Using Fmod with Unity
Continuing to work on “Eldest Souls” (first article here!), I’ve begun familiarising myself with the workflow between Fmod and Unity, and the integration system. I thought I’d share my thoughts as a complete beginner learning the ropes of sound designing.
The library of sounds that Fmod provides has been very useful, at least as reference points. I’ve still kept to my ethos of producing the sounds myself as much as possible. Having said that, Fmod gives you 50 free sounds with your download, and I’ve used a wooden crate smash, a drawbridge and electricity sound you can hear in the foley video below.
I created a sword attack for our player, trying to sound different from the generic “woosh” I see in so many video games. I used a very “sharp” and abrasive sound to differentiate him from any enemies.
I also had fun rummaging through the garage for old tools and metal components for the “Guardian” (the first boss) footsteps.
This may be obvious to most, but my favourite aspect of this workflow between Fmod and Unity is the immediate response to changes you make. I can implement a sound in Unity, test it, flick back to Fmod to make an alteration and then head straight back to Unity to test it out again. This feature is totally new to me as an indie dev noob, but I’m certainly not taking it for granted!
I recently upgraded my microphone to a Rode NTG2 shotgun, which has been phenomenal. I haven’t had to worry about noise interfering with the clarity of my objects, whereas before with the sm58 I had to be clever with my EQ and noise reduction plugins.
Important to note again that this still a “cheap” mic in comparison to most other products on the market, and all in all my entire setup is still very simple and affordable which I’m quite proud of. I’ve seen many musicians spend heaps of money on gear they don’t necessarily need. I much prefer being resourceful with less equipment, than to have more than I can understand or remember how to use.
It’s forced me to understand every aspect and capability of my tools, which I believe is a principal that can be applied to any discipline.
I have more fun little sound effect videos on my Instagram for those interested, where I post regular updates. Thanks for reading! (if you’ve made it this far)
