By Gregg Peele — originally published in Volume 1 – Issue 1 – June, 1983
Have you been to a coin arcade lately? If you have, then you know the impact that sound has on the excitement of a video game. Whizzes, bangs, and explosions of all sorts are mixed with melodies and other special effects. Although the visuals provide most of the stimuli within a game, good sound effects add that final professional touch.
How can sound be used effectively within a program? Naturally, collisions, explosions, and other climactic events occurring on the screen need the added realism of sound. But don’t limit its use to these special effects.
Sound can add a spark of interest to a particularly dull section of a game. Maybe it takes ten or 20 seconds to set up the screen for your game. By adding sound to this part of your program, you can maintain the interest even though, visually, not much is happening.
Sound can also serve more practical purposes within other types of programs. A small beep can signal an error condition or remind the user that the computer needs attention.
Fortunately, Commodore has built excellent sound capabilities into both the VIC-20 and the Commodore 64. The 64, in fact, contains one of the most sophisticated sound-producing systems of all personal computers, a true “synthesizer-on-a-chip.” Commodore plans to use the full potential of the 64’s sound capability when it releases its plug-in synthesizer keyboard later this year. Commodore also is readying a plug-in drum synthesizer for both the 64 and the VIC.
With these new peripherals, a revolution in sound is beginning for Commodore users. We’ll be covering this subject regularly in COMPUTE!’s Gazette for Commodore.
Fanfare
This month, here’s a sound effect which may be used to add a bit of excitement to almost any program. There are two listings – one for the 64 and the other for the VIC. The routine produces an arcade-style “fanfare” for some triumphant moment within a game.
The addition of sound can enhance almost any computer program. Don’t neglect the added dimension that sound can add to your computing.
See program listings on page 114.