Game Audio Production with Wwise is an exploration of the world of video games using Audiokinetic’s Wwise, a powerful and accessible middleware tool for integrating audio into a game. This course utilizes an isometric third-person video game (Wizard Nightmare) that you will fill with your own music, voice, and sound. The course is focused on the creative process of designing unique audio as well as the practical challenges of putting the content into a game. Understanding this workflow is essential to becoming a better designer for interactive media.
Video game creation is a rapidly evolving industry that continually benefits from new technology and expanding demographics. While big AAA games enjoy larger audio teams, it is not uncommon for smaller- to mid-size game projects to rely on a single person to do most or all of the audio content creation. This course will prepare you to handle all of the major aspects of creating game audio: from pre-production and script preparation to dynamic music composition, and from foley recording to technical implementation skills and interactive mixing.
By the end of the course, you will be able to:
- Create audio and integrate it into commercial games
- Compose music that changes dynamically in response to game events
- Design unique sound, dialog, and creature voices to bring a game to life
- Use the many powerful features of Audiokinetic’s Wwise authoring tool
Syllabus
Lesson 1: Setting up your Game Audio Production Environment
- Game Production Roles
- Game Development Software
- Audio Middleware
- File Organization and Data Backup
- File Management Tips
Lesson 2: Pre-Production
- Defining Your Sound
- Audio Design Goals
- Imitate or Innovate
- Spotting
- Planning It Out: Organizing Your Time and Effort
- Creating a Schedule
- Designing a Mockup
Lesson 3: Ambience
- Telling a Story with Background Sound
- Creating Ambience
- Defining the Boundaries
- Slicing Up the Loop
- Dynamic Elements in Ambient Sound Design
- Creating Sounds to Blend with Ambience
Lesson 4: Sound Design
- Capture your Sounds
- Foley
- A Noisy Library
- Searching for Sounds
- Software Plugins
- Interactive Sounds
Lesson 5: Adaptive Music
- Using Temp Scores to Explore the Effect of Music on Games
- Temp Music
- What Makes Music “Adaptive”?
- Parameters and Switches
- Adaptive Composition Strategies
- Temp to Real Score
- Low Health Music
- Adding a Vertical Layer
- Extending Your Music
Lesson 6: Composing a Musical Maze
- Horizontal Approach
- Adding a Horizontal Layer
- Codecs
- Creating a Conversion Settings Share Set
- Playlists
- Musical QA
- Checking Your Transitions
- Trade-Offs
Lesson 7: Stingers, Transitions, and Custom Cues
- Mind the Gap: Understanding and Working with Transitions
- Transition Examples
- Musical Glue: Creating Your Own Transition
- Musical Explanation Points: Working with Stingers
- Identifying Stingers
- Getting Crafty with Custom Cues
- Composing a Stinger
Lesson 8: Dialog
- The Voice of the Game: An Overview of Dialog Needs in a Game
- Spotting for Dialog
- Preparing for a Recording Session
- Script and Studio Prep
- Working with Actors
- Preparing Dialog for the Game
- Editing and Processing
Lesson 9: Horror Ambience and Music
- Setting Up Limbo
- Foley Performance
- Visceral Sound
- Designing Fear
- Implementing Fear
- Sound Design and Music
Lesson 10: Interactive Music
- Video Game Genre Aesthetics
- Plugins and Synthesizers for Horror Music
- The Power of RTPCs
- Integrating Music into Wwise that Responds to the Tension Parameter
- Composing Stingers for Horror
Lesson 11: Mixing
- Traditional Mixing vs. In-Game Mixing
- Runtime Effects
- Assigning Individual Events to Groups
- HDR (High Dynamic Range) Mixing Systems and Surround Sound
- Memory Management, Voices, Platforms, and Localization
Lesson 12: Getting a Gig
- Capturing Game Footage to Make a Demo
- Comparing an Original Audio Mockup to the Final Audio Demo
- Showcasing Your Skills and Personality on Your Website
- Audio Demo Reels
- Networking
Requirements
Prerequisites and Course-Specific Requirements
Prerequisite Courses, Knowledge, and/or Skills
Completion of one of the following courses Pro Tools 101, Pro Tools 110, Producing Music with Logic, Producing Music with Cubase, Ableton Live Fundamentals, or equivalent knowledge and experience is required.
