Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1538144
getting strong tech support for debugging from your programming team is key. So many things are adjusted or broken during the game design process that having tools to help diagnose points of failure is essential for making progress. I've been lucky to work on a few projects where we had embedded audio programmers or technical sound designers who built tools that sped up every aspect of my workflow. The Joy of Creative Variety Can you speak to your favorite part of the job, or any work you've done that you're especially proud of? CAG: I think my favorite part of the job is the balance between creative and technical work, along with getting to collaborate across so many different disciplines. Some days, I might be working directly with music, trying to get a cinematic edit to work with multiple pieces cobbled together. Other days, I'm spending all my time scripting and figuring out how to set up a system for a unique part of the gameplay. I find that I work best when I have multiple types of tasks to bounce between, and music design gives me that variety. Interactive Editing and Collaboration Building Music That Reacts "If you try to make systems that react to everything, it'll just be a mess. Being selective and intentional is really important." –Colin Andrew Grant Games are inherently nonlinear. How do you approach building music systems that can respond to player input, combat intensity, or narrative branching? CAG: You have to first establish what your music system is trying to convey and why. If you try to make systems that react to everything, it'll just be a mess, so being selective and intentional is really important. Are there gameplay mechanics like stealth or fear that are core to the experience? Do you have a specific collection of music for when you jump on a horse because that sense of open exploration is important to what the game wants players to experience? Deciding certain rules for specific gameplay loops, like the different phases of combat or a recurring puzzle type, lets you home in on what's important. This means collaborating with a programmer for code support, aligning your intent with other departments, and having open conversations with your music and audio directors and the composer. Once those systems are set, you also get to think about when you want to bend or even break those rules. Cross-Department Sync "Having a good audio director who fosters open communication really helps you stay aware of who else you're working with." –Colin Andrew Grant How do you collaborate across departments—especially with dialogue editors and sound designers—to ensure the score enhances the experience without competing with other key elements? CAG: Open communication between departments, having a set of mixing standards from the beginning, and a good audio director or mixer are all key. Being proactive about ways the department can work together or calling out areas that may need extra care in the mix early on, helps enhance the player experience and mitigates last-minute issues. I worked on a level where the wind was supposed to sound musical. I got to collaborate with the composer and the sound designer on the level to align our intent, and it became one of my favorite sections of the game to work on. That collaboration happened so smoothly because there was a spirit of open dialogue and communication on the audio team. It can be really easy to get siloed in your own sub-discipline when working, so having a good audio director who fosters that kind of environment really helps you stay aware of who else you're working with. An example of a Wwise project (© all rights reserved Audiokinetic). An example of how a music edit might be organized in REAPER (© all rights reserved Cockos Incorporated). 36 M PS E . O R G