The importance of Music and Sound FX in Games

The main function of game sound & music is to engage and immerse the player within the game environment, whilst also reflecting and heightening the emotional state of the player.

Depending on the game, the realism of the sounds determine if the player will be less or more into the game itself.

Ambient Sounds:

For example, in GTA V the ambient sound is very crucial in order to get the player to feel like he/she really immersed and engaged in the game, without this stimuli the realism is lost. Because GTA V is an open world sandbox based game, it's main ambient sounds are of cars, police/firefighter/ambulance siren(s), pedestrian walking and interacting, wind, birds and other natural sounds you would hear if you were on the street. Ambient sound can also be used to alert the player to approaching and potential danger.
Typical ambient music:

• Should be uncomplicated, simple and quiet
• Lingers almost unnoticed in the soundscape
• Does not disturb the player

Dialogue:

The dialogue is also an essential part of games. Dialogue features heavily in cinematic intros, cut-scenes and often during gameplay. It may be used to set the scene and to establish the story and the character's development. In the game 'The Sims 3', as the avatar interacts with other avatars, they often talk (not in English) and this makes the game more realistic because if two avatar were talking and no sound would be produced, then it would hinder the game and the player's interaction with the game itself. In 'GTA V' cut-scenes, the avatar is always interacting with someone/something. Usually this means the avatar talks and speech can be heard relevant to the gameplay.

Gameplay music:

An example of gameplay music would be in 'Resident Evil 2'. Whenever the player is exploring the scenery, there is usually some sort of scary sounding music to be able to capture the mood of the gameplay with respect to the genre of the game. In driving games the music is more upbeat, energetic and loud. The music/sounds is designed to match the fast paced and constant forward motion of the adrenalin fueled gameplay. 

In strategy games, it requires a thought and concentration and therefore the music is designed to cause less distraction, a great example of this would be the game 'Yu-Gu-Oh! The duelists of the Roses'. In this card duel based game, the music that is generally playing aids in the concentration, thus the music is somewhat soothing and not too heavy. Some of the 'boss' opponents the player has to face has a specific theme, the theme is generally different from any other opponent's theme. This gives individuality and uniqueness. In the game 'Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 2' the gameplay music upbeat similar to a driven game. Because 'Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 2' is a fighting game, the gameplay music when the player is engaged in a fight, reflect really well the scenery.

Another aspect of game sounds is the on menu screen and the character's sound, for example, in 'Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 2' the sounds that the player make, depend on what move(s) they do. In GTA V the in game avatar responds by speech if for example, the avatar falls from a distance, the avatar will then respond with speech and say something relevant to that situation.

In game menu sounds for example, can also aid in enhancing the overall mood of the gameplay. For example, in the players inventory in 'Resident Evil 2', when scrolling through different items, a sound will play which very much matches the 'zombie' scenario in a way that it enhances the connection the player makes with the game.

IEZA Model 101

The IEZA model is a 2-Dimensional framework used to describe the auditory environment of video games. Between 2003 and 2008 it was developed at the Utrecht School of the Arts by Sander Huiberts and Richard Van.
The IEZA model consists of non-diegetic sounds (Affect and Interface) and diegetic sounds (Zone and Effect).

Diegetic Side:
 
Effect:

• These sounds refer to the activity of the avatar/player (gunshots, footsteps, breathing etc) and events or sources within the diegetic part of the game.
• Effect generally responds to the player's activity in the diegetic part of the game environment but also contains sounds that are triggered by the game within the diegetic part which are not controlled or influenced by the player.
• Sounds belonging to this domain are often designed to react with the player in a way that refers to sounds in the real world, and are often dynamically processed using techniques such as real-time volume changes, panning, filtering and acoustics.

 Zone:

• Generally the 'Zone' domain in many games is often referred to as ambient, environmental or background noise. Such environments form a virtual representation of the environments found in the real world.
• When 'Zone' is compare to 'Effect', it is more often linked to off-screen sources, as one important property is that it's often designed and moulded to make the game world be perceived as 'bigger' than only the visual counterpart.
• Although 'Zone' if generally non-responsive and doesn't need player interaction, in certain instances the player can trigger a 'Zone', for example, in Grand Theft Auto 5 (2013), when the player is being chased by the police, other people nearby will be alerted and they might respond by shouting in fear and running away. Also when a player is being chased by the police, a background instrumental will kick in to match the mood of the gameplay.

The non-diegetic counterpart of the IEZA model can also be divided into 2 domains (Interface and Affect). 
Interface:

• The interface domain is the non-diegetic part of the game environment, player activity and also game events. This domain usually has sounds that are 'more abstract' and the sources of these activities are often designed using signs, for example, in Counter-Strike 1.6 (1999) when a player hits a button in front of a health pack, it will make a sound that there is still health to be extracted and when there is none left, another sound will play which indicates there is nothing left. Another example of this domain in use is in Resident Evil: Code Veronica (2000) when the player's inventory is pulled up, a sound (that certainly matches the mood of the game-where a zombie outbreak is taking place) plays when you are navigating through the different items.

Affect:

• The 'Affect' domain communicates the setting of the non-diegetic side of the game environment and is used to add or enlarge social, cultural and emotional references. Just like the 'Resident Evil' example that was given in the 'Interface' domain, where the sounds of the in-gae player inventory menu matches the situation of the gameplay. Another example of the 'Affect' domain can be seen again in Resident Evil: Code Veronica (2000), when the player enters a room where they are able to save the game and where no zombie can enter, a more relaxed - but still in this zombie outbreak - mood instrumental starts playing to accomodate the scenary/situation.
• A more accurate and better example of this domain in use is in Fifa '99 (1998), when the game is paused, popular songs will start playing (Fatboy Slim - The Rockafeller Skank) until the player unpauses and if paused again after, another song will play.