OXMUK

Think Turn 10's a tad over-obsessed with how cars look? Just wait till you hear about Forza Motorsport 5's dynamic audio design, which recreates not just how cars sound but how they sound in a multitude of circumstances, even changing the score to suit. OXM's Jon Hicks had a chance to discuss the fine details with creative audio director Nick Wiswell during a trip to Turn 10's HQ in May - read about and watch his experiences below.

The soundtrack is entirely procedural, Wiswell told us, and is calculated on the console itself rather than on the Xbox Live cloud. "If you're towards the back we can dim it out, if you're towards the front we can push it up. When you're out on your own we can alter the mix compared to when you're in a dense pack.

"If you start to mess about and go the wrong way, we can bring in some negative element. We even have an element where, as you hunt down the guy in front, there's a sort of 'tension layer' we build up, which releases when you pass the other guy and starts up again as you get to the next car."

Altering the audio on the fly allows Turn 10 to get round a common problem with racing titles. "Cars are very loud and very full-frequency, music's very loud and very full-frequency. When you put the put the two on top of one another, something's got to go. By actually crafting the score around the game, we know where the car's going to be, and we sort of sculpt the music around that to make it a far more cohesive experience for the player.

This is just as well, because car noise has been computed with chilling, multi-layered exactness. "We have different mikes around the engine, the intake system, the exhaust," Wiswell elaborated. "If it's got a turbo, a supercharger, the transmission's in there - there's all these pieces making sound, and in order to deliver that correctly back to the player they all need to be modelled independently of each other."

Details you may pick up on via the audio include throttle, positive torque, negative torque, exhaust upgrade level, turbo boost pressure, which view the player's in, where competitors are and how close your car is to the trackside wall. There's an element of stylisation in the use of non-automotive effects like lion roars and human screams to enhance the mix.

http://www.oxm.co.uk/57555/forza-5-gameplay-video-and-interview-turn-10s-audio-revolution/

Its the little things that show greatness. Bravo Turn 10

impressive..

The thing with Forza and any other racing sim-like game...is that its just too large in scope. I've played Forza 4 for over a year and am like 8% done.

I wish they would include a shorter, campaign like experience, possibly involving a story of a street kid getting into professional racing, with controversy, drama and action of a Fast and Furious movie. lol

This is obviously on top of the sim like experience it already offers.

"human screaming" you say?

yep, such as putting in weather and night racing

Sounds like a good idea. I agree.

We should see that in Forza 6 I guess. By then, no more excuses.

I know what you mean.
The races are just getting far too long. 3 laps should be the maximum, but in sim racers they are mostly 5 laps later on.

Forza Horizon did it much better. Had at least at the beginning some story elements and the races were 3 laps max. Only a few lasted 8 minutes, most were done in ~4min.
In Forza and GT there are tons of races that are 10+ minutes (not even counting endurance races).

Using a Lion's Roar for Sound Design isn't as new as you might think. Split/Second already did it^^

http://www.xbox360achievements.org/news/news-5153-Split-Second--Velocity-Sounds-As-Good-As-It-Looks-in-Audio-Design-Making-Of.html