Menu sounds

I've realised that we're missing menu sounds for buttons and stuff.
Feels strangely empty with only the music playing and no acoustic feedback of user actions with the game's GUI.

Then I recalled that there was a switch for that.
So I found it and pulled.
Hmm. This would suit some middleage-y RPG or hack'n'slash game, but not a futuristic, Sci-Fi arena shooter!

Now I know why these are off by default

I hope to come up with some new sounds as soon as I get my tools ready (I need to reinstall my system... again).

Until then!

Hehe, they're the old Nexuiz sounds, I bet. There's something about them that makes me remember them precisely after years. Maybe that's a good thing heh.

They sound like they came directly from Doom1!

@Mr. Bougo: I think that's the case I've played the earliest Nexuiz version (staic silver menus and stuff) - I think I remember those.

@aa: Something about that age

Alrrighy then, I've made a soundpack:

  unfa-XonoticMenuSounds-02.zip (Size: 324.89 KB / Downloads: 15) ← newest version

  unfa-XonoticMenuSounds-01.zip (Size: 291.39 KB / Downloads: 1)

Here's LMMS source file (v. 1.0.3, requires zita-reverb LADSPA plugin):

  unfa-XonoticMenuSounds-Sources-02.zip (Size: 13.75 MB / Downloads: 3) ← newest version

  unfa-XonoticMenuSounds-04.mmpz.zip (Size: 55.45 KB / Downloads: 1)

I may make a video mockup of what I intend these to be and where should they go, but I hope you can figure it out from my description:

Click - pressing a button in the interface
Hover - placing mouse over interactive objects in the game menu
Dialog - when dialog window appears ("really quit?", "track stats?", "view settings...")
Open - maximizing a menu window (single, multi of settings)
Close - minimizing a menu window (single, multi of settings)
Join - when joining a match (either pressing "Join", doubleclicking on a server or starting new server)
Downloading - when enering downloading screen, as downlaoding files starts
Loading - when downloading finished, and the game is loading data and about to start the game
Leave - when leaving a game (either using F11 or "disconnect" form terminal)
Quit - when confirmed exiting the game
Type - when pressing a key on the keyboard in context of an active text box
Backspace - when deleting a character from the text field (Backspace or Delete!)

How do you like these clips? Please not that their loudness in the game should be reduced (I suggest -12 dB, that is approx. 75% of the volume). I prefer to encode normalized (loud) files and reduce volume after decoding, while playing back - it deliver better quality, as the audio codec has loud signal, and it produces less artifacts and distortion plus we have better signal-to-noise ratio.

What needs to be done if these are approved:

1. Coding to make these actually play in the game when needed
2. Creating new mixer strip in the Settings Window and assign these sound to the mixer channel
3. Remove the old "Menu sounds" checkbox and reassign it's functionality to the updated sound mixer

What do you think of this?

I want to change the Leave and Quit sounds completely, also the Loading and Downloading sounds seem to bite a bit.

Here's a mocup of what I have now:



(I know there are some errors, and these sounds are all too loud I would mean them quieter in the game).

Hopefull it will give you some idea of what is my vision.

I have an idea, menu to choose the ambient soundtrack that will be, like World of Padman choose Music menu, even better, infos with pictures of the sounds if have. of the artist also.(I doesnt play this game a while so I dont know if you add it)

The clicking sound (screen selection) is super annoying unfa, it reminds me of half life 1. Other than that it's ok, I don't mind when things change every couple of years.

Agree with frostwyrm, as long as there's not too much sfx in menus would be really nice.

The window opening sound seems to be to ridiculous. And the hover sound is annoying.

Sorry, I don't like these at all. They don't add anything but annoyance IMO.

Guys, please use the filenames when you comment on sounds, it'll be easier to avoid confusion, sometimes Im not sure what sound we're talking about.

Nestel, please stay on the topic. What you wrote seems to me completely unrelated to what this thread is about. If you have a creative idea - please open a new thread and start a discussion there.

frostwyrm333, I can't find the Half Life menu sound, or it doesn't sound super annoying to me and I don't see a relation Also I think that it'd be a better way to say "the sound annoys me" rather than "the sound is annoying" as different people tend have very different feelings about these, what annoys you, doesn't annoy me etc.
I guess you mean the click.ogg sound?

aa, I don't know what is ridiculous about this sound, please speak up, I don't think there's anything wrong with open.ogg.

machine! & Antibody, please note that you can always disable these sounds...

I feel a little bitter about your feedback, guys.

I don't know what to improve, because all I got was "it's annoying", "it's ridiculous" and "it adds nothing".

I can't resist to reply:

Your feedback is annoying, ridiculous and it adds nothing! *
*i really feel like this, but take it as a joke and please try walking in my shoes

I am sorry but I don't have any specific feedback besides "less is more".

When a sound appears very often, use a very subtle sound or no at all.

When somethink less frequently use a more powerful sound so you feel the feedback.

I suggest looking at dota2's menu, it have sfx without being annoying and there's plenty of videos if you don't wanna install it.

Thanks, that was something constructive

I'll see what I can do about these, hopefully I can make them non-intrusive but still nice and valuable.

If you can, please post some reference material.

---

BTW: I've put the sounds on Freesound:
http://freesound.org/people/unfa/sounds/244266/

BTW: I've put the sounds on Freesound:
http://freesound.org/people/unfa/sounds/244266/

I would prefer no background music, button noises, or animations for switching menu. just something a little simpler, it's already too much imo so u probably don't need to add noises for mousing over things.

If you don't want to hear the sounds, you'll be able to disable them in the options window.
No one's gonna force anybody to listen to any of these sounds or any music in the game, use the game's audio mixer, it's supereasy and works great.

I'd prefer to focus on making the sounds better, not discussing who will switch them off.

Unfa, I think you are very talented as a musician and sound artist. The sounds themselves are fine, just not for a menu I think.

Almost all the sounds in the video have the same effect on me as my alarm clock. They are making me feel very uncomfortable indeed. They have to be much less pronounced. That has nothing to do with the volume, just the sounds themselves. They need to have a far more subtle sound to them.

I know that it's hard for a music or sound artist to not give a sound everything they've got talent-wise, but menu sounds should always be understated and supporting the player going throgh the menu's in a discrete fashion. The sounds as they are now are all trying to be important attention grabbers.

I hope I am putting into better words what others tried to say with one-liners :p

I also hope you see my point and can listen to the sounds in a neutral way as a player and not a the guy who made the sounds. Realizing what me and others have said and adjusting the sounds accordingly could add yet another dimension to your talent too. So don't discard this project, look at it in another way and craft something understatedly epic out of it.

Thank you, PinkRobot

Yes, too many people say these sounds make them uncomfortable. I wonder if I perceive them differently, maybe I have damaged hearing and I don't hear all of them, maybe I should lowpass filter them until I notice the loss and leave them that way?

Anyway, that was a nice lesson, and I hope to get this topic another go in some time soon or less soon

Hopefully I can make something everyone will want to have on