and Contact

    Source Files – WAV Mono

    Grouped Files for Easy Reference Included

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Need specific sound effects? Try a search below:


Always be Preparing

Every conversation resonates. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, there is always a value to sharing your experience with other people. If you recognize the value of your contribution to conversations in the community, or within your personal relationships, you begin to build a support system that can help unlock some of the suggestions expressed throughout this article.

If you were at Game Developers Conference this year, there’s a high likelihood that I shared my process with you during a time when the unknown loomed like a cloud over my San Francisco experience

During my last layoff, I called on family, old friends, new friends, colleagues, and strangers to help me understand my career aspirations and job intentions. If you were at Game Developers Conference this year, there’s a high likelihood that I shared my process with you during a time when the unknown loomed like a cloud over my San Francisco experience. I valued being able to share my experience, and folks shared theirs’ in exchange, working towards a better understanding of how to align my dreams with the reality of a paycheck (which isn’t to say that any of these conversations resulted in a paycheck, necessarily). Sometimes timing doesn’t align with a person’s ability to help in a measurable way. Engaging with folks in these kinds of discussions should come with no expectations. It’s sometimes difficult to see the wheels turning behind-the-scenes and it’s important to value every discussion and bring your best self.

Recognize that your professional (and personal) journey with people doesn’t just happen between jobs; it’s a skill that needs to be cultivated throughout your career (and life) towards a better understanding of the world.
 

 

Start Right Away


It’s my hope that in years past I’ve been able to help support others on their quest for job security — whether this is by being a good listener, providing honest opinions and encouragement, or by putting folks directly in touch with others who might help them on their personal journey. Building a support system for a future destabilization starts by providing that support to others when they’re in need. Ideally, this support is easier to give during times when the stability of your own situation is well established, but even in the midst of upheaval, there are opportunities to be the quiet in another person’s storm and give them a lift towards their future.

Nothing about these suggestions suggests that any of this is easy; as they say, nothing worth doing ever is. In the long campaign of any career, the successes are measured by a single step in the right direction arriving eventually at one’s goal. Taking the time to understand where you’re headed when life gives you an opportunity to slow down, check-in with yourself, and read the signs will make the journey more pleasant and hopefully land you on-target. The people you involve along the way, how you engage, and how you honor and respect their perspectives can make all the difference.

A big thanks to Damian Kastbauer for sharing his insights and experiences on this oftentimes difficult subject! Meet him on Twitter here, and stay tuned for upcoming episodes in this series.

If you’ve got any input on how to cope with layoffs in game audio (or audio in general), please share your thoughts in the comments below:

 

 



Power Lists - essential audio resources and insights:

• The Sound Design Power List

• The Game Audio Power List

• The Film Sound Power List

 
  Succeed in sound:

• How to Set (and Get) the Right Price for Your Audio Work

• 10 Essential Tips for Game Audio Freelancers

• How to be a successful sound designer – with Scott Gershin

• How To Actually Live as an Audio Freelancer – by Melissa Pons

• How to set your sonic creativity free & overcome creative inhibitions – by Mark Kilborn

• 5 Useful Tips for Upcoming Sound Designers and Sound Editors

• Sound Opinions: How to get game audio pricing right

• Building a successful audio post studio – with Kate Finan and Jeff Shiffman

• Rebuilding your studio: Goals, tips and lessons learned

• Creating audio for games – with Martin Stig Andersen

• A life in sound: How to foster creativity and protect yourself from burning out – with Chance Thomas

• Better audio work habits: How a Wacom Tablet can help reduce the risk of Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI)

• Better audio work habits: How a sit & standing desk can reduce your sedentary studio life

• Tips and thoughts on running your own audio post production house – with William McGuigan

• 30+ year audio veteran Andy Greenberg, on building client relationships in the advertising industry

• 7 Sound Alternatives to Working For Free

• Audio Outsourcing Success: Essential Tips, Thoughts and Working Practices from Adele Cutting

 
 
The sound success series:

