Esports production shares many qualities with live sports, but sound engineering is a whole new game. IBC365 explores the complexities of controlling who hears what in a crucible of noise.
Sound has always played a major part in the gaming experience. Gunshots, revving engines and screeching tyres are the obvious aural signatures of shoot-’em-ups and auto-based games but supporting these are subtler backgrounds and atmospheres that help create the various environments in which players find themselves. All this carries over to the large-scale, multi-player, arena-based world of esports, but the live, professional nature of this increasingly popular form of game-playing calls for specific audio techniques that set it apart from its home counterpart.
The main difference is the scale, with the games taking place in an arena and involving a large number of people, all of whom need to hear what is going on. Cameron O’Neill, Country Manager for broadcast facilities company NEP Japan, divides those involved into three categories: the sports group, comprising the competitors and their support teams (coaches and backup players) plus the referees ensuring everyone plays by the rules; the audience, live production teams and the announcers/commentators, known in esports as ‘shoutcasters’; and the broadcast and streaming crews producing coverage of the events...
You are not signed in
Only registered users can read the rest of this article.
From green screen to Unreal worlds: The tech stack driving virtual production
As broadcasters and content creators embrace in-camera VFX and data-driven workflows, a new technology stack is redefining what can be achieved on set and who can afford to achieve it. Framestore’s Connor Ling explores the possibilities of this evolving ecosystem.
Software studios: How inevitable is fully software-defined production?
With the rise of free, high-quality media tools, physical broadcast production hardware is looking less and less essential. IBC365 investigates.
Is the race to 6G being driven by necessity, or FOMO?
6G is coming and promises massive improvements in efficiency across society. But beyond those with vested interests, 6G may not justify either hype or investment. Adrian Pennington reports.
IBC Content Everywhere: Personalisation and the role of AI
As the battle for views intensifies, streaming providers are increasingly turning to personalisation as a key strategy to attract and retain customers. In this piece, Content Everywhere companies explore this fundamental pillar of the attention economy, how it's changing, and what role AI is set to play.
Inside IBC’s Innovation and Insight Leadership Roundtable: Speed, sovereignty, and the value question
Top industry experts from the DTG, BBC, and more sat down with IBC365 to discuss how broadcasters plan to thrive in a time of heightened competition, viewer expectations, and constrained budgets.
