[Research Portfolio – SHR4C007R~001] 25102037

Role – Video Game Sound Designer

The video game industry will require the expertise of a sound designer, which is a role I am personally interested in pursuing. Throughout this essay, I will explore the technical, creative and industrial elements of the role as well as the other elements to consider when either freelancing or directly working for a studio.

If you choose to apply to a studio, there’s an expectation that the applicant has plenty of experience to guide them through their day-to-day responsibilities, especially if it is under an arduous development cycle. An undergraduate degree is the base level of education that most studios will ask for, though a master’s degree is sometimes indicated as ideal, (sometimes a prerequisite for a senior role). Studios will usually state their required level of education explicitly on their application page to save time assessing applications. A degree shows evidence of competency and as an accredited source that indicates your potential. Most applications also allow for an equivalent in experience, as it is the quality of your work they are usually more interested in.

To succeed in this profession you must be able to manipulate, arrange, edit, mix and master audio to a professional standard. This should also include other sound-shaping methods such as synthesis. All of this must be done in a widely-recognised DAW, namely Pro Tools and/or Logic Pro X. The other basic requirements will vary, but largely it is preferrable that you are confident with middleware like FMOD and Wwise. if their sound design doesn’t meet both creative and functional criteria.
Apple hardware and MacOS experience is usually preferred for audio work, though Windows is what many games are required to run on and will require some literacy. The occasional studio that uses Linux will likely recommend you learn Reaper, as it is one of the few DAWs designed for that platform first. Companies also highlight some “nice to have” considerations that will grab their attention, like experience in game engines and programming languages. In an industry that is prone to crunching time; working with others under pressure is also taken as a key consideration. Being able to output a quantity of work is valuable, so time-management and independence are also a highly valued attributes when reviewing your efficiency.

For early careers, there are still opportunities for growth elsewhere. Game jams are a common way to improve while building up a portfolio of work and networking online with likeminded developers. Rare and other game studios offer apprenticeships and internships to help new talent combat a fiercely competitive industry, and usually take game jams into consideration before choosing their applicant
Rare’s internship scheme offers in-house expertise with the chance of making it a permanent role. The Sheffield studio, Sumo, have their own apprenticeship on learning game development in the language C+. Programming is not inherently sound related, but is seen as a good quality to have when liasing with programmers. Both offer a pathway for those looking to build a career and is especially helpful towards those that do not have higher education as an option.

Sound designer James Magee details this, further emphasising the a heavy portfolio of work is virtually the most important factor, but using this portfolio to build connections within the industry also.

The requirements for senior designers tend to be more demanding, particularly from AAA studios. Usually they will require that you have worked on at least one finished games that is commercially available. Game budgets have risen to similar heights seen in t placing a lot of detailed work onto one person for a game with a large budget and as such they can’t take the risk on anybody who is new to the industry.

For the average sound designer, a typical day in this role will involve creating and implementing audio to make the game feel more fleshed out. Daily meetings for progress updates and miscellaenous queries are expected, as it is important you and the team are working together. You will likely receive feedback to arrange certain elements differently. Your organisational skills will be useful when building a comprehensive sound library, as sound effects are often digitally archived to save yourself from recreating sounds needlessly. Once the core functionality of the game has been established, you can build upon this groundwork and help realise the game-world into something tangible.

If the project is finished, your soundscape will help establish the mood, tone and atmosphere of the video game, alongside the visual elements. Creating soundscapes will naturally require a strong grasp of how video games interact with the player, as well as a more technical understanding and appreciation for how game audio can make a digital space feel alive.

Conventions like reverb, panning and gain have a much more interactive and dynamic role with the game’s audio engine. If properly implemented with the audio middleware, the player is usually open to a much more immersive experience. Video games are interactive which means you will need to consider various contingencies for how the audio will work in relation to where the player is stood.

A sound designer should evolve their approach to best fit the technology their sound is designed for. Former Rare composer, David Wise, remarked on the iterative process video game sound design has received since the Nintendo Entertainment System era. In one generation alone, the NES had introduced a cutting-edge FM synthesier that would have far more utility over older consoles, like the Atari 2600. As David Wise phrased it, even this was still “a glorified doorbell” compared to Nintendo’s next console, the SNES. Wise remarked that he had been given an orchestra in comparison, which allowed him to access a wider range of textures and timbre. Game studios are looking for individuals that are willing to ride the wave of new technology in a similar way.

