Sound writing draft

Sound is an extremely powerful part in how people process emotions. Auditory elements can dictate the way art can be interpreted.  The manipulation of sound is used in various ways, from video game soundtracks to musicals. Seth Horowitz, an auditory neuroscientist, explains how hearing shapes the mind and impacts how we respond to various scenarios. In Sound A Major Emotional Drive For Humans Seth mentions how “by taking a single parameter of a sound, the modulation rate, and just shift it, you can change the entire emotional response-” (Seth Horowitz and Melissa Blick 1:40). Video game producers use sound to force players to ‘experience’ a similar sense of what the game character is ‘experiencing’. With the new rise of Indie game popularity Toby Fox, Tarsier Studios, and Jun Senoue continue to get recognition for using instrumental soundtracks to control the players views of their work.  

Toby Fox, a video game/MSPA’s music creator, is known for using short repeated clips of music and making adjustments to release multiple soundtracks. Among the soundtrack of Undertale are Fallen Down and Fallen down (Reprise). The use of D♭ Major in Fallen down is purposely different from the D Major key in Fallen Down (Reprise). D ♭Major is used in songs that have a sense of longing, ‘leering key, degenerating into grief and rapture’ (Affective Musical Key Characteristics). D Major is commonly found in music composed to bring sense of relief, and the feeling to rejoice. Introducing Fallen Down in the beginning of Frisk’s journey was to bring a sense of confusion and sadness for our vessel. Before exploring the ruins, we meet Flowey, an antagonist with a depressing backstory, who attempts to take Frisk’s soul and claims that humans will never understand that their underground world is similar to our own, having a ‘kill or be killed’ mentality. Immediately after meeting the flower Toriel , a motherly figure who still grieves for her deceased children, offers shelter in the ruins in which Fallen Down is first played. Fallen Down is used to give an uneasy feeling speaking to that the characters have their own lives and families but that players are the true selfish persons, enforcing those decisions should be made logically. Along a pacifist route Fallen Down (Reprise) is played to display the emotions of the characters on screen as families are brought together, Toriel and Asgore can get closure for their children, the monster race is freed from the mountain, and our vessel meets are incarnation of humans who then tanks them for making choices with everyone in mind.  

In 1999 early December, Sonic Pocket Adventure was released. Over many years the Sonic timeline has changed and grew, adding more characters and stories, removing different storylines, and the edition of new music each release. While many elements of the franchise are famous, the most well-known fan favorite is the drowning scenario music. The clip consists of a small clip of music that repeats, over time the music grows louder and faster, making players anxious to pull Sonic above water. Using clips that grow in speed and volume make it harder to play with free space game. Jun Senoue used this editing of the music clip to give a player ‘gaming anxiety’ so they will feel more tempted to try getting to land once more. While clever use of small audio clips is common the ability to convey emotion correctly is difficult, along with environmental sound.