Audio Player Devices

You can use this device to play sound effects in your game, or musical accents that are triggered by player actions. For example, you could play a musical accent when a player receives a key item or when they complete an objective. Depending on the type of game you are making, you might also want to trigger a sound when players acquire collectible objects like coins or crystals.

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Finding and Placing the Device

Click image to enlarge.

1. From Create mode, press the Tab key to open the Creative inventory window.
2. Click the Devices tab and scroll to select the device. You can also use the Search box or the Categories panel on the left to find your device.
3. Click PLACE NOW to place immediately, or put the device in the **QUICK BAR** to place later.
4. Press Esc to return to your island in Create mode. Use your phone to position the device, then left-click to place it. Press P to detach the device from your phone, then press P again to reactivate your phone.
5. Point at the device with your phone. If the CUSTOMIZE popup doesn't open immediately, move closer until it does, then press E to open the Customize panel.

If you're using multiple copies of a device on an island, it can be helpful to rename them. You can choose names that relate to each device's purpose so it's easier to remember what each one does.

Device Options

Default values are in bold.

List of Audio Tracks

This section lists all the available music and sound effect options available in the Audio Selection option. The musical accents and non-musical sound effects have been separated in the tables below, so the order here is not exactly the same as the order they are listed in the Customize panel.

While we strive to keep our documentation as up-to-date as possible, these selections may change frequently. This section is intended to give you a rough idea of what sounds are available so you don't have to go through each and every track to find one that fits your needs.

Direct Event Binding

Following are the direct event binding options for this device.

Functions

A function listens for an event on a device then performs an action.

1. For any function, click the option, then Select Device to access and select from the Device dropdown menu.

2. Once you've selected a device, click Select Event to bind the device to an event that will trigger the function for the device.

3. If more than one device or event triggers a function, press the Add button to add a line and repeat these steps.

Events

This device has no events.

Design Examples

Here are some examples of how you can use the Audio Player device:

• Feedback Sounds
• Point of Interest
• Stealth Alert

Feedback Sounds

The Audio Player has many different sound effects that can reward players for succeeding or let them know when they’ve failed. It’s good practice to make sure players always know how they are doing in your game, so use the Audio Player to provide feedback!

Devices used:

• 2 x Audio Player
• 1 x Player Spawner
• 3 x Prop Mover
• 1 x Trigger
• 1 x Damage Volume

1. Create a simple parkour level similar to the one below. Place a Player Spawner in the start area and keep the default settings.

   

2. Place a Prop Mover on the first floating platform and rotate the device towards the center of the play area to make sure that it doesn’t move too far away. Customize it to the following settings:

   

   Option	Value	Description
   Distance	5 Meters	The platform will move 5 meters before moving on to the Path Complete Action.
   Path Complete Action	Ping Pong	The platform will move the same distance in reverse after completing its initial path. It will repeat this back and forth forever.

3. Copy and paste the Prop Mover for the other two floating platforms, adjusting their rotations to ensure they move in areas where the player will be able to successfully jump from one to the next.

Experiment with the distance and speed parameters on the different Prop Movers to create more dynamic and difficult platforming.

1. Place a Audio Player near the finish area and customize it to the following settings:

   

   Option	Value	Description
   Audio Selection	Success 3	The Audio Player will play a positive, rewarding sound when activated.
   Volume	Loud	The Audio Player's volume will be louder than the default volume to ensure it is noticeable.
   Sound Distance	Whole Island	The Audio Player will be equally audible from any point on the Island.

2. Place a Trigger that covers the entire finish area and customize it to the following settings:

   

   Option	Value	Description
   Trigger Sound	Disabled	The Trigger itself will not make any sounds when triggered.
   Trigger VFX	Disabled	The Trigger will not play any visual effects when triggered.
   Visible in Game	No	The Trigger will be invisible during gameplay.

3. Set the Trigger’s direct event bindings to the following:

   

1. Place a Audio Player near the failure area under the platforming area and customize it to the following settings:

   

   Option	Value	Description
   Audio Selection	Failure 1	The Audio Player will play a negative sound when activated.
   Volume	Loud	The Audio Player's volume will be louder than the default volume to ensure it is noticeable.
   Sound Distance	Whole Island	The Audio Player will be equally audible from any point on the Island.

