Hi BelligerentSwan, I don't typically post on the LoL forums even though I've been a player since March 2011, but here it goes. I'm currently a student at The New School of Radio and Television in Albany NY going for Recording Arts. I've found that my passion is sound and music in video games, and I was wondering about what exactly it is that sound engineers and sound designers specifically do in your studio(s). I'm very much aware that in many game studios, a recording studio is implemented for capturing voices for characters, manipulating sounds to make the perfect effect for a certain happening in the game, etc. What I'd like to know is, along with the aforementioned, what also do you do as an associate sound engineer at Riot Games? Do you make sure the audio is fully synced with the corresponding game occurrence, or is that left for the programmers? How frequently do you typically use pro tools or other comparable DAWs for manipulation of your audio? What do you work mostly on, music or sound effects? Things like that, I know this is what I want my career to be and I'd like to know the most about it from people who are either currently in the business or people that have already been.

My perfectly ultimate goal is to be an employee of Riot Games, but I realize this industry is very competitive and I have to take things one step at a time. My school and I are working on getting an internship at 1st Playable Productions or a six month co-op for me at Vicarious Visions, which would be spectacular.

I know that you may not be able to reply on all the threads that are related to this topic, but a response from you here would mean the world to me.

Thank you,
Donutwulf

Any and all other Rioters that do anything with the sound of League of Legends, such as jaywatford, are more than welcome to post here as well. I had chosen BelligerentSwan as the Rioter of interest because I see that they're the most frequent poster in the audio feedback section of the forums.

Hey Donutwulf,

I'll try and answer your questions as best as possible. So here it goes:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donutwulf . What I'd like to know is, along with the aforementioned, what also do you do as an associate sound engineer at Riot Games?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donutwulf Do you make sure the audio is fully synced with the corresponding game occurrence, or is that left for the programmers?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donutwulf How frequently do you typically use pro tools or other comparable DAWs for manipulation of your audio?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donutwulf What do you work mostly on, music or sound effects?

Hi BelligerentSwan,

I feel that the stun of Morgana's ult always comes a little bit before the sound occurs. Might be just me though.

Thanks for all the hard work you and your team have put into the game to make it so enjoyable, I always turn up the audio simply to listen to the boom and bangs.

Oh wow, that was a quick response. Thanks so much for the reply, it did answer all of the questions I had. But I do have a few more questions now, if you don't mind.


You can choose which DAW you want to use at work? I was under the impression that you had to use a certain one and you had to adapt to whichever DAW was provided. I didn't know you could choose the one you like best, that's pretty awesome (I know this isn't much of a question, but I had to point out how cool that is).

You mentioned you had an audio team for League of Legends, does that imply that you have divisions that work on certain aspects of the game, or is it mostly a coordinated effort between your audio specialists? As an example, someone who designs the sound effects (like yourself) would be working on only sound effects? Or do you also work collectively with other audio specialists for another aspect of the game (IE music, ambient sound, etc)?

A similar question to the previous one, you mentioned that you mainly work around the champions. What else do you do in regards to sound effects? Minions, neutral monsters, the noises and sound of inanimate objects being interacted with, etc.?

Something a little less about League of Legends itself, what do you personally think I should do to make sure I have the skills necessary to be part of this industry? Currently, when I play games (which is most of the time if I'm not working or at school) I'm paying more attention to the sound of the game than I am the story, gameplay, and all that. If I find something noticeably strange with a certain sound, I try to either extract it or recrate it on my computer so that I can fiddle(sticks) around with it to make it sound better in relation to the game and when the sound is used.


Thank you for taking the time out of your day to respond to me, you haven't any idea what these responses mean to me. Aside from that, I'd absolutely love to play League of Legends and speak (over voice chat or private message) with you and any audio specialists of Riot that could spare the time.

Thank you,
Donutwulf