Task 2 Pt 1

1. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
Game Title DeadIslandOpeningCutscene
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQWdcwaiiKU
(0:18) – (2:25)
(Sorryfor some badwords)
Provide detailed descriptions from chosen examples that establish… Clearly state what production technique(s) you think have
been used to create specific soundtrack elements
Setting The settingduringthissequenceschangesmultipletimes.Rightatthe start we can
hearcricketsand otherinsectsinthe backgroundwhichsuggestthatthispersonis
outside,maybe somewhere abroadasyoudon’ttendto hear those soundsaround
here.Rightafterthiswe heara rappersingingandthe noise of the insectsdie off
suggestingthatthe character isnowinside aclubor partyand was walkingthere
duringthe beginning. At1:12 we hear a thud kindof noise thatindicatesthatthe
character isnow onthe floordue tofallingoverorbeingpusheddownbyanother
person.Againat1:22 we hear anotherthudsoundbutin thiscase it’sclear that
someone hashitthe character. Nextourcharacter walksawayfrom the clubbut
doesn’tgoback outside asthe musicfadesawaybut we don’thear the soundof
insectseither,insteadwe hearadoor openingandthe soundof runningwaterand
splashingwhichsuggestthe characterisbackin hisownroom or ina bathroom.The
locationisthenmade clearto us due to the narrationas a womansays“thisis the
women’srestroom”. Finallyatthe endwe hearyetanotherthud tellingusthatthe
character isnow once againon the floor,forgood thistime butthe locationis
unknowntous.
The insectsat the beginningcouldhave beenfield
recordedusinganindustrypiece of equipmentto
give the game an authenticsoundorit couldhave
beencreatedbya Foleyartistwhowouldhave
listenedtomanysoundsandthencreatedtheir
ownbasedoff the others.Nextare the thud
soundswhichalsocouldhave beenfieldrecorded
as it isn’ta hard soundto produce butcouldhave
againbeencreatedby a Foleyartistasit couldbe
quickerbecause tryingtorecordthe soundcould
take a lotof triesto get itperfect.
Mood Our characters moodisthat theyare chilledoutatthe beginningasotherpeople
are aggressive towardsthemthroughnarrative butthe characterdoesn’tshowany
signsof aggressionback.We also knowthatour character is drunkat thistime due
to narrative “lookslike you’vehadenough” andthe thudssuggestingthattheykeep
fallingover.Finallythe characterdoesbecome aggressive,Iknowthisbecause at
2:08 someone asksthe characterif theyare okayand 2 secondslaterwe hearthe
soundof air swishinganda thudindicatingthatthe character has become hostile
and pushedthispersontothe flooror againsta wall.
The main wayinwhichthe moodisshownis
throughnarrative meaningthatitwas mostlikely
studiorecorded.IhadalreadymentionedhowI
thinkthe thudswere createdandI personally
thinkthat the swishingsoundcouldhave been
createdinthe same way, eitherfieldrecordedor
createdby a Foleyartist.

2. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
Game genre From thiscut scene youcan’t reallydetermine the game genre.The onlyindication
that youget isat 1:37-1:38 where youheara growl/groanfroma humansuggesting
that somethingbadhas happened andalsowhenlisteningtothe songin the
backgrounditleaveshintsasto whatthe game isabout (0:48-0:53) talksabout
cannibalismandzombies butapartfromthat there wouldbe nootherwayto figure
thisout inmy opinion.
The soundsthat indicate the genre are mostlikely
studiorecordedandtheneditedpostproduction,
the rappersvoice may have beengivenanechoto
simulate thatitisquite a large place where he is
meaningthathe is famous/important.The music
itself couldhave beencreatedusing aMIDI
instrumentorrecordedfroma real musicianwho
performedthistobe recordedforthe game.
Narrative The narrative duringthisscene isgenerallyaggressivetowardsthe characterexcept
for the guywho offerstoleadusback to our room.Howeveronly4 of the
characters inthisscene hasa couple linestosayinsteadof justa fewandI feel that
these are the maincharacters of the game beingintroducedtouswithoutuseven
knowing.The firstcharacterwe meetisat 0:38-0:46 whoisaggressive towardsthe
character but we learnthathe has a sportinghistorydue tohisdialogue.The second
character we meetisat 1:19-1:23 whoisalsoaggressive towardsthe characterbut
fromthiswe can assume thatshe doesn’tenjoygettingdrunkasshe sounded
completelysober.The thirdcharacteristhe man that triesto helpusbut we suggest
somethingbadhappenedto himdue tothe growl.The last characteris the women
inthe restroomandfromher dialogue we canlearnthatshe iscaring,considerate
but likestofollowthe rules.
I feel like all the dialogue wasrecordedinastudio
and maybe laterchangedslightly bya
professionaltomake the charactersvoicessound
exactlylike theywantedto.