1. The role of the Audio Engineer is important to the production of any video game,
they are required to compose and create the music, sound effects and any other
sounds that the video game requires, when composing music the Audio Engineer
must take into account that video games are non-linear so they must be creative
with their composing when scoring the soundtrack.
Key Skills Required:
One of the main skills that are needed from an Audio Engineer is the ability to
compose music, as the Audio Engineer could be called upon to compose music at
any given time, so this is a core skill that is needed.
They must also be knowledgable in a variety of different software packages which
are commonly used for audio production and editing, this is because different
projects with different companies may have different software than you are used to,
they expect you to be knowledgable of it.
You need to be able to pay close attention to every detail, with sound effects if you
leave out the smallest sound the game isnʼt going to sound realistic and it could ruin
the experience of the game if sound is missing. When composing music you must
also pay attention to detail, you need to capture the mood and atmosphere
effectively and transfer that into music.
Ways To Enter The Job Role:
Having a musical background is crucial into getting a job as an Audio Engineer,
getting into the music industry is a good way to get a job as an Audio Engineer,
even if itʼs just recording artists and mixing music for a few years to get experience,
this is an effective way to enter the job role as you would have built up a big
portfolio to show your talents and experience.
Another way to build up your portfolio is to do contract work or “Freelance”, doing
this not only boosts up your portfolio but shows companies that you are an
independent worker and you can be given a brief and work to it effectively and that
is something that game studios are looking for, someone who can be given a task
and get on with it. It also shows that you can complete work on time.
A Contribution Made By An Audio Engineer To A Triple A Title:
Guatavo Santaolalla composed the music for “The Last of Us”, he worked hard on
his soundtrack paying close attention to every minor detail. This game has a lot of
emotion and atmosphere in it and he managed to capture it within the music that he
had created, using silence effectively also when appropriate to further add depth to
the game on an emotional level. Heʼd have the director of the game discussing the
game with him and showing him the levels so he can straight away tell him ideas he
had to get feedback on them, heʼs an independent thinker and works well on his
own and in a team, which is critical for game production.
Audio Engineer