- Basic experience recording with a microphone and computer
- Familiarity with basic audio concepts like sample rates, file formats, and compression
- Ability to write music in a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation)
- Ability to install new software and troubleshoot problems
- Ability to capture computer screen movies using a program like Screenflow or Fraps
- Basic skills with video editing, compression, and file transferring
Textbook(s)
- Unity v2022.3 manual
- Wwise v2023 manual
- Recommended: The Game Audio Strategy Guide: A Practical Course by Gina Zdanowicz and Spencer Bambrick (Focal Press, 2019)
Software
- Full-featured Digital Audio Workstation (DAW), such as Pro Tools (Studio or Ultimate), Logic Pro, Cubase Pro, Ableton Live (Suite or Standard), Reaper, Reason, or FL Studio (Producer or Signature). Note that GarageBand is not acceptable.
- Audiokinetic Wwise 2022.1.4.8202 (free for educational/noncommercial use)
- Note: Installation instructions and considerations outlined in the course after enrolling
- Unity 2022.3.3f1 (free personal edition)
- Note: Installation instructions and considerations outlined in the course after enrolling
- Software to record computer screen and audio, such as OBS
Hardware
- MIDI keyboard controller
- One of the following studio monitoring options (both recommended):
- Studio monitors (pair), such as JBL 305Ps or better, as well as an audio interface and necessary cables
- Over-ear studio headphones, such as Sennheiser HD 600, Sony MDR-7506, Philips SHP9500, Audio-Technica ATH-M50x, etc.
- Mobile recording rig capable of capturing high-quality audio. Options include:
- Portable field recorder, such as Zoom H4N Pro (recommended option)
- External microphone attachment connected to a smartphone
- XLR microphone and audio interface connected to a laptop or smartphone
- USB microphone connected to a laptop or smartphone
Important Technical/System Considerations
- For Windows users: Windows 10. Please note:
- Surface Pro tablets/laptops are not recommended.
- Projects may not be compatible with Windows 11 at this point.
- DirectX 11 or higher
- For Mac users: macOS 11 Big Sur
- Silicon Macs will require Rosetta
- Note: Software used in this course may not be compatible with macOS 12 Monterey or higher at this point.
- Students are responsible for ensuring their system can run the required software. See Unity's system requirements.
- At least 16 GB of memory
- A minimum of 500 GB of unused storage space (an external SSD is recommended)
Student Deals
After enrolling, be sure to check out our Student Deals page for various offers on software, hardware, and more. Please contact support@online.berklee.edu with any questions.
General Course Requirements
Below are the minimum requirements to access the course environment and participate in Live Classes. Please make sure to also check the Prerequisites and Course-Specific Requirements section above, and ensure your computer meets or exceeds the minimum system requirements for all software needed for your course.
Mac Users
PC Users
All Users
- Latest version of Google Chrome
- Zoom meeting software
- Webcam
- Speakers or headphones
- External or internal microphone
- Broadband Internet connection
Instructors
Author & Instructor
James Morrell is a composer who is passionate about creating highly intuitive music to elevate storytelling and emotional amplitude. Working across, film, game, and advertising he brings a wealth of current industry knowledge and a unique approach to creative problem solving in software.
Author
Gina Zdanowicz is an Emmy-Nominated sound designer and music composer for games, film, and TV. Her love for video games, sound, and technology began at a very early age and grew into a decade-long career in the games industry.
After graduating from Berklee College of Music with a degree in music synthesis, Gina focused on a career in game audio, working in-house for game developers as well as operating her own independent sound studio, Serial Lab Studios. Her work can be heard on more than 100 game titles from award-winning AAA games to casual games such as Just Cause 3, Bioshock2, The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, CrimeCraft, and Runeward, to name a few.
In addition to her work in games, Gina continues to score feature films and TV projects, which have won awards around the world and have premiered on networks such as Nickelodeon and Comedy Central. She currently resides in New Jersey, just outside of NYC, where she creates game audio for clients worldwide. Read Less
Instructor
What's Next?
When taken for credit, Game Audio Production with Wwise can be applied towards the completion of these related programs:
Related Certificate Programs
Related Degree Majors
Related Music Career Roles
Employers look for skills learned in this course, when hiring for the following music career roles:
Questions?
Contact our Academic Advisors by phone at 1-866-BERKLEE (U.S.), 1-617-747-2146 (INT'L), or by email at advisors@online.berklee.edu.
