GameAudioResource

Wwise CUBE 2019 – CHAPTER 10 A: Body – Fall

Created By: Game Audio Resource Ltd     Date: 14/09/2019      Version: 2.00

In this guide we assign body fall hierarchy to trigger when an entity death vocal event is called in game.

Guide Steps:

  • STEP 01: Player Character
  • STEP 02: Enemy
  • STEP 03: Test & Integrity Report

Task Time Needed: 1>2 hours

Video Guide

Written Guide

Chapter 10 A – Step 01
Player Character

In this step will set up hierarchy to trigger body fall audio assets when the Player Character dies

Hierarchy

  1. In the Actor-Mixer Hierarchy > Default Work Unit > Body Wwise Work Unit, right click then select: New Child > Actor Mixer
    Name It: Body_Fall
  2. In the Property Editor > Output bus assign the following path:
    SFX > Body
  3. Right click the Actor Mixer, then select New Child > Switch Container
    Name it: Body_Fall_Human_Leather_Player
  4. In the Property Editor, Switch > Group assign the following path:
    State Groups > Default Work Unit > PlayerInWater
    Set the Default Switch/State to: No
  5. Right click the Switch Container, select New Child > Random Container
    Name It: Body_Fall_Human_Leather_Player_BelowWater
  6. Then create a Wwise Silence container under the Random Container
  • TIP: This will stop body falls triggering on the player character when it dies.
  1. Right click the Switch Container, select New Child > Switch Container
    Name It: Body_Fall_Human_Leather_Player_AboveWater
  2. In the Property Editor > Switch > Group, assign the following switch path
    Switch Group > Default Work Unit > Material
    Assign the Default Switch/State to: Concrete.
  3. Under the AboveWater switch container, add 11 new Random Containers
    Name them Individually, each material type:
    Concrete, Grass, Gravel, Metal, Pebbles, Sand, Stone, Tile, Undergrowth, Water, Wood.
  4. Drag in associated one-shot body fall audio assets into each associated Random Container.
    Place them under the path SFX > Body > Fall > Leather

Assigning Switches

  1. In the Body_Fall_Human_Leather_Player_AboveWater Switch Container, assign the material types to the Assigned Objects in the Contents Editor.
  2. In the Body_Fall_Human_Leather_Player Switch Container, assign the PlayerInWater variables to the Assigned Objects in the Contents Editor.
    > AboveWater to None & No
    > BelowWater to Yes

Events

  1. In the Project Explorer > Events tab, locate the event Death_Player
  2. In the Events Editor, right click the list, then select New Action > Play.
  3. Return to the Actor-Mixer Hierarchy Body_Fall_Human_Leather_Player Switch Container, then drag it on the target column of the new Play Action we have just added.
  4. With the Play Action selected, change the Delay in 0.3
  • TIP: This means when the event is triggered the body fall will trigger 0.5 seconds after.
    You will need to test in game, if this feels in time with the animation.
  1. Save your Wwise Project updates, then generate the sound banks.

 

Chapter 10 A – Step 02
Enemy Entity

In this step will set up generic hierarchy to trigger body fall audio assets when an enemy entity dies.
For this example, we will use the Knight entity.

Hierarchy

  1. Navigate to the Actor-Mixer Hierarchy > Body Wise Work Unit> Body_Fall Actor Mixer,
    Right click, then select New Child > Switch Container.
    Name it: Body_Fall_Human_Segmented
  2. Select the Switch Container, then in the Property Editor > Switch > Group assign the following path: Switch Groups > Default Work Unit > Material
    Assign the Default Switch/State to: Concrete.
  • TIP: The material switch is based on the player characters surface under its foot.
    This will not work perfectly, but generally the surface type will be similar to where the player character is located.
  1. Right click the Switch Container, select New Child > Random Container.
  2. Copy and paste the Random Container so you have 11 Random Containers
    Name Each one individually: Concrete, Grass, Gravel, Metal, Pebbles, Sand, Stone, Tile, Undergrowth, Water, Wood.
  3. Drag in associated one-shot body fall audio asserts to the associated Random Containers.
    Assign the assets under the path: SFX > Body > Fall > Segmented.

Assign Switch

  1. Select the Body_Fall_Human_Segmented Switch Container. Then in the Contents Editor drag each named Material Random Container onto the associated Assigned Objects Material types.

Positioning

  1. In the Project Explorer > Sharsets tab, copy and Paste the 3 Footstep Small, Medium and Large Attenuation’s into the Body Wwise Work Unit
  2. Rename the Attenuation’s from Footstep to Body
  3. Return to the Body_Fall_Human_Segmented Switch Container, then in the Positioning tab add the following:
    Under Listener Relative Routing > 3D Spatialization, in the drop-down list select Position + Orientation.
    Then Under Attenuation assign the following attenuation: My Cube > Body > Body_Medium
    NOTE: We are using footstep attenuation values, you may wish to modify the values and settings used on the body related attenuations.

Events

  1. In the Project Explorer > Events tab, locate and select the event Death_Knight.
  2. In the Event Editor > List, right click, select New Action > Play.
  3. Navigate back to the Actor-Mixer Hierarchy, Body_Fall_Human_Segmented Switch Container. Drag it on the new Death_Knight Play Action in the Event Editor.
  4. Select the Play Action, then change the Delay to 0.3
  • TIP: This will make the body fall hierarchy trigger 0.3 seconds after the vocal has triggered.
    This should be more in-time with the death animation as the entity Knights torso hits the floor.
  1. Save your Wwise Project updates and generate the sound banks.

As the Knight has a metal shield, you could also use this steps guide to implement a new hierarchy for Shield_Metal_Drops to trigger when the knight’s torso hits the floor.

Chapter 10 A – Step 03
Test & Integrity Report

We will now test our implemented updates

  1. Boot up the Cube game and connect Wwise to the game.
  2. Change to the Wwise Profiler layout.
  3. Load a single player map
  4. Wait for an enemy entity Knight to spawn, then kill the Knight.
  5. Adjust the associated vocal death event play action’s delay value in-time with the animation.
  • TIP: Some entities have different death animations. So, timing it perfectly for one animation maybe out of time with the other. Try to find the best medium.
  • TIP: in a professional studio each animation would be unique and audio tagged in time with the animation movement
  1. Allow the player character to be killed.
  2. Adjust the associated vocal death event play action’s delay value in-time with the animation.
  3. Once you have added all balancing changes needed, save your Wwise Project updates and generate the sound banks.
  4. Finally run a Wwise Integrity Report to validate your data updates.
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