Audio Changes and Feedback from Patch 1.5.6

ZOS_BillMueller · November 2014

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!

Orchish · November 2014

Have you guys finally fixed the sound bug in Cyrodiil yet? I reported it months ago in game and again a couple weeks back.

Every time somebody uses soul assault on me, if i die when i respawn the sound of walking,running.horse galloping etc all stop working. Weapon sheathing and drawing also play no sounds. I have to relog to get them working again every time.

Strangely, nothing i do in game gets them back except one thing, if i use the vampire skill Elusive mist, they all start working again. No other skills at my disposal bring my sounds back without a relog.

Sadly i am no longer a vampire so cannot use this little trick anymore.

ZOS_BillMueller · November 2014

Hi Orchish, the sounds drop outs in Cyrodiil were fixed. We just ran a test case using what you described, and no problems were noticed. Thanks!

static_recharge · November 2014

Right after the patch I noticed that I frequently (and I mean very frequently) hear the sound that indicates "this action cannot be performed at this time" during combat. Did both the daily pledges yesterday and during both this sound was relentless. I still heard all other combat sounds I expected to, as far as I know. A relog did not fix this issue.

I submitted a bug report in game, but am mentioning it here because it was extremely disruptive when trying to tank for my group.

ZOS_GinaBruno · November 2014

static_recharge wrote: »

Right after the patch I noticed that I frequently (and I mean very frequently) hear the sound that indicates "this action cannot be performed at this time" during combat. Did both the daily pledges yesterday and during both this sound was relentless. I still heard all other combat sounds I expected to, as far as I know. A relog did not fix this issue.

I submitted a bug report in game, but am mentioning it here because it was extremely disruptive when trying to tank for my group.

We actually just hotfixed this issue today. All you'll need to do is download a very small patch, and you'll never hear the bonk again!

ArcaneBlue · November 2014

@ZOS_BillMueller @ZOS_GinaBruno is that new sound fx when looting corpses intentional?
it is rather annoying.

Orchish · November 2014

Well, finally the patch is live on EU and i am still having sounds such as weapon drawing/sheathing stop working after certain things such as dying to soul assault and sometimes when dying to a shock enemy and getting zapped, after respawning with a soulgem the sounds of my footsteps and weapons are gone. Having to relog to get them back.

Orchish · November 2014

Another issue i have noticed since latest update, sounds are now delaying quite a bit.

Example, i am firing my bow i have fired off 3 shots before the first sound is played, this is only happening when in heavily populated areas in Cyrodiil. An issue i did not have before 1.5.6.

Orchish · November 2014

ZOS_BillMueller wrote: »

Hi Orchish, the sounds drop outs in Cyrodiil were fixed. We just ran a test case using what you described, and no problems were noticed. Thanks!

So what exactly do you need to know to help you find the cause of this issue ? Because i am still having this issue, i am typing this right now as it's just happened to me in Cyrodiil again.

This is what happened just before the sounds stopped working.

I am fighting another player one on one, i am depleted of magicka (that sound plays when i try to cast a ability when depleted) just as his friend comes and uses Soul Assault on me, i die and turn into a ball of ash. Upon respawning the sounds of my footsteps, horse movement, weapon drawing and sheathing no longer play any sound at all. Relogging solves the issue. But i don't want to be relogging every time this happens.

It's a big issue for me as sound is important to me, i don't play music like most people do whilst playing, i enjoy hearing the sounds of the game whilst i play.

Palidon · November 2014

Orchish wrote: »

ZOS_BillMueller wrote: »

Hi Orchish, the sounds drop outs in Cyrodiil were fixed. We just ran a test case using what you described, and no problems were noticed. Thanks!

So what exactly do you need to know to help you find the cause of this issue ? Because i am still having this issue, i am typing this right now as it's just happened to me in Cyrodiil again.

This is what happened just before the sounds stopped working.

I am fighting another player one on one, i am depleted of magicka (that sound plays when i try to cast a ability when depleted) just as his friend comes and uses Soul Assault on me, i die and turn into a ball of ash. Upon respawning the sounds of my footsteps, horse movement, weapon drawing and sheathing no longer play any sound at all. Relogging solves the issue. But i don't want to be relogging every time this happens.

It's a big issue for me as sound is important to me, i don't play music like most people do whilst playing, i enjoy hearing the sounds of the game whilst i play.

