Sound Design

[Hypnowulf.7403]

I know I've been a bit of a grumpy pants lately in regards to the gameplay design of Guild Wars 2. I've been having a rough time of it and the choices to make casual players feel devalued haven't gone over so well despite how much I love the rest of the game.

I don't think I need to praise the art team, right? I mean, everyone does that. And with good reason.

No, what I'd really like to do here is talk about how impeccable the sound design is in Guild Wars 2. I've played a lot of MMOs and I haven't encountered many that really nail atmosphere as well as this. Whether it's the ambient sound, the music, how the sound effects play into everything, or the fantastic work of the voice actors—which we have been missing, but it's entirely understandable why and their health must always come first—it stands head and shoulders above so many other games I've played, even in the triple-A space. That might not be fair though as I could say even especially there, but this is on par with some of my favourite indie and double-A favourites.

One only need visit the Bjora Marches to realise just how fantastically talented the sound design team are at their job. The music is haunting and it fits the visuals perfectly. I'm a sucker for spoopy settings that aren't necessarily aggressively hostile or violent, they make for some of my favourite places. That's tricky to pull off though as you can't overdo it, it has to be subtle... You have to have the correct balance so that it doesn't actually topple over into properly disturbing. There's something about that aesthetic I find... comforting.

I mean no disrespect to GW2 of yore, but in comparison to the zones of the then to the now? It's night and day. There were some brilliant elements to be found there, but they were buried under loud, generic fantasy music instead of being lifted up to create a rich soundscape. I feel there's a balance, a time when music is appropriate versus cloying. In the Bjora Marches, the ambience is given space to breathe without music playing all the time, so when the music does kick in and it's more subtle, it lifts up the sounds you've become familiar with rather than drowning them out. I've played so many games that were bad at this and had next to no identity to their sound whatsoever, almost as if they don't realise that it's important. As someone with bad sight though, I've generally been given to paying more attention to the sounds around me as well. I don't have the vocabulary necessary to express how correctly things are done in GW2 now versus then, but I'm sure the sound designers do.

It's so pleasant to listen to that sometimes I'll just leave the character I'm most often playing having a nap somewhere in the marches whislt I passively enjoy the experience of it. I mean, the sounds characters make while sleeping are definitely something I would've praised in the game prior if I'd ever been able to actually hear them. Now that I can, the effort that's been put into it really amuses and pleases me. There are certain cat noises the charr make that crack me up.. I love it. There are so many little touches to the sound design that weren't really allowed to flourish before. I'm not sure when things changed but I want to say the situation improved sometime around Path of Fire or LWS4? I'm honestly not sure exactly when it was, but I can tell the difference and it's appreciated.

So if anyone ever happens to come across Mirra Frostheart sleeping up on a ledge somewhere, tucked away and hidden? That'll be what I'm doing. I'll just be enjoying the soundscape of the Marches or wherever else I might be whilst doing other things.