AGATE Adaptive, Generative Audio Tonal Environment.
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Transcript of AGATE Adaptive, Generative Audio Tonal Environment.
AGATE
Adaptive, Generative Audio Tonal Environment
Why do we want this?
• We want music because it can support the emotional experience of the player.
• But, repetitious or emotionally inappropriate music can distract the player from their actual emotional experience.
The Nature of audio repetition
• Identical audio repetition = bad (usually).
• The more traditionally “composed” music is, the less it bears repetition.
• Usual solutions?– Buy MUCH music– Hope no one notices until it is too late
Money For Music
• Music = $1,500 / minute...
•Minimal coverage for 30-hour game:
30 minutes music = $45,000
MMO Money For Music
• MMO gameplay can easily exceed 1000 hours.
• Heavy usage: 7000 hours or more!• Full coverage: all new music all the time =
420,000 minutes of music
• 420,000 minutes of music =
$630,000,000.
Forget Games, Invade A Country!
ANSWER:GENERATIVE MUSIC
• Think of it as wind chimes: Never repeating but always familiar.
• Not good for highly-structured, intensely-composed music (“cinematic”).
• Very good at loosely-structured static mood music (“ambient”).
• VERY well-suited to MMO game environments.
AAdaptive daptive GGenerative enerative AAudio udio TTonal onal EEnvironmentnvironment
Composer
MusicData
AGATE
GameData
MusicSounds
AudioOutput
• Combat• Time of day• Weather• Location• Anything
• Density• Pitch• Tempo• Randomized Sound selection• etc.
provides
provides
informs
plays
Create
High-levelscript from in-house
audio lead
controls
What else?
•Sequences•Keymapping•Totally awesome lasers•Etc.
AGATE = World Music
• Good for the background; the primary voice and spirit of your game world.
• Important: Vary the delivery of the music:– Fade your world music in and out.– Bring in bits of more traditionally-
composed music to accentuate specific things.
SO EASY AND LIGHT
• One programmer• One audio designer• Several weeks of less-than-100% man-
hours * two people, mostly research and design-iteration
• System = < 10kbytes• CPU usage is so small it is difficult to
measure
CHRISTOPHER MAYER
Contract Programmer
Composer
MusicData
AGATE
GameData
MusicSounds
AudioOutput
• Combat• Time of day• Weather• Location• Anything
• Density• Pitch• Tempo• Randomized Sound selection• etc.
provides
provides
informs
plays
create
High-levelscript from in-house
audio lead
controls
AAdaptive daptive GGenerative enerative AAudio udio TTonal onal EEnvironmentnvironment
WHERE DID THE TIME GO?
Edit Tool
AGATE
Gamehooks
1st - FMOD Events, AGATE 1, Game Hooks, Editor
2 months part time
2nd - XACT, AGATE 2, Editor
2 weeks part time
3rd - FMOD Ex, AGATE 3, Editor
5 hours
SAMPLE MOOD FILESoundbank: C:\Soundbanks\TestBank.fsb
Tempo: 360
Volume: .5
GuitarG3 5 64 1 Seq 1 1 -1 1 -12 12 952
ViolaG3 20 16 2 Seq .5 1 -1 1 -12 12 952
PianoG3 35 4 4 Chord .5 1 -1 1 -12 12 952
Snare 100 1 8 Chord .5 1 -1 1 -12 12 FFF
void main(int argc, char *argv[]){
audioInit();agateLoadMood(argv[1]);while (!_kbhit()){
agateLoop();audioLoop();
}agateUnloadMood();audioExit();
}
void audioInit(void);
void audioLoop(void);
void audioExit(void);
void audioLoadSoundbank(const char *file);
void audioPlay(int index, float frequency, float volume, float pan);
int audioGetIndex(const char *soundname);
typedef struct
{
int soundIndex;
int probability; // 0 to 100
int nNotes; // 0 to ?
int beat; // 1 to ?