What Orchish described it also happening to me when I use my Bow. Both Focused Aim and Venom Arrow have sound delays. This current issue was not happening prior to patch 1.5.6.

trimsic_ESO · November 2014

Sound FX of most skills are delayed by 1 or 2 seconds. For instant DW skills.
I can't hear any FX when I charge with a shield skill.

This is happening since patch 1.5.6. Sound FX were fine before the patch.

Orchish · December 2014

The sounds not playing in large battles since 1.5.6 is really ruining the experience for me, this is the first time i've actually wanted something reverted.

What ever was changed has seriously messed up the sound effects during large battles as most of the time every sound except for a select few start to stop playing until enough players have died and they start to come back but very delayed. Please look into this, if you are testing on the PTS or in PvE you are not going to see this problem. It is happening in large battles in PvP for me.

whiteshadow711jppreub18_ESO · December 2014

One of the things I really dislike is that if I spam my attack keys, and the ability is not ready I get a error like sound, I didn't hear this before and I definitely don't need this sound now, So please remove it.. or give me the option to turn it off..

I have turned off the UI sounds for the time being, which I hate doing, but I have too since I hate the error sounds more..

Mightylink · December 2014

Can you please give us the ability to use our own custom music, like the soundtrack from the previous games, some folders to drop mp3's into like guild wars 2 music system would be awesome, have different music play for different situations like exploring, combat, dungeons.

TheBull · December 2014

Audio know lags (i've never experienced anything like it in any mmorpg ever)... At times it feels/sounds like you in a vacuum.

As an ex-Big Ten Athlete I guess it's kinda realistic. In a not hearing the crowd during a play kinda way.

WhiskyBob · December 2014

Since the latest patch the audio is terrible.
- Shield Blocking on big packs (AA, HRC, any dungeon), you get smacked for a couple of seconds, after the fight you get like 0,5 second of stacked blocking sounds
- Ransack - cant hear it, or can hear it after some time. Thank God, ransack is totally broken and there is no point in using it at the moment.
- Sanctum Ophidia - Manticore doing some weird loud whizz sound that gets louder when engaged. If you are tanking this your ears will bleed at some point.
- Is the new voice Varlariel reason why the latest patch was so heavy? Cause its terrible compared to her previous one.
- Foundation Stone Atronach - sometimes im hearing "stone throwing" phase effects during "ground bashing" phase.
- Extended Chains - Not only is this skill broken overall but now there is a delay on the sound effect, usually when there are more then one DK's doing their pulls.
- Quite a few boss fights (especially when they have add spawns) miss half of the SFX and battles seem like they are done underwater.

ZOS_BillMueller · December 2014

Orchish wrote: »

ZOS_BillMueller wrote: »

Hi Orchish, the sounds drop outs in Cyrodiil were fixed. We just ran a test case using what you described, and no problems were noticed. Thanks!

So what exactly do you need to know to help you find the cause of this issue ? Because i am still having this issue, i am typing this right now as it's just happened to me in Cyrodiil again.

This is what happened just before the sounds stopped working.

I am fighting another player one on one, i am depleted of magicka (that sound plays when i try to cast a ability when depleted) just as his friend comes and uses Soul Assault on me, i die and turn into a ball of ash. Upon respawning the sounds of my footsteps, horse movement, weapon drawing and sheathing no longer play any sound at all. Relogging solves the issue. But i don't want to be relogging every time this happens.

It's a big issue for me as sound is important to me, i don't play music like most people do whilst playing, i enjoy hearing the sounds of the game whilst i play.

Any chance you can capture of a video and post it so we can see/hear exactly what is going on? That would be a huge help, thanks!

Fecius · December 2014

Plz, do smth with that SO: Mantikora sound of boiling teapot. There was no this sound in 1.5.4. It appears in 1.5.5. Before 1.5.6 it was heard only under the boss, that was a problem for a tank, but after this patch this sound became much louder and it's crazy to hear it for 10 minuts of killing this boss.

We hoped it'll be fixed in 1.5.6, so we just w8ed a bit, but it became worse. Help our ears!

ZOS_BillMueller · December 2014

Fecius wrote: »

Plz, do smth with that SO: Mantikora sound of boiling teapot. There was no this sound in 1.5.4. It appears in 1.5.5. Before 1.5.6 it was heard only under the boss, that was a problem for a tank, but after this patch this sound became much louder and it's crazy to hear it for 10 minuts of killing this boss.

