1. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
Game Title The Witcherhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtrKfZqokl4
(The sentences in bold are more important while establishing all the aspects)
Provide detailed descriptions from chosen examples that establish… Clearly state what production technique(s) you think have
been used to create specific soundtrack elements
Setting The ambientsound of cricketsand calls ofowls 1:09-1:13 suggestthat the majority
of action happensduring the night,outside. The exteriorisalso signifiedwhenat
1:39-1:41 there are footstepswhich make a patting sound on solidbut
sandy/grainy surface. Anotherindicatorforsurroundingis at1:58-2:02 whenwe
hearcricketsagain and the calmwind,there isa personreleasingsome powerwith
an ‘ughh’noise (likeinmartial artsor whensomeone tensestopushsomething),
quietswishandfall onthe same surface but withmore impact. Thenare footsteps
of a mediumspeedbutgreaterinsound.
Later on fewtimesthere isrambling:3:28-3:30 (a constructionfallingapart) 4:35-
4:37 (dryclay-made objectswhenhittingoneachother) 4:46-4:47 (smashinga
woodand fallingonground) 2:25 (hittingintowoodandstone,similartowhena
castle wall made of bricksis beingbulldozed,butonlyalittle partof it).
There are justfewsoundsforinnerlocationssuchas the rumblingintoa woodplank
and a heavythingabradesovera rough stone 1:24-1:26 (aswell aschange in
melodysignifyingagloomyarea) andpersonrunningona stone bricksbefore
runningoutside 1:32-1:40.
At a minute 5:33-5:42 the music changes intoa mysterious,gloomymelody,which
suits a dark/obscure place, we also hear water dropletsmeaningit’smoist in there
so it may suggestsewersor another not visitedplace underground,there are no
other soundsapart of very faint footsteps. Afterthat there is the same sound as at
1:25 so it must be the same location.
Nightlive,aswell asthe soundsof earlysunrise,
has probablybeenrecordedwiththe field
recordingtechnique.
The footstepson differentsurfaces,andthe
collisionscouldbe studiorecordedandsome of
themmanipulatedwithVSTmethodsforagreater
experience andrealism.
The water drippinginthe dungeon/sewerscould
have beenfieldrecorded,orstudiorecordedoa
waterand manipulated.

2. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
Between6:06-6:20 there is slow fadingtransition betweensoundsof cricketsand
birds singingmeaningthat the night changes intoday.
Mood Mood isstrictlybondedwithnarrative,itschangesdofulfilthe actionhappening.
From start to 0:37 atmosphere is calm, quiet,withvery melodic,quite melancholic
song in the background, after the narrator finishesthe monologue with‘traitor
became the bait’ the musicthickens,speedsup for a while,then calms again. At
1:07 to 1:30 whenthe nightreplacesthe afternoon the only non-diegeticsoundis
the suppressedsingle beatingofa drum to create thistensionbefore a proper
action.
As soonas the ‘bait’isfreedandruns,the musicisreallyloudanddramatic,putting
an emphasisof himrunning. Almostimmediatelythe soundturnsgrave quiet 1:48
withonlythe beast‘purring’ – itgivesa feel of a tragedy(notveryregretted
though).From2:00 we can hear drums giving us more tensionof what’s going to
happen(for me it’skind of a musical synonym for a heartbeat, heartbeat isnot
usedbecause the Witcherisn’tfrightened), whenat 2:14 plays sort of a tribal
hunting.It tensesand becomesmove livelyand active the more theyattack each
other, givingthis feel ofan action. It quietensagainat2:58.
Atmosphere becomesquietandtense againwhen the witcherandstrigaare testing
each otherandwaitingforthe other todo an unexpectedmove (that’swhen
witcherbangsthe chainon the ground) – whenthatmove happens,the mood
immediatelysharpens(soundsgolouder).
After goingquietagain, the beat risesand becomesvery fast (at 3:46), we can hear
drums underliningthisaction that, though somethinghappens,doesn’tinvolve
combat yet. At 4:58 in additionto drum beats we can hear sort of heroicsinging
and tribal style song, which givesthe epicness.Althoughthere weren’tany other
combat sounds, just groans of a beast, the effectwas that the melodycreated a
great tension.Quicklyafterthe strigawas immobilisedonfewseconds(4:17–
4:27), whichwassuggestedbysmashingnoise aswell as lackof any music.
Thismedieval,sortof exoticmusicatbeginningas
well asheroic,dramaticmusicduringsome events
duringthe battle were recordedwithuse of
traditional instrumentsandhumansinging(within
the studiorecording).
I thinkmajorityof the musicwasrecordedwith
traditional instruments,because VSTandMIDI
instrumentsare ratherfittingforfuturistic,sci-fi
games,notthose dark medieval genres.

3. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
After this,the musiconce more quietensandspeedsup. I believe these pauses
from battle give the audience momentsto breathe and regenerate the emotions,
especiallyasthe cutscene is quite long.
In 5:30-6:04 the soundsare partiallyquiet,the continuousnotessangcreate this
dark, dull,mysterioussurroundingthe witcherisin.Fora while until 6:21 the
melodyiscalmand warm,suitable forbeginningof anewday. It keepsit’s peaceful
feel until the very last moment of suddenshock, where the cutscene ends.
Game genre Medieval-fantasy,hackandslash(melee combatemphasis).
The main signsdepictingthe fantasy aspect are messagessaid by the story teller –
“He was a Witcher,a professional monsterslayer.”,the word ‘curse’in next
sentence and ‘[princessbeing]a deadlybeast,a striga” – these all give away the
supernatural part where beastslive and people can change into themby being
hexed.Lateron we can hear striga’snoises,whichIbelieveare the mix of several
carnivore sounds:1:50-1:56 there are noisesof eatingavictim(afterhe screams),
crunching,purringandsort of a squawk;2:15-2:19 roars (probablylion’s);2:20-2:25
louderroar andcry of a swine;alsothere are probablywolf’sorbearsnoisesbutit’s
hard to differentiatefromthe mix of it.
For medieval category we hear key words: monarch and princessin the
monologue.
In medieval timestheyusually have a personsinginga slowmelody0:00-0:04 &
0:15-0:21, and it soundsorchestral, but not symphonic(1:41-1:48). Afterthatit
becomeswild,sortof tribe musicorone where the personison adventure in an
unknowndarkland2:15-2:46.
Hack and slash type becomesclearfrom 0:37 minute(where preparationsare
heard – clashesand sounds of several metal objects,diggingthem into a leather,
and then knock of glass, faintgulp causing the musicto change rapidly and
unevenlywithsound bursts alongside human ‘uhhm’) until very endof the
cutscene.
Soundsmade of chain,metal,leatherand
puncheswere recordedwithinthe studiowithuse
of differentsuitable materials (Foleyartistry).
There are a lotof punches,hitsandkicks,and
these couldhave beenobtainedbyFoleyartistry.
The metal sword,thishighpitchnoise of itwas
eithermanipulatedof createdwithVSTeffects.
The powerof the spell the witchercasted(3:4-
4:20) couldbe made withinVSTeffects.

4. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
The battle takes roughlythe half of the cinematic2:23 – 5:20 andit’sbeing
interspersedwith the momentswhere tensionbuildsup,makingusthinkthe main
character and the beast‘read’eachothermovementsbeforedecidingtoattack
again. Some of the battle effectsinclude swishof the limbmovements,pushes
(2:27-2:30), the strong hitimpact(2:34-2:35), variouspunch/kicksounds(2:38-
2:44), wavingandclangsof a metal chain(3:05-3:26) and swingingof the weapon
(5:15-5:19). Everythingisaccompanieswithabeast’sresponse. Incontrasttothe
striga,we can’t hearmuch from the maincharacter. He remainsfocusedandmakes
soundsas an exclamationof usingforce (inordertohitharder).
Narrative The narrator (voice over) speaks only inthe first minute 0:08-0:35 of a cutscene.
He summarisesthe eventswhichtriggeredthe action (he talks about the curse
casted on a princess) and tellsbrieflywhatwill happennext(impliesthat the
witcher must survive the night with the princess to break the spell).
His voice is calm and clear,it matches with the mood,genre and the purpose he
speaks.
The narrative for the rest ofa recordingisn’t told, but rather usessounds and
music (and rapid/slowchanges betweenthem) informthe listenerofwhat’s
happening.
After the speech,we can hear sounds indicatingcharacter’s preparations (all the
metallicand leathersounds, thenthe twang of the glass and gulping).Atthe end
of these preparationswe canhearsoughanda rapidnoise 1:59-1:01 withwitcher’s
groaning.Itmakesthe feelingof arapidchange insomethingasanoutcome of
drinkingfromthisglass.
Not so long afterwards,there is a diegeticsoundof cutting and person isrunning.
But it cannot be the protagonist, because this rapid dashing(with increase of a
melodyspeed) doesn’tfitto what we heard before.It means that this traitor
mentionedinintroductionwas freed,butonly to be killed(andprobably ate) by
the beast1:48-1:55.
We hearthe witcherjumpingoff the place he wasin.His stepsare ina little hurry,
Speechof the narrator was studiorecorded,same
withthe noisesthe witchermakes.
Beastgroaninginmy opinionisa mix of several
animals,eg.boar,lion,bearetc.Anda dog inthe
part it scowls. These were eithercarefullyfield
recordedor someone justgrabbedthe animals
and placedinthe studio(butthat wouldseem
ridiculous).

5. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
but calmwhenapproachingthe beast.The strigarespondstohimby roaring2:14-
2:19. He doesn’trespond,soshe roarsagainand starts to attack. The battle begins,
and it’squite heatedup.There are a lotof kicksandpunches,roars of the beastand
the vigorousmelody.Itendsat3:04, as theyboth take a moment’sbreak.
At 3:05-3:23 the musicplaysquietlyinamore tensedmanner.Bothfightersare
calm,we can hearswingsof a chain andslowstepsof the beastandits murmurs.It
feelslike theyare tryingtoread eachother.The attack startssuddenly withthe
chainhittingthe stone.Beastrushestoattack but it’shitand restrained.We can
hearthe builttensionagainat3:36-3:41 whenthe beastfreesitselffromthe chains.
At 3:47-4:20 there buildsagreat tension,everyothermovement(apartthe flowof
some power) slowsdown,we canhearbothfightersfocusingalotand pushingtheir
abilitiesof resistance.Suddenlyall of itstopsandstrigacrashesonto stone bricks.
For fewsecondsit’squietandwe hearonlythe witcher’ssounds(thiskindof sound
the personmakeswhenjumping –hnng).Strigaroars again,quiet,quiet andat4:31
much louder– itall makesit thinkthatthe witcherusedthe time she wasunder
bricksto jumpontoanotherplace,but wasfound(4:32 clenchof a leather).
The dramatic musicplaysagainalongside withbeast’sgroaningandclimbingsound,
justwhenthe noteslengthenthe witcherhitsabeasts(4:43) and she fallsdue to
multiple soundsthatsignifyhittingthe surface. Afterthatthe witcherhitsitone
more time and unsheatheshissword,theystaystill(lackof anydiegeticsound).
Soonafterthe witcherswingsthe swordangrily(5:15-5:19) whichresultswiththe
beastscowlingandrunningaway(noise getsquieter).
Summarising,it all shows that the witcherdidn’t intendedtohurt a striga (he coul
do that however,as beinga professional monsterslayer),was rather defending
himselfmostof the time,trying to be alive (as the narrator stated – survive the
night with her) and to keep heralive as well.
The melodygetsgloomy,we canhearnoisesfromwetundergroundlocation,
footstepsand gettingintothe same objectthe strigagotout at the beginningof the

6. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
cut scene.Assoonas the stone ‘lid’isplacedon,we canhear strigato dash onit and
furiouslybangstogethim.
At 6:04 night passes(since we hear birds singing) the battle is over,hence the calm
melodyplaying.Lid is movedagain, which means the witcher went out, it’sall very
calm, but just at the last second there is a roar and slash,which meansthat his
questwasn’t completedas it should have been.