Sound designers do not have to work for a company full-time however, many choosing to freelance on smaller-scale projects. Independent studios often contract a freelancer temporarily or simply purchase/commission audio assets for a lump fee depending on the type of work required. The latter method often comes in the form of sample packs, were the sound design is already done upfront. In a studio context, sound designers will ordinarily be encouraged to progress from a junior role to a senior level role. A senior sound designer is usually a supervisor to the team that extends their insights gained from their relevant experience and share their understanding of what is demanded from the lead developers. If a senior role is not available within the same studio, this is usually the point in which progression is found within other studios elsewhere in the games industry, as well as within the TV, film and radio industries.

Artificial Intelligence is a pervasive issue when talking about the aspects of legality and longevity in the gaming and entertainment industry. While it may benefit sound designers to use AI as a tool e.g. separating layers of a song, the main concern stems from how its machine learning has used the work of artists under “fair use” without their consent, to train and replicate both visual and aural media. Artificial intelligence has been widely criticised by artists for this reason, as feeding their work into an algorithm poses a serious threat against their own livelihoods. Musicians, programmers and artists face an unprecedented competition against machine learning. Legal representatives have already motioned serious concerns about how these algorithms operate, as it could constitute as plagiarism or copyright infringement. OpenAI has repeatedly supported this usage. The skill ceiling for AI is currently speculative, which leaves the ramifications currently unknown. Sound design is an already competitive area of expertise, but the vast adoption of AI has now left creatives competing on a much larger scale.

The president and co-founder of the National Association of Voice Actors (NAVA) has expressed concerns within the games industry for this reason. There’s an unprecedented level of exploitation being levied against voice artists in particular, so this association assists VAs by providing resources to defend against such exploitation. With little AI-specific legislation in the UK at present, NAVA encourages a pre-emptive approach from artists to protect their work. The NAVA “Artificial Intelligence Rider” is a free document available for voice actors to use as protection against companies looking to digitally recreate your voice.

When freelancing, another legal and financial consideration to make would be how you space your work out. If you are working as a contractor for two companies at the same time you have to ensure you are not causing a conflict of interest. This is referred to as “moonlighting” by companies like Microsoft, as it calls into question your commitment to them as your main place of work. As such, they often ask that this be avoided in your contract. Most sound designers are offered a salary to keep them in the one job, and joining another company simultaneously can cause some complications. Co-founder of Fog Creek Software, Joel Spolsky, talks in further detail on his blog Joel on Software with more legal insights.

Freelancing sound design has entered a new age with websites like Fiverr, with games like ‘Balatro’ having a soundtrack written and produced by Luis Clement. The composer marketed himself online by having a Fiverr account and had their music heard by millions, the game even being nominated for Game of the Year. This indicates that the market and promotion involved for sound design is successfully moving to an online platform with how many indie developers are competing.

Being a freelance sound designer has its own risks however. It is important you fully understand what your legal responsibilities are, as without the industry-standard benefits and financial stability afforded to you by a large studio, it is important to ensure you are sufficiently compensated for your work.

Freelancing has some observable disadvantages too. 44% of the 1,270 surveyed freelancers earned less than the UK national living wage during 2023-2024, so it is best advised to work with an overestimated figure that will be able to cover essential bills. Working on your own is naturally going to be challenging if you are not used to it. Gauging how well you are working can be difficult without comparing yourself to other industry professionals, which makes freelancing an option best reserved for someone who is confident in their approach.

To work as a sound designer there are many ways to get started, but it takes a wide portfolio with a persistent attitude to get results. A company will expect a portfolio before any consideration is made, for internships and other applications. To market yourself in the industry this is required as a way of showing what you are capable of. Beyond technical skills, the average role will call for an employee that can work under pressure while having the modesty to accept feedback, as well as being creatively driven to deliver sound to the player in an exciting way that follows innovations in technology.

[Research Portfolio – SHR4C007R~001] 25102037

Role – Video Game Sound Designer

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