#Spider
-Man2 - The sounds of NYC come to life through many, many sonic layers. At street level the sounds of distant voices are recorded using ‘walla’ groups. This is a look at how we capture some of that.
@ValtheVoid
Yes! The Actors are pros at this. Sometimes we’ll give them some story points so they can riff on game events, but it’s largely improv. Natural, charming moments emerge. Lots of clusters mix to our mid-distant chatter, placed on pedestrian clusters in-world.
In the chair, Tyler Hoffman. Tyler is my sound designer that led our Haptics work. I don’t think many realize it’s the sound team that handle all those controller vibrations. Tyler did amazing work on Spider-Man 2, the dualsense will dance in your hands.
Our dialog team is remarkable. It’s a massive effort from start to finish, ensuring every line finds the right energy and cadence. And, what a cast! Simply the best. Here’s Yuri in the booth, perfecting a react.
#SpiderMan2
Marvels Spider-Man 2: way back when the wing suit was still a design glimmer, senior sound designer Herschel Bailey grabbed some balloon flaps on the fingers of our producer Jim Niemiec to add sonic color. Quick source grabs often work so well.
@VitoVerossimil
@ValtheVoid
It depends on a few factors, but storyflow musings are sometimes in the topic-bucket a pedestrian might choose to pull from. The pedestrians, if you approach, may switch (from walla when distant in a group ) to solo lines or simple conversations. The writing still charms me.
@EvanFilarca
Ultimate Spider-Man is still a favorite I worked on. The Venom back-break was me stepping on ice and egg shells. It was so satisfying to implement.
@Joe__Monty
Yeah - I’ve got a video somewhere of Tobey delivering a SpiderMan line in response to Scorpian: ‘those tailblasts hurt, but at least they don’t smell’. And he’s like, ‘oh, guys’. It was a good laugh. He was great in the studio.
This side of my studio is my WFH setup. I use Yamaha MSP5 powered speakers here, I’ve had them forever, they’re tough and fantastic. I think I originally got them as a robust PC speaker setup, and they just totally outclass their intended use. Love’em.
Found my old ‘ultimate spider-man’ sound design sessions. The ‘thwip’ sound was a combo of fabrese spray, ripping the stalks of Canna plants, and something I just slated as ‘goop’. Be descriptive in your slates, kidz.
I didn’t need another synth. Korg decided to blow out the opsix, and I couldn’t resist. I have a tx81z and an FS1r, so felt my FM studio needs were covered. But, the opsix is just remarkable in its approach, making FM incredibly tweak-able aside performance. A new favorite.
Congrats to ludvig Forssell on the win for best music/score for Death Stranding. Ludvig and team Kojima stopped by Insomniac on route to the show, and it was great sharing some time.
#TheGameAwards
Insomniacs Spider-Man was a joy to play. It felt very familiar to me, having worked on several Spidey games, but they really perfected the feel. Shocker sounds were a favorite.
@ValnarDragoness
We have a really great time. It’s always been thrilling. Even the simplest things just always manage to put a smile on my face. There’s one particular sound in the game… I smile every time I hear it. It’s simple, but so effective.
Spring cleaning - unearthed an old box of ADAT tapes that went missing during the DESCENT days. Also a bunch of akai floppys and ancient tape loads for a Korg Polysix and OBX. Time capsule.
Often, close your eyes, just breath deep and listen.
#gameaudiotip
but, lifetip really. Brian Fredrickson taught me that. One of the best sound designers I’ve ever had the pleasure to work beside.
#dogsofgameaudio
Molly, the Collie. She has loved sitting with me while playin’ games. Sadly, esophagus issues may soon spell the end. 😔. But, not today. She really wants to see me beat Returnal.
Working with this talented team was a highlight of my years at Microsoft. Finland was lovely. Also, I remember angry bird merch everywhere. Anyway - great gig for someone!:
Hey all - if you or know of any one that wants to join our awesome audio team for next summer's
@PlayStation
internship program and work with the dialog crew, apply for our internship here -
This was ready for my LA relo, where some of the best OG Oberheim techs reside - but covid delay’d the move. I couldn’t stand leaving this in its anvil any longer. It’s an 8 voice and needs tuning bad. I probably need to recap the power supply too. My bench isn’t big enough. Ha!
Horizon Zero Dawn took a bit to win me over, coming off of Spider-Man and Assassins Creed Odyssey's locomotion and pace of play. But, wow, I sure am glad I stayed to complete it. Fantastic journey.
@zbogucki
@insomniacgames
@SynthOrch
A massive responsibility. You delivered and surpassed every expectation. Fantastic work, every step of the way Spider-Pal. You know I’ll always love you for landing me those stealth head bonks.
@Jizity7
@EvanFilarca
Lucas nailed it! This pic is from the final mix sessions, but we’ve been in deep mix since beta. Mix days can be long, but so much fun.
NPC chatter in open worlds is a monumental task. Assasins Creed Odyssey excels at it, great min max attenuation, and absolutely sublime environmental ambient.
Crossing a few indies off my list I’ve been meaning to play. Edith Finch - wonderfully macabe, in a sort of Edward Gorey way. Excellent storytelling. In play now: Undertale.
Perfect Circuit giveaway: This place (Perfect Circuit) is synth Shangri-La. It's right down the road from Insomniac, and I felt like I'd entered the promised land.
@Kaizerwolf
Maybe! I’ve been looking for this box for years. I gave up. We moved offices at the time, I must have ran out and used one from home, these were buried under a bunch of C64 stuff.
Taking the elevator downstairs, doors start to close, a few jump in. Doors start to close again, a few more jump in. Elevator starts chiming. Doors close, it continues repeating its chime all the way to the ground floor. Clearly, that elevator was pissed.
@Jizity7
@EvanFilarca
We do. Mainly for continuity thru in-game for final mix. We have an amazing partner
@sweetjusticesnd
that craft the source and detail stems for all cines.
#PlayOverload
in VR, quite an experience. I remember when we were sent early experimental VR kits when we were working on DESCENT, early (uncomfortable) attempts at gameVR. But, wow, it's just so great now.