I've come across varying opinions in this regard and am just curious as to how important people think the sound and music for an iphone game is... The debate seems to be that for the casual gamer, music and sound may as well barely exist, bc you're likely to have your iphone on silent in the public anyway when you're just starting up a game to play for 5-15 minutes, and rarely will have a chance to pop on the headphones or really enjoy good sound or music anyway. So, im curious to know if you are that guy who silents his iphone most of the time... OR do you in fact make it a point to wear your headphones and get immersed even when just playing for a bit? Are you impartial (it wouldnt make or break the game), or would good sound and music MAKE you pick up your headphones? Or do you just not care at all?
It is my belief that sound is MORE important then graphics. I once saw a small short film by stephen spielberg, it was just a small thing and he wanted to emphasize the importance of sound and music in any movie (which can be translated to games). Basically he played the film once with no sound/bad sound and then again with his good sounds added in. It made a HUGE difference. Using music to get people into it is key...
yeah I totally agree, when we're talking about movies or console/PC games... but keep in mind the iphone is a much different beast, where many people are playing their games at work or in the public.
sound is very important to me, but I also play guitar and piano so music means a little more to me in general. Sound can definitely set the mood for the theme of the game in a big way, and sin some cases can make or break a game. In the end however, its the actual gameplay thats the most important and always will be.
what about specifically when you play iphone games... do you tend to play them with headphones, sound up over the speakers, or do you generally play them in public/work with the sound off? i would say, personally i find music and sound VERY important in general (i too am a musician), but most of the time on my iphone the sound is off anyway so i dont get to enjoy great music or sound even where it exists :/
Well when Im at work its usually a quick 5 minute play here and there on breaks so it doesnt really matter. At a restaurant/bar the volume has to be low. In a car waiting however, I can have the volume up just as I do when at home. I think that certain games with specific themes have to have good sounds/music, but others can get away with mediocre sound. Like horror themed games, you have to set the mood with the sound so good sound is a must. Puzzle games usually have to have a meditating sound to them, somewhere between relaxing but not enough to put you to sleep. As far as action games they dont neccesarily have to have good music but they must have good sound effects.
If the gameplay's just good but the tune's catchy, there's a good catch people will go back to the game just to listen to the soundtrack.
Well, personally it doen't drive me away from a game if it's good enough and not based too much on sound. For instance, if I'm playing a music game and it has a terrible soundtrack, or a game based on sounds has terrible quality, that would definetly turn me off. Otherwise the sound is something that might attract me if it's good enough. If it has a great soundtrack with a lot of blaring rock/metal I might be more inclined to buy it. Also, games with sound as good as games like Dead Rising (Where every sound just feels right) might make me want to buy it more. Another nice option games are adding lately is the ability to use your iPod's music in the background, allowing you to put your own spin on the game. Unfortunately, this sometimes drowns out the game's sound, depending on the game and song. So depending on how based on the sound is, or the quality of the sound, may help me decide to buy an app or not.