• How to succeed in UI/UX Sound Design, ADR Recording, & Audio Programming

• How to succeed in sound design for Film, Documentaries, and Trailers

• How to succeed in sound design for Games, Animation, and Television

How to succeed in Field Recording, Foley, and Teaching Sound

• How to succeed in Audio Branding, Music Editing, and sound for VR

• How to succeed in Theater Sound Design, Podcast Sound Design, and Podcast Production

• How to succeed in Sound Editing, Sound for Advertising, and Production Sound

• How to succeed in Sound Editing, Sound for Advertising, and Production Sound

• The Composer Success Series: Composing for Film – ft. Pinar Toprak, Nainita Desai, & Jonathan Snipes

• The Composer Success Series: Composing for TV – ft. Charlie Clouser, Sherri Chung, & Cindy O’Connor

• The Composer Success Series: Composing for Theatre – ft. Elyssa Samsel, Kate Anderson, and Daniel Kluger

• The Composer Success Series: Composing for Games – ft. Inon Zur

 
Breaking into audio – guides and resources:

• The ‘Quit Aspiring’ book – by Adam Croft

• How to get hired in game audio – thoughts and insights from your potential employer’s perspective

• Why gear is not the ticket to entry in the game audio community

• 4 Effective Ways to Break into Game Audio

• Tips for Creating a Perfect Resume for Audio Industry Jobs

• Yet Another Game Audio Hiring Article – by Ariel Gross

• 5 Tips for Getting a Job in the Audio Industry

• Applying for a job in game audio – by Matthew Florianz

• Freelance Game Audio: Getting Started and finding work – by Ashton Morris

• How to get started (and make it) in game audio – 10+ fundamental questions answered by Akash Thakkar

• Courses: How to network and get paid for your work in the game industry – by Akash Thakkar

• How to Craft a Perfect Cover Letter for Audio Industry Jobs
 
 
Finding those audio jobs:

• Get the weekly Audio Jobs newsletter

• Join the Audio Jobs Facebook group
 
 
Showcasing your work:
 
• Get a free profile on Soundlister

• Upload your demos to Soundcloud

• Upload your demos to ReelCrafter
 
 
Networking:
 
• Find game audio community groups around the world

• Find interesting audio events around the world

• Find other audio pros around the world
 
 
Coping with a layoff - and how to bounce back:

• How to prepare for – and power through – a layoff in the game audio industry, with Brian Schmidt:

• How to Survive a Game Audio Layoff – insights from Damian Kastbauer

• What it’s like to be laid off from your video game studio

• What To Do Before and After Being Laid Off

• Facebook Group: Survival Skills for Creatives
 
 
Education and knowledge:
 
• Get an audio mentor at the Audio Mentoring Project

• How To Learn Game Audio Online – A talk with Game Audio Educator Leonard Paul

• Hear the very best podcasts about sound

• Read the 100s of sound stories and guides on the A Sound Effect blog (search for stories here)

• Browse Industry Data: Game Music and Sound Design Salary Survey Results

• Browse 100+ Sound Design Guides

• Find essential books about sound – for film, games and audio post production

• Get tips and ideas for making your own sound effects

• Use the Audio Events Calendar to find audio-related events around the globe

• Get a steady stream of great sound stories from the community

• Discover 1000s of sound libraries from the independent sound community

• Take online courses in Wwise, FMOD Studio, Unity, Pure Data & Unreal at the School of Video Game Audio
 
 
Getting into independent sound effects:
 
• DIY SFX libraries - Your guide to your first sound effects library

• Sound effects survey results: Here are 90+ ideas for new SFX libraries

• How to create an indie sound bundle

• The quick-start guide to adding sound FX library metadata
 

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:

  • Seismic Core is a modern sound effects library crafted to give your sound design its defining foundation. Every element in this collection is built for layering. Designed not to dominate, but to enhance, shape, and energize your creations. Whether you’re working on cinematic hits, trailers, motion design, game audio, or abstract sonic branding, Seismic Core delivers the essential low-end weight, transient snap, and textured grit that bring your designs to life.

