Starfield (2023)

In my 21+ years of video game sound design, Starfield was my first original IP, rather than a continuation of an established world. The team created the massive universe from the ground up, experiencing challenges of sheer size and scale. Sound design work began in 2018, but then was delayed by development work on Fallout 76, to say nothing of the COVID pandemic and its unique challenges.

Both the entire BGS studio and the sound team expanded significantly during Starfield’s development, and all hands were required to conceive, assemble and finish such an ambitious project. The sound team did some of its finest work, creating SFX for everything from massive ships in the vacuum of space; real world and sci-fi weaponry (all fully moddable); player-buildable outposts; an endlessly variable creature creation system; and a voice budget that would make your eyes water — all while crafting our most intimate and detailed ambience work yet. The team also made the leap from our longstanding proprietary audio engine to using Audiokinetic’s Wwise audio middleware.

Collaboration with composer Inon Zur for his magnificent score spanned most of development, including several live orchestra recording sessions and multiple live performances, ultimately yielding a soundtrack well over five hours in length.

Even now, Starfield is in its early days as a ripe field for the dedicated modding community, as well as official BGS expansions and updates. The sky’s the limit.

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Fallout 76 (2018)