Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1524863
72 M PS E . O R G and rope. Then came the swirling backgrounds which were composed of vocal whispers, screams, reverb tails, and tonal synth abstractions. We implemented the backgrounds as quads and they really filled the space. Blake Johnson's mix was crucial in the final release. My previs mix was for a linear format and translating that to 3D audio and still have it retain the energy was a challenge. There were many iterations, but Blake cracked it. We got buy-in from the leads and directors for dropping out the music entirely the first time we experienced it in-game and that made a dramatic difference. Out of this session came all the sounds for the black suit and the symbiote faction. Blake Johnson and Daniele Carli used the session as a launch pad for the playable Venom sound design and the Venom boss respectively. They took the sounds and created their own special versions—a great collaboration. All this sound design wouldn't be as effective had Yuri Lowenthal's performance not been as brilliant as it was in capturing Pete's descent. His performance added humanity and weight to the character. Yuri's Peter Parker reached iconic status with this interpretation. I've been lucky to work with Yuri on several games, and he's fantastic! Can we discuss the two very different sonic palettes for Peter Parker and Miles Morales? How did you differentiate their soundscapes to reflect their unique abilities and personalities? Johannes Hammers: Creating a unique sonic palette for each hero was the primary focus for combat audio. We started with different impacts and kinetic movement sounds for Pete and Miles, including both of their special abilities and finishers. Zack Bogucki from Sony Creative Arts was my right hand for all things hero combat. Pete has his Iron Arms which feature more tech- leaning servos, metallic textures, and very punchy impacts. I used everything from forklifts to hair dryers to craft his Iron Arms and avoided the blade-shing wherever I could. Miles' bioelectricity was created using recordings of layers of cellophane stretched tight, lightning sounds and a plug-in chain that featured distortion, comb filters, flangers, and envelope followers. To further their uniqueness, Zack created different sounds for the different suits, for example, the Captain America-inspired Civil War suit has a unique web-wing deploy sound and I created a bespoke Iron Arm finisher for Miles' specific Advanced Tech suit. Pete's finishers are also very character- driven. Miles' finishers have tonal synth elements and very abstract