    These sounds are meticulously processed and polished, yet intentionally left with enough space to sit perfectly under your own layers. They’re bold enough to add instant character, but subtle enough to leave room for further creativity. This makes Seismic Core not just a toolkit, but a true starting point for powerful, flexible, and unique sound design.

    This collection of Building Blocks contains following categories:

    • IMPACT *
    • BREAK *
    • WHOOSH *
    • SUSTAIN *
    • TRANSIENT (high and low)

     

    * Also including HEAVY & SUB variants

    Build with it. Layer on top of it. Drop the anchor. Feel the quake. Design from the core.

    25 %
    OFF
  • Step into a world of spells, mysticism, and creative power with Spells Variations Vol. 2, the follow-up to our acclaimed magical sound collection. This time, we’ve expanded the elemental and thematic range, offering 405 professionally crafted sound effects that are fully categorized and ready to use.
    Inside, you’ll find a wide variety of magical types:
    🔥 Fire
    💧 Water
    🌪️ Air
    🌍 Earth
    Electricity
    ❄️ Ice
    ☠️ Poison, Mud, Rocks
    ✨ As well as Arcane, Dark, Monstrous, and other mystical spell types.

    Each category is organized into individual folders, with multiple variations for every spell, giving you complete flexibility to choose the perfect sound for each moment, All this makes a total of 44 different spells.
    Just like in Volume 1, every sound in this collection was recorded, edited, and mastered at 192 kHz / 24-bit, ensuring top-tier quality and adaptability—perfect for professional sound designers or anyone looking for drag-and-drop magical effects for games, trailers, animations, or any audio-visual production.

    More about the pack
    – Intuitive file naming
    – All you’ll ever need regarding magical sounds [Use them again & again
    – Use the sound effects over and over, in any of your projects or productions, forever without any additional fees or royalties. Use the SFX in your game, in your trailer, in a Kickstarter campaign, wherever you need to, as much as you want to.
    – Totally mono compatibility
    – All sounds have several variations.
    – Use your imagination and feel free to use any sound for a creature other than the one described, remember that the world of sound is totally subjective.
    – For any questions or problems: khronstudio@gmail.com

    Features
    – 405 spell sounds
    – Format: 192KHz / 24 bits
    – Win/Mac: Yes
    – Minutes of audio provided: 22:26

    45 %
    OFF
    Ends 1754776800
  • Charge up on magical energy with our Spells Variations Vol 1 sound library! We’ve designed this collection to give you a wide range of magical effects, allowing your project to shine with an extraordinary variety of sounds. With 361 fully categorized and carefully named magic sounds, you’ll have everything you need to create an immersive and magical atmosphere.

    Explore categories such as arcane magic, water magic, electric magic, zaps, whooshes, celestial magic, dark magic, summons, and much more. Each effect has been meticulously recorded,edited and distributed at 192 kHz and 24-bit, ensuring exceptional sound quality. Whether you’re a professional sound designer or just looking for magic effects to drag and drop into your projects, you’ll find what you need here.

    Our files have been named to reflect the essence of each magic, making it easy to intuitively find the perfect sounds for your creation.

    More about the pack
    – Intuitive file naming
    – All you’ll ever need regarding magical elemental sounds [Use them again & again
    Use the sound effects over and over, in any of your projects or productions, forever without any additional fees or royalties. Use the SFX in your game, in your trailer, in a Kickstarter campaign, wherever you need to, as much as you want to.
    – Totally mono compatibility
    – All sounds have several variations.
    – Use your imagination and feel free to use any sound for a creature other than the one described, remember that the world of sound is totally subjective.
    – For any questions or problems: khronstudio@gmail.com

    Features
    – 361 spell sounds
    – Number of Audio Waves: 361
    – Format: 192KHz / 24 bits
    – Do Sound FX loop yes
    – Minutes of audio provided: 12 minutes and 31 seconds

    45 %
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    Ends 1754776800
Explore the full, unique collection here

Latest sound effects libraries:
 
  • EXCITED OBJECTS is a sound library of rather abrasive metal textures recorded using metal objects and a surface transducer, recorded with contact microphone and guitar pickup.



