A way Destiny excites me

by Kermit , Raleigh, NC, Thursday, March 14, 2013, 16:05 (4060 days ago) @ Leisandir

"No, it isn't" because . . . ?

I respond because you asked ... this is like my 12th post on the subject between here and HBO, and I grow weary...

I'm just curious, but I don't understand how gamma differs from audio. The reason you can adjust the brightness and contrast is because not all monitors or television sets are the same, and so a game developed on one group of models won't look right on another without tweaking. Audio is no different; not everyone has a badass surround sound system. Some people don't want it. Whatever the case, the user's home setup has already changed what the developer has created. You give the user options, they can correct for that.

Huh? If you could correct for not having a badass surround sound system, why would anyone need or want a badass surround system? Things like brightness, contrast, equalizer settings and so on provide a different level of control than controlling a mix. You're adjusting to account for differences in equipment and settings, as you said, with the ideal being hearing and seeing what the creators intended you to see and hear. That's why high-end audio/visual dealers have experts who come to your house with reference equipment and so on. They calibrate and adjust your setup so that it delivers something closer to this ideal that the creators intended. You like what they create, right? Else why did you buy it?

I'm not arguing that the music isn't part of the game, I don't really know where that came from. I just . . . I don't really know where this discussion is going. If you have the option to adjust your audio, then: people who want to do, let's say, machinema, can. People who have hearing difficulties can adjust to the point that they know what's going on. Uhm, if the game developers messed up the balancing, you can fix it. I'm positive that nobody at Bungie intended for the Master Chief's voice to be so damn quiet in the escape pod at the end of the second level, but for some reason it is.

Read narc's replies again. He addresses each issue you mention better than I can.

Finally, if you have no problem with the default settings, you can leave them alone. You literally cannot suffer from the inclusion of these options, but there are people who are affected negatively by their exclusion.

It's a small group that's negatively affected. These options give the impression that these things should be adjusted, and many people will adjust them just because they can, which could lead to a lot of people having a suboptimal experience of the game.

Halo does not stop being Halo if you mute the music.

Debatable. It's funny that Cody mentions the 1995 standard. Sound in games has evolved. When it was nothing but bips and boops coming out of a crappy speaker, it made more sense to let users adjust things. Less of the experience was or could be carried by the sound. I suspect Marty sees music and sound as important and necessary tools in the storyteller's arsenal, and thinks of what he does as more like creating a dynamic film soundtrack. Why wouldn't he (and Jay) choose to have their work be as inseparable from the game experience as it would be in film?

You're missing out on some great stuff, but the game is still the game.

Debatable. You said "I'm not arguing that the music isn't part of the game." Good. I think it is, too. You mentioned paintings. You paint your masterpiece, and some dude comes up and says, "I like the left corner. Just give me the left corner." You have every right to say, "No, thanks. It is what it is. It's fine if you don't like it. Others will. I painted this for them." You have no obligation to accommodate said dude.