Game Audio - Finding Work Experience with a UK developer

Simon

S
What advice can you give for someone looking to get into the audio side of development?

When I look at jobs advertised and their requirements I notice that most developers require applicants to have a degree in Music Technology or a related field.

So I am planning to go to University to study Audio.

What else should I be doing?

I have been reading the complete guide to game audio, the sound effects Bible and a book called sound design.

I have also contacted dozens of UK Games Developers asking for work experience. But haven't had any luck.

Can anyone offer any advice on how to meet the right people in order to aquire a work experience placement?
 

kaleswat

K
are you planning to join a audio university for learning ? where do you live & there many university who teach you music :)
 

Michael Brookes

Game Director
A music technology degree with any game audio specific modules would be useful. It's also important to build up a portfolio, you can do this by getting involved with the modding community and Indie developers.

For work placements you're best bet is to contact developers with your portfolio and ask. Check with your University first, they may already have good contacts for organising this.

Michael
 

Simon

S
Hi Michael, so it has been a fair while since I posted this thread. Since then I have been accepted onto a BA (Hons) Film & Moving Image Production Degree at NUCA. Its a 3 year course with heavy emphasis on sound design.

In the mean time, I have tried getting involved in several indie games and Mods, but all of the projects have fallen through.

I gave it another shot the other day and looks like I might be getting involved in a really exciting FPS game through Indie DB. I bought several books a while back also, one is called the game audio tutorial another is called Sound Design and another is called The complete guide to game audio...

Hopefully these will help me get where I want to be.

I met someone a while back who did a postgrad placement with Frontier in game audio. He worked on Disneyland Kinect Adventures I think. Lucky guy!

Anyway thanks for your advice from before. I hope to get as much experience working in game sound as possible. Do you think coming from a Film based background is an issue? (Seeing as my degree isn't specifically geared towards Music Technology)

I have a keen interest in film also. But game audio is where I want to work, in the future...

- Si
 

Simon

S
Thanks again Michael, I will get as much experience working with games as possible through collaborating with students on the Games Art & Design course at my university as a sound designer and through indie DB. I really am grateful for you taking the time out to reply to this thread. Thanks.

- Si Smith
 

tesla

T
game audio

If you are serious about taking degree in music technology I would be happy to refer you some universities in UK like, Audio and Music Technology BSc (Hons) from Anglia Ruskin University, BA (Hons) from Bedfordshire University, and B (mus) from University of surrey. Regards…
 

Francis

F
Reply:Game Audio - Finding Work Experience with a UK developer

It is a great challenge to create audio for game. The main reason is that if the quality of the audio is law or that particular audio is not interesting, it would definitely affect the marketing of that game. Hence the developer should concentrate not only in the sound designing part but also in the music part as well.
 

Slopey

Volunteer Moderator
Slopey
On the music side - you need to be aware that like anything to do with music, some of it you can't learn - you need to have an aptitude for it.

If you can compose pieces of music, with the common tools (ProTools, Logic, Reason etc) and are a decent keyboard player, then you've got the basics to start with. If you're not already making music and recording your own stuff on a regular basis, you're likely not going to succeed.

Sound design is a different kettle of fish - people tend to get into those sorts of areas because they're a) good at it, b) they're doing it anyway - it's not necessarily a learned skill. You can learn techniques and theory, but ultimately it's up to you as an individual to craft something to the requirements of the project - you can't just roll out the same old generic samples.

If you currently don't do it - start messing around with as many tools as you can, and get involved in as many projects as you can, and learn from others currently doing it :)

(also be wary about some music technology degrees at the more established universities - back in the day I did a BEng in Electronics With Music from Glasgow University - that turned out to be a pure electronics degree with as much studio time as myself and a few others could use, and unfettered access to the NeXT machines. We didn't learn anything we didn't already know (except 4 years of engineering maths), but made countless demos on 1/4" tape/DAT, played with all the kit for 4 years, and rebuilt the radio station studio. If you're any good at it, you'll likely know much of it already, and you'll already be doing it. But make sure and do your research properly before you plonk for a course).
 
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