In Sony's most recent Road to PS5 event, the presentation focused on specs and performance numbers, but once again one of the biggest features touted by Sony was a new engine for sound. In fact, all through the leaks, teases, and information drops on the PlayStation 5, huge improvements to sound has been one of the biggest selling points along side solid state storage. Even ray tracing technology, which most people associate with visuals, was pushed as a tool for game developers to create more immersive and complex soundscapes in the aforementioned PS5 presentation.
It might seem odd for Sony to keep pushing better sound for the PlayStation 5 as such a huge deal. Sound is sound, after all. It can help with immersion, but beyond that, it might seem like games generally have dialogue, sound effects, and music figured out. However, as the huge gaps in graphics quality between console generations narrow, features like better sound design and faster load times will become far more important to games than visuals alone. There are many ways that sound in games can be improved, and several games that already give a peek at that potential.
While Dolby recently disputed claims made by Mark Cerny about the PS5's audio, that seemed to be Dolby arguing against the implication that the PS5's 3D audio engine would be better than Dolby Atmos. The company diplomatically reassured customers that both products are excellent, while pointing out that their Atmos was a bit better better than Cerny had made it out to be in his comparison.
Ray Tracing
In the competition between the PS5 and Xbox Series X, the PlayStation seems to lag behind a bit in pure processing power. However, both consoles have advertised ray-tracing capabilities with their new GPUs. Realistically, the amount that ray-tracing will revolutionize graphics in these consoles will be very limited. Even very high-end PCs struggle to consistently use ray-tracing as more than a gimmick. Interestingly though, Sony has been the only one of the two competitors to advertise ray-tracing as a tool for audio.
Ray-tracing isn't just limited to visuals. It is just a computing technique that allows a program to quickly trace the paths of rays bouncing through a virtual 3D space. Those rays can represent light, but the computing power needed to to calculate an entire visual scene using only ray tracing is still incredibly high. However, rays can also be used to calculate the trajectory of sound, making it possible for developers to create very realistic noise patterns with relatively little processing power needed.
Sound and AI computation will likely be the biggest beneficiaries of ray tracing in consoles, not graphics. While the Xbox will likely have more raw power, it is good that Sony recognizes the importance of features like audio and fast load times, and plans on using what tech power they have to push those features. That being said, developers on Xbox may well be able to use its ray-tracing in the same ways, since the GPUs and processors of both consoles are remarkably similar.
Video Games that Benefit from 3D Sound
The best way to illustrate how important 3D sound can be to upcoming games is to look at examples of video games that use current sound design technology to its maximum potential. The first games that come to mind are ones that take advantage of ambiance and atmosphere to immerse the player in an environment and evoke an emotional response. Horror games, in particular, may be the genre most affected by new technology in sound.
The Resident Evil 2 Remake used sound to great effect, using a model of the Tyrant Mr. X stomping around rooms searching for the player to project the eerie sound of heavy footsteps emanating from various rooms and floors of each area. In horror games, the ability to accurately project sound to cue the player in on strange things moving in the dark could significantly up the ante on immersion.
Other games that come to mind are the likes of Hellblade and STALKER, which both used sound to great effect. Hellblade 2 and the next STALKER game may well make use of much improved sound technology to create an even deeper experience, although Hellblade 2 will be exclusive to Xbox and PC, so may miss out on the specific technology that Sony is working to promote. A game that was so immersive even with just dual channel audio could be an even more exquisite sensory experience with more objects and more directionality to play with.
Lastly, another important factor for 3D game sound could be competition. Anyone who has played enough competitive shooters has almost certainly died to someone who they thought they heard coming from a different direction. Competitive play in games like Rainbow 6 Siege absolutely depends on listening in for the direction of footsteps or gadgets going off, while the loud footsteps in Call of Duty Modern Warfare were despised by many players for confusing them or giving away their position. More robust sound systems could do a great deal to adding another layer of accuracy and information to competitive play.
Pushing the Boundaries
With traditional audio engines, sound can be used to detect the general direction and proximity of various effects, but new technology should allow developers to fine-tune the exact dynamics of how sound works in an environment and where players hear it from. Of course, that will require better speakers or headphones for most people, but this is how technology gets pushed forward and becomes mainstream.
Aside from other big tech upgrades like improved visuals and literally game-changing load times, the abilities for developers to push the outer boundaries of what sound can do in games will only improve the experience for everyone. We have reached the point that graphics are good enough for many developers to focus on art direction rather than pure realism, and things like sound, AI, and physics engines will be the next leaps forward in game technology. So far, the next console generation looks very promising in those areas indeed.
The PlayStation 5 is set to release in holiday 2020.
