Sound Design and Audio Coding for Action RPGs in Unreal Engine, Powered by Wwise
Lightning Spell
Spell Cast Lightning
The sound design for the lightning spell was carefully crafted in Pro Tools. It features original spark sound recordings layered with Foley elements, such as dragging objects across a surface and the crinkle of a plastic bag, to add depth, texture, and a polished feel to the tonal gestures.
These sounds were then integrated into Wwise, where a multilayered actor mixer was used to create a dynamic package for Unreal Engine. This setup includes random containers for electric zaps and nested random into sequence containers for the rest layers, with randomized automations to enhance variation.
The rune engraving aspect of this design is further enhanced by an RTPC linked to Unreal’s animation montage, using a low-pass filter to sync the sound with the animation and add expressive nuance.
The blue indicator ring marking the spell's area of effect, an SFX is implemented as a Wwise event tailored specifically for the lightning spell. Each spell’s area of effect features its own unique event as the duration varies in timing. To manage these differences, I developed a function in Unreal that dynamically compensates for the timing across different events.
When the lightning strikes, layers of sound effects are triggered—thunder rumbling and electrical zaps crackling through the air. These effects play only if an enemy pawn is hit, thanks to the logic I implemented to track successful hits, which can be applied across all spells.
Healing Spell
Healing Spell
The sound design for the healing spell was carefully crafted to evoke warmth and tranquility, embodying its restorative nature.
Pro Tools was used to record brass percussive instruments, which were processed in several stages to create the spell's core audio design.
The remaining pipeline followed the same structure as the lightning spell, including mixing, mastering, and Wwise integration.
In Unreal Engine, animation montages triggered the Wwise events, ensuring precise synchronization between visuals and audio.
A noteworthy advantage of Unreal is its ability to reuse code efficiently; the functions developed for the lightning spell were adapted to trigger different events based on the player’s chosen spell. This streamlined approach not only saved significant development time but also laid the foundation for reusing these systems in future spell designs.
The rune engraving shares a similar aesthetic to lightning to create a visual connection, although they differ in their gestures, as the animation itself has changed. That's where a reusable Unreal code comes in, saving time and effort.
While I maintained the same pipeline for all parts, the ring itself needed to be adjusted to sound milder, more mellow, and rejuvenating. After making these adjustments in ProTools, Wwise had to pack the same events, nesting random containers within sequenced ones to keep the timing right, which differed from the lightning spell.