Ross Nicoll, Realtime Worlds

Everyone knows that fficial&client=firefox-a&um=1&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&resnum=1&ct=title" target="_blank">Dundee is a hotbed of creative talent, from cultural to information technology. One local business pushing the boundaries is Realtime Worlds. Started by Dave Jones , the creator of Lemmings and the Grand Theft Auto franchise, RTW is developing games for next generation consoles, while employing a fair few Dundonians within its ranks. Once such person is Ross Nicoll, BAFTA winning audio designer who we caught up with for a short interview.

What is your exact job title?

Audio Designer

Is the game industry as fun as it's made out to be?

Erm, yeah it does have its fun moments, but it's still hard work at times. When we have deadlines, we have to pull pretty long hours. It's fun most of the time, but when things are broken it can be frustrating.

How big a role does music play in your life and also in the work that you do?

In my personal life, Music is basically everything. It's not such a big aspect of my job - my job is mostly sound design based, but it does include a bit of music, which is cool with me. I think it's quite a good balance as it keeps work and home separate and allows me to still enjoy music as much as i always have, rather than making it feel like "work"

What's the most fun you've had at work?

I had a lot of fun doing vehicle recordings. To be honest, whenever i'm out in the field recording stuff, i generally have good fun, whether its smashing things up, driving cool cars, or just recording ambiances, i enjoy it all.

How important is the music and sound effects in a game's overall experience?

Just as important as everything else. It's a vital part of the overall experience, and without it, the game wouldn't be the same. It's a subtle art, and a lot of the time users appreciate it on a subconscious level, but if you take it out, the game feels lifeless.

Do you get a lot of creative freedom in how you approach the creation of sound effects / musical score?

We have a general audio vision for each game that we try to stick to. For example, in crackdown, we tried to make everything quite hi-tech and sci-fi-ish, but in a more comic book over-the-top style than your average science fiction sound effects. Everything was meant to be larger than life, yet still with a futuristic style. Provided all the audio designers stick to the same vision, we pretty much have free reign to do what we want.

What is the strangest object you've used in your quest to create that perfect sound clip?

Jeez, no idea. I've used a lot of strange things, including a raw chicken to create punch noises.

The team at Real Time Worlds recently won 2 BAFTAs for Crackdown (best use of audio and best action and adventure). How did that feel and has the success of Crackdown been a surprise?

Amazing. All my friends are thoroughly fed up of me bringing up the BAFTA at every possible opportunity. I was particularly chuffed about winning the best use of audio one (obviously)

Who are your biggest influences and the people that inspire you the most?

My colleague Stuart Ross has probably had the biggest influence on me in a professional capacity. That won't mean much to most people, so I'll just say The Beatles. ha ha.