Develop - Issue 109 - September 2010

Page 78

tools Havok

+1 415 543 4620

www.havok.com

Tool

Spotlight AUDIOKINETIC WWISE TECHNOLOGY: AUDIO

+49 6897 - 600 80-0

www.xaitment.com

www.xaitment.com/jobs

Xaitment

Audiokinetic was founded in 2000 by Martin H. Klein, a veteran of the music, film, and gaming industries. Based in Quebec, Canada, it is the firm behind Wwise – WaveWorks Interactive Sound Engine – a complete audio pipeline solution package. Wwise comprises two main downloadable packages: an optimised sound engine in the form of an SDK for managing audio processing, and the non-linear Wwise audio authoring tool. The latter allows for the creation of audio asset structures, the integration of interactive music elements, defining of audio propagation, managing of all the sound integration, and the creation of SoundBanks. The Wwise application uses a hierarchical structure to function, with two top levels of Actor-Mixer and Master-Mixer. Within these levels are containers, sounds and additional Actor-Mixers. Containers are similar to folders that have properties and behaviours associated with them. Switch containers then alternate between sounds in containers related to in-game events. The integration of the audio authoring application and the sound engine allows the user to audit, profile, and modify sounds in real-time within a game. A downloadable user’s guide and several video tutorials are packaged as well. Wwise is also designed for authoring audio on-the-fly and in the context of a game. Its workflow supports every phase of audio development and allows the user to create, audition, and tweak the sound effects or subtle sound behaviors without any programming assistance.

Wwise also allows the fine-tuning of property sets for individual audio assets, modification or application of global properties to an entire colony of game characters at once, and the overseeing and managing of audio assets at all levels. The optimised software-based architecture provides seamless crossplatform support and is designed to be easily integrated into any game development pipeline. By reducing repetitive programming, the sound engine frees up programming resources to allow for greater customisation of the game engine to fit the specific audio needs of any game. The sound engine has been optimised to Windows 32-bit and 64bit (XP/Vista/7), Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii and Mac.

We engineer AI game tools that go far beyond pathfinding. Give NPCs the brainpower to challenge even the most seasoned gamer and become part of our team. NOW RECRUITING • Application Engineer USA • Game AI Developer

• Application Engineer Asia • Senior Developer CONTACT: Audiokinetic Inc. 09 rue Saint-Nicolas, bureau 300 Montréal, Québec H2Y 2P4, Canada

78 | September 2010

P: 514-499-9109 W: www.audiokinetic.com


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