Sometimes the music can mean an ungodly creature is running upon you, and other times it can be a complete fake-out or a subtle cue. You’re forced to deal with the audio trauma and work through it, all while it gets louder and more imposing. When horror music gets loud and uncomfortable, it can almost become a character in the game itself. You don’t want to stand around and search for clues when the music playing makes you feel like your demise could be around any corner. Ambient tunes can paint a terrifying picture for any location, making it that much harder to accomplish your objectives. Horror games can push your discomfort a step further with chilling music to set the mood. It’s not all about the smart use of sound effects, though. It’s a gameplay mechanic that’ll make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, once again proving how important good sound design is. No matter how much you don’t want to listen to these whispers, you’re forced to get up-close-and-personal to hear what they have to offer. The whispers of the dead fill some of the game’s locations, and a few of the things they’re saying will provide clues on what to do next. Paying close attention to the game’s audio can actually help you on your adventure, all while creeping you out at the same time. You’ll get all the creaky stairs and sudden thuds that you’d expect from a horror game, but The Medium goes a step further. Once again though, it’s the audio that’s the star of the show. This is another game filled to the brim with genre tropes, from unsettling locations to a creepy cast of characters.
#Binaural audio spooky series
The same can be said for The Medium, a psychological horror that just launched for Xbox Series X and S. They heighten the experience to a whole new level, filling you with dread and a general unease for the length of the demo. You never know when these sharp, petrifying audio drops are coming, and they’ll instantly give you chills down your spine. The slamming of doors, the shaking of chains, the screams of the less fortunate. As you work your way through the unfamiliar setting, you’ll hear the laughs of occupants hiding somewhere in the castle’s walls. It’s the demo’s audio that really sells the scariness here. You’re left to explore seemingly abandoned environments with dim lighting and dank nooks and crannies. Truth be told, there’s not much in the way of scares that come from the vampire brood.
While the demo is quick, it packs in a ton of spooky set pieces for you to stumble upon. The importance of audio in a horror game is very much on display in the Resident Evil Village “Maiden” demo. Happening upon them no longer scares you, and their attacks become quite predictable. Your first zombie encounter in any Resident Evil game is something you’ll take with you forever, but an hour or two into the adventure and zombies have become commonplace. The thing is, the more often you see a giant vampire woman or hideous monster, the more acclimated you’ll become. It’s always going to be a frightening experience to have grotesque creatures jumping out at you. Take a game like Resident Evil Village, for example. Horror audio can take a scary journey and turn it into a nightmare-inducing hellscape. When a horror game manages to nail the audio side of things, it can result in giving a player a feeling that no other experience has. Your standard racing game can be brought to life with realistic car audio, and a sports game can feel way more intense thanks to the cheering crowd and calls from teammates, but horror games can live or die through their audio presentation. Made even more intense when paired with a great headset.Ĭountless genres offer up amazing soundscapes for players to dive into, but horror games may very well be the ones that benefit most. This is because great game audio has the ability to transform an experience into something you’ll never forget. Knowing some audiences don’t pay attention to, or completely miss out on the immense amount of work that goes into game audio is truly disappointing. It’s hard for a player to ignore the flashy on-screen action and sophisticated mechanics on display, but a game’s audio can disappear into the background of an experience. To some, it comes across as nothing more than window dressing. Audio is often one of the most overlooked aspects in video games by players.
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