We hoped it'll be fixed in 1.5.6, so we just w8ed a bit, but it became worse. Help our ears!

Yup! We have identified the issue and are hoping to push a fix "soon"

Horrum · December 2014

Any updates on the delayed sounds in Cyro? It is still happening in more populated areas. You will rush into a group of enemies, every light/heavy attack and skill suddenly has no sound (feels like I am fighting in a vacuum lol) and as soon as the battle loses intensity a hundred swords clash in my ears. It is very odd.

It's almost as if sounds are at the bottom of the player feedback priority list.

EDIT: Yes this only started happening after the last patch.

Stereo - Headphones.
Visual effects play as normal.

Palidon · December 2014

[

ZOS_BillMueller wrote: »

Hi Orchish, the sounds drop outs in Cyrodiil were fixed. We just ran a test case using what you described, and no problems were noticed. Thanks!

Please quit lying to the players. The sound issues in Cyrodiil have not been fixed. As a matter of fact they have just gotten worse.

bellanca6561n · December 2014

Great sound design work in this game. I play it in surround. In deepens my immersion immensely.

Okay, so I submitted 12-15 bug reports about that Khajiit prisoner in the last Shadowfen quest who keeps grunting and groaning because you have her hands tied. I would have submitted more but I thought that perhaps you wouldn't find it amusing anymore.

There are well known mixing issues where incidental dialog collides with higher priority sounds and dialog.

There is a rebirth of a "Ranser, you madman! Time to finish this!" style misqueue of sound in the Dres farm dungeon area. In this case Mother Morrowind and her, "My city! My people!" playing a few times before you get to the spot where she's actually supposed to say that.

I miss Northpoint Nocturne being the incidental theme for the Hollow City in Cold Harbor. It captures perfectly the ethos of that place: people, surviving, but their lives as they knew them are over.

You've heard this plenty, but please (phuleeeze) give me back the stabby stabby stabby stab stab sound of Flurry.

Incidental background dialog in dungeons should not be distinguishable words. This is because there are a finite number of available phrases and I think, after level 20 or so, we're all feeling "...as crazy as a cat on skooma," hearing these same statements.

But these are nits. I love the sound in this game. Outstanding design and often inspired implementation. The conclusion of the quest at the Hatching Pools stayed with me for days.

bellanca6561n · December 2014

Oh, but whatever you do, keep "You look like a sturdy one. Shall I use my whip or my riding crop?" for the Dark Seducers in Cold Harbor. I could stand to hear that question many more times....still considering my answer.

bellanca6561n · December 2014

Here's a good example, Bill, of mixing indistinguishable background conversation with some bits you can make out. It's an RP video made a player yesterday.

Only thing it needs is The Sea Hawks soundtrack by Erich Wolfgang Korngold. Well...perhaps not....

http://youtu.be/80Fw4SxCYR8

Jitterbug · December 2014

Cool, sounds like interesting work actually... I know, I'm a huge nerd...

ZOS_BillMueller · December 2014

Horrum wrote: »

Any updates on the delayed sounds in Cyro? It is still happening in more populated areas. You will rush into a group of enemies, every light/heavy attack and skill suddenly has no sound (feels like I am fighting in a vacuum lol) and as soon as the battle loses intensity a hundred swords clash in my ears. It is very odd.

It's almost as if sounds are at the bottom of the player feedback priority list.

EDIT: Yes this only started happening after the last patch.

Stereo - Headphones.
Visual effects play as normal.

Hey guys, just an update on this. We have some fixes that are currently being tested. Flurry also is being worked and we will have a fix for that.

Thanks for the feedback bellanca6561n on the VO issues. We will take a look at those! And thanks for the feedback in general guys! We love hearing it!

ItsGlaive · December 2014

Any news yet on this @ZOS_BillMueller? Looks like flurry has been worked on for a couple of weeks now, can we have a fix for it as a late Christmas pressie?

ZOS_BillMueller · January 2015

Xabien wrote: »

Any news yet on this @ZOS_BillMueller? Looks like flurry has been worked on for a couple of weeks now, can we have a fix for it as a late Christmas pressie?

Hey Xabien! The fix for Flurry will be in Update 6. Enjoy your present....what did you get us?