Group Mixing Sessions

In this final week, we had multiple mixing sessions and spent some time replacing sounds that Rosa had used stock sounds in. I showed Rosa how to spacialise the sounds (just by sliding the 2D-3D slider).

We started the day (Thurs 25th) in the composition studio (Me, Juice, Rosa and Maria). I created some effects for the puzzle in the music box that was just added to the level. Maria and I used a DPA Omnidirectional Lavalier mic. Its sensitivity was very good for making small sounds, and I experimented with making mouth sounds.

We ended without finishing the painting as Rosa had to rework her scripting as it wasn’t playing the sounds properly.

This was the first time we saw Clara’s work on the computer, Jacob, Hanifa and Juice spent time implementing sound in the computer scene while Maria and I focused more on the painting and attic.

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For the final session (Saturday 27th), we focused on finishing touches in the mix of the attic and painting. It was just Me, Maria and Rosa (and Henry for moral support) for this session as it was the best day that suited Rosa.

We spent most of this day (midday-4pm) making sure the volume of the sounds was right in the spaces. We also made some quick adjustments and sounds that needed doing. In response to our last critical feedback from the VR teachers, we changed the introduction script that the cat says to be shorter and sweeter, with more of a focus on gameplay than introducing the game like some marketing spiel. This is the script me and Maria came up with:

Meow
heeey,
let’s play a game.
have a look around.
Three of the objects in this room are more than they appear to be.
listen.
can you find them?

We then used a text-to-speech generator modelled on a child to make the voice more friendly and playful.

I also made a quick sound to match the opening of a book that Rosa added last minute. I recorded the animation on Rosa’s laptop and quickly did some foley with a book and piece of paper while Maria and Rosa continued mixing next door.

I also created a sound effect for the computer from within the attic. I ported a max patch from Andy Farnell’s designing sound into max for live and set it up to record into Ableton. We put it into the unity project, yet it didn’t stand out enough in the mix so I quickly recorded the sound of Maria’s laptop fan and layered it, with some equalising.

EDIT. When Rosa sent us the final gameplay videos there were a few elements that were not right. The replaced cat/introduction script was not turned to be spacialised in 3D, and a few of the sounds that were made were not included, though I am unsure why.