2. Place a Damage Volume and customize it to the following settings:

   

   Option	Value	Description
   Zone Width	7	The Damage Volume will cover the entire space underneath the platforming area.
   Zone Depth	3	The Damage Volume will extend out on each side in case the player falls off of a platform when not in the center of the area.
   Zone Height	0.05	The Damage Volume will be very thin, and extend above the ground only slightly.
   Damage	500	The Damage Volume will do enough damage to eliminate the player immediately.
   Enable VFX	Disabled	The Damage Volume will not play any visual effects.

If the Damage Volume is set to eliminate the player instead of applying a defined amount of damage, it will not send an event when the player enters the zone. Instead, set it to a high damage amount so that the player still technically enters the zone before being eliminated.

1. Set the direct event bindings of the Damage Volume to the following:

   

Here's an overview of how devices communicate in this Design Example:

You now have the base functionality for using the Speaker to provide feedback.

Feedback is especially important in games where players are learning and developing new skills. Without proper feedback, they can easily become confused, lost, or frustrated.

Pair audio feedback with visual feedback when possible, as this makes the message even more clear to the player. You could use HUD Messages to display a message at the same time a sound effect is played, or you could spawn VFX using the VFX Spawner to give more emphasis to their action.

Point of Interest

You can use a audio player to alert the player to different points of interest in the game, such as items, doors, and buttons. In this example, audio players guide players through a simple exploratory puzzle.

Devices used:

• 3 x Audio Player
• 1 x Player Spawner
• 1 x Lock
• 1 x Item Spawner
• 1 x Conditional Button

1. Choose a prefab building or design your own with a few different rooms. Add a reward chest in a closed room. Place a Player Spawner in the start area and keep the default settings.

2. Place a Lock on the door panel outside of the room that contains the reward chest, ensuring that the lock lights up blue to indicate that it is connected to the door. Keep the default settings.

3. Place a Audio Player on the door and customize it to the following settings:

   

When looking for the right sound effect for your game, enable the Activate on Hit setting and use your pickaxe to hear the different sound effects.

1. Place an Item Spawner in a different area of the building and drop a Gold coin while standing near it to register the item. Customize the spawner to the following settings:

   

1. Place a Audio Player over the Item Spawner and customize it to the following settings:

   

1. Place a Conditional Button in another area of the building and drop a Gold coin while standing near it to register the item. Keep the default settings and set its direct event bindings to the following:

   

1. Place a Audio Player over the Conditional Button and customize it to the following settings:

   

1. Set the direct event bindings of the Item Spawner to the following:

   

Here’s an overview of how devices communicate in this Design Example:

You now have the base functionality for using Audio Players to alert players to different points of interest in an area.

It can often be difficult to get players to notice when changes occur behind them. Because Audio Players are configured to be [spatial” by default, the player will hear the sounds they play from the location of the Audio Players themselves. It’s important to use every tool at your disposal to guide players through your game; don’t ignore the power of sound effects!

Spatial audio is very useful in many different genres, from puzzle games to combat games — and everything in between! We’ll explore how this principle can be used in stealth games in the next Design Example.

Stealth Alert

You can use Audio Players to alert a player to another player's location in a stealth game.

Devices used:

• 1 x Audio Player
• 2 x Class Designer
• 2 x Class Selector
• 2 x Player Spawner
• 1 x Prop Mover
• 1 x Switch

1. Choose a prefab building or design your own with a few different rooms and a glass wall separating sections of a hallway.

2. Place a Class Designer and drop an Epic Suppressed Pistol while standing near it to register the weapon. Customize the Class Designer to the following settings:

   

1. Place a Class Selector and customize it to the following settings:

   

1. Place a Player Spawner and keep the default settings. Set its direct event bindings to the following:

   

1. In a different area of the building, repeat steps 2–4 for the Guard class. The Class Name should be Guard, the Class Identifier should be 2, and they should be on Team 2. They should have a Legendary Red-Eye Assault Rifle in their loadout.

2. Place a Prop Mover on the glass wall in the hallway and make sure it is rotated to point upwards. Customize it to the following settings:

   

1. Place a Audio Player on the door and customize it to the following settings:

   

1. Place a Switch next to the door and customize it to the following settings:

   

1. Set the direct event bindings of the Switch to the following:

   

Here’s an overview of how devices communicate in this Design Example:

You now have the base functionality for an audio-based stealth alert system.

This example shows one way to use spatial sound effects to guide player attention in a tense gameplay scenario. To maximize the impact of your Audio Players, consider any other audio that will be playing during your game. If it is a generally quiet gameplay moment (like in this example), then a quick, medium-volume sound effect will be very noticeable. If you are trying to guide players in a loud and chaotic moment, you may want to explore louder or higher-pitched sound effects to grab their attention.