“Dialogue Designer Kit Challis walks us through the dialog mix in Star Citizen.”
Kate Ellis, a dialogue designer, discusses the challenges of monitoring other sounds in a game to influence how dialogue is heard. Traditional approaches involve mastering dialogue to a consistently loud volume with minimal dynamic range. However, this can result in dialogue sounding artificial or recorded. To solve this issue, dialogue is processed using audio signal processors like limiters and compressors to limit dynamic range and make the dialogue sound louder. Additional processing techniques such as high-pass filters and graphic equalization enhance the clarity of the dialogue.
Ellis demonstrates a dialogue scene where the dialogue volume remains constant regardless of changes in ambient noise. While this approach ensures dialogue is always audible, it lacks realism. To address this, she introduces the Lombard effect, which refers to speakers increasing their vocal effort in loud noise environments. By metering ambient levels and using them to inform the loudness of the dialogue, the dialogue mix becomes responsive to the surroundings, making it more natural and immersive. However, implementing this technique by recording dialogue twice, once at a normal volume and once at a shouted volume, would be expensive and complex.
The suggested solution is to limit the dynamic range of dialogue only when ambient levels are higher than the baseline. This maintains the natural loudness of the loudest parts of the speech and increases the volume of the quietest parts, making them audible against the noisy background. Ellis demonstrates this technique using a dialogue scene, and the result is a mix that responds to ambient noise levels, creating a more realistic and immersive experience for players. She emphasizes that this approach allows for dialogue to be heard in a wide variety of situations while staying true to realism.
Ellis concludes by encouraging players to pay attention to the dialogue mix in other games and see if it responds to the environment or remains static. She also expresses gratitude for the support of the players in allowing the exploration of new ways of approaching dialogue design. In the future, players can expect to hear the Lombard effect implemented in a release of Star Citizen.