Hi guys!
Bill Mueller here, one of the sound designers for ESO. Along with the fixes that have gone live with the
latest patch, we have some pretty exciting changes to combat audio in ESO that we’d like to discuss a bit.
In an effort to help clean up audio and make combat feel more responsive and impactful, we have remixed the audio levels of combat; these changes went live in patch 1.5.6. The goal is that combat in general will feel and sound better, and actions that you do will be more impactful and easier to hear. Below are some of the things we have done in this patch:
A better priority system: We re-evaluated our priority system and came up with a cleaner solution. This will fix the issue with “important” sounds dropping during large scale combat.
New attenuations for combat: We tightened up the audio so combat that is happening away from you will be quieter. This will allow for combat that is happening on top of you (read: actions you are taking) to be more noticeable. We also adjusted ranged abilities so when you toss that Javelin into the wraiths chest, you will still hear the impact.
Mix balance pass on every player ability: We adjusted the loudness of every ability to ensure they are all around the same volume. This means abilities will now be around the same volume as other abilities when you use them. The exception is Ultimates as they are mixed to be a bit louder, which should give you that “Ohhh yeah…I just dropped an Ultimate on your face!!” feeling.
An audit of all player abilities: During the mix pass, we fixed broken audio from abilities or updated their sounds to sound even more awesome.
This is just part of the work that has been done, and we still have more work to do (updating the surround mix and more cleaning up of combat, to name a few), but we went ahead and dropped it in – we feel like it’s enjoyable already and wanted you to experience it.
So now for a favor. We very much listen to player feedback and lurk on the forums and subreddit looking for it. With these changes, we’d love to get even more of your feedback so please let us know what you think, and report any issues. To help us address feedback or any potential issues, the more information you can give us, the better. If you do run into any issues, please answer the following questions:
- What were you doing when you noticed the problem?
- PVE, PVP, Dungeon, Trial?
- What monster were you fighting, or was it another player?
- Do you listen to the game in stereo or surround?
- If you notice sound drop outs, did the visual effect still play?
Again, thank you guys so much for being awesome fans. This was a huge effort that the entire Audio Team all had a hand in. We look forward to your feedback, and will see you in game!