bool chord; // chord or sequence
int nQueued; // 0 to nNotes
float volMin, volMax; // 0.0 to +1.0
float panMin, panMax; // -1.0 to +1.0
int pitchMin, pitchMax; // -12 to +12
int pitchScale; // 12 bits
int *pitchList; // cents
int pitchListSize;
}
AGATE_SOUND;
void agateLoadMood(const char *filename);
void agateUnloadMood(void);
void agateLoop(void);
void agatePlay(int i){
float frequency = (float)_mood[i].pitchList[rand() % _mood[i].pitchListSize];
float volume = randFloat(_mood[i].volMin, _mood[i].volMax);
float pan = randFloat(_mood[i].panMin, _mood[i].panMax);audioPlay(_mood[i].soundIndex, frequency, volume, pan);
}
void agateLoop(void) {
for (unsigned int i=0; i<_mood.size(); i++) {
if (_beat % _mood[i].beat) continue;
if (rand()%100 < _mood[i].probability)
if (_mood[i].chord)
for (int j=0; j<(rand()%_mood[i].nNotes)+1; j++)
agatePlay(i);
else if (_mood[i].nQueued == 0)
for (int j=0; j<(rand()%_mood[i].nNotes)+1; j++)
_mood[i].nQueued++;
if (_mood[i].nQueued) {
_mood[i].nQueued--;
agatePlay(i);
}
}
_beat++;
Sleep(60000/_tempo);
}
Who would compose music with this?
• Composer should be:– Comfortable with non-linear, non-
traditional music and methods– Technically savvy (?)– Games-oriented– Familiar with ambient music– Familiar with generative music– Enjoys helping to design new technology
JIM HEDGES
Independent Composerand sound-designer
San Francisco, CA
How is this different from other forms of adaptive music?
“Vertical” approach: Layering and cross fading tracks
“Horizontal” approach: Starting and stopping cues
Often the two are combined Both approaches tend to rely on through
composed, long “stems”
How is this different from other forms of adaptive music?
AGATE uses smaller elements, from short clips to individual notes
It combines these elements both horizontally and vertically i.e it starts/stops and layers elements
It combines pre-determined elements with probability and randomization
Why use middleware intended for sound design?
This kind of music has much in common with sound design approaches and practices
Avoiding repetition and producing variety while retaining a recognizable identity
Collections of small elements, recombined at run time using randomization and probability
AGATE leverages these strengths of sound design middleware for creating music
Musical examples: Interlocking rhythm
Musical examples: Interlocking rhythm
Musical examples: Interlocking rhythm
Musical examples: Interlocking rhythm
Musical examples: Interlocking rhythm
Musical Examples: Timbre
Musical Examples: Melody
Prime
Musical Examples: Melody
Musical Examples: Melody
Prime
Musical Examples: Melody
Prime
Up 4
Musical Examples: Melody
Prime
Up 4
Down 4
Musical Examples: Melody
Prime
Up 4
Down 4
Musical Examples: Stingers
Conclusion: Impressions
Forces composer to think primarily in terms of timbre, density and orchestration
A more “sound design” approach to composition
Learn how to work with semi-randomness Be comfortable adapting one's approach
during the compositional process
Conclusion: Impressions
• “Each thing you add modifies the whole set of things that went before and you suddenly find yourself at a place that you couldn't possibly have conceived of, a place that's strange and curious to you. That sense of mystery, learning to live with it and make use of it, is extremely important.”
- Brian Eno
HOW TO GET APPROVAL:
EXPLAIN WHAT PROBLEMS YOUR AUDIO TECH WILL
SOLVE
What this can do for the player and for your company:
• It will make your players much less likely to turn off the music or even all the sound.– Informal poll: Everquest guild of 100+
people: 92% said they had music turned off, 74% said they had ALL sound off!
• It will make the game directly, viscerally pleasurable to play– Better reviews– Better word-of-mouth
• Infinite minutes of music in finite storage and RAM
• Large coverage with very reasonable amount of work from composer
What this can do for the player and for your company:
• Increased sales for games with in-game purchase model. See Julian Treasure’s “Sound Business” for extensive research references.
What this can do for the player and for your company:
AGATE: YOU LIKE IT HEREOr perhaps, “You like it hear”