    Excited Objects – a sound object library by Marc Hasselbalch


     

    Synthetic sources such as sinewaves and noisy, stochastic waveforms were routed to the transducer and is exciting objects such as long springs, pieces of scrap metal, a prepared mini-guitar and a cheese grater.
    Some seperately, some in combination.

    The library is provided in 96kHz/24bit with UCS filenames and relevant metadata.

    25 %
    OFF
  • Destruction & Impact Sounds METAL CANS Play Track 200+ sounds included, 15 mins total $7

    A large range of METAL SODA CAN Impacts, Friction, Hand Pats, Movement Foley, Crushing Sounds and much more…
    Recorded and processed at 192khz using MKE600, EM272 and Zoom F3 32-bit Float. 

    • Over 350 sounds! 
    • All assets have been processed including noise reduction
    • Over 15 minutes of content 
    • Universal Category System (UCS) Compliant 
    • Deliverables of 192khz, 24 bit, Stereo WAV files
    • Royalty-Free for Commercial Use 
    • Full Embedded Metadata 
    13 %
    OFF
  • This sound library presents a rich collection of natural recordings from a mixed European forest in spring. Captured across several locations and times of day, it ranges from vibrant morning bird choruses to the gentle rustling of leaves and subtle nocturnal ambiences.

    The library includes distinct ambiences from early morning, morning, evening, late evening, and midnight hours — each with its own tonal character and wildlife activity.

    All sounds are provided in stereo format.

  • Ethno Instruments Urban Gongs Play Track 128 sounds included, 68 mins total $10.20

    Urban Gongs is a field recording collection of 128 sounds of metal and glass objects struck with a variety of mallets and hands and recorded with top end contact microphones and geophones.

    The results are rich and resonant gong like tones perfect for sound design, ambient compositions, cinematic soundscapes or adding unique character to your creative projects.

     

    Recorder : Sound Devices Mix Pre 10II and Zoom F3

    Microphones : LOM Geofon, Stille and Klang, Organic Audio Cjossul

    Microphone Perspective : Magnet and Contact

    Source Files – WAV Mono

    Grouped Files for Easy Reference Included

    Documentation Included : Copyright, EULA, Images, Metadata (exported in multiple formats)

    Metadata : Files are stamped with detailed UCS compliant metadata in Soundminer, including pictorial references.

    Urban Gongs Sound Library
    15 %
    OFF
  • The Urban Gun Acoustics sound effects library features gunshots from 3 weapons in 6 different industrial spaces.


   

3 thoughts on “Guide: How to Survive a Game Audio Layoff – insights from Damian Kastbauer

  1. Thank you for sharing this Damian, that was a refreshing outlook on a difficult situation that many of us can relate to. If anyone reading this has never gone through it then especially take this guidance to heart.

  2. Thanks again, Damian.

    There are two kinds of people, and I don’t like to finish this sentence. Nonetheless, you, Damian, are distinguished by your willingness to offer a heart as well as an ear, and even sometimes a hand, and this lovely article is an illustration of that.

    My favorite bit:

    True and happy news that the layoffs aren’t often personal. Time the Great Healer shows that over and over, and we can waste energy on bitter and ungrateful thoughts. We’re actually very likely in an excellent position, with Life taking care of us in ways we can’t possibly understand. But something inside fights the recognition of that; some lurking idea as kooky as it is that we “ought to have kept that job.” And probably every job we’ve ever had. And car. And significant other. And pet. And guitar. And t-shirt. And think of what a mess our houses would be _then!_

    “Acceptance of insecurity is Wisdom.” –Alan Watts

    “May they be healthy, happy, joyous, and free” –a nice little prayer to free you from any lingering anger at “Those People!”

    Thanks, Sir.

    -George (having a little moment of asking myself if I am actually telling the truth when I click in the “I’m not a robot” box…) :D

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