Assign sound roles before choosing controls
The art-direction method specifies sound sources, feedback layers and visual channels that remain when muted. Voice cannot be the only carrier of rules, goals, choices or outcomes. A small game does not automatically need three sliders; choose controls for its adopted sound layers and player needs.
| Layer | Behaviour to decide |
|---|---|
| Background music | Reducing or disabling it leaves the scene and choices understandable. |
| Character speech | Matching text preserves the speaker and information without sound. |
| Input and warning cues | Text, graphics or state changes communicate the actual committed result. |
The project decides whether mute remembers the previous volume, preferences survive restart, and unmuting resumes at the current position. This settings worksheet applies native methods editorially; it is not a universal volume widget supplied by the skill.
Changing volume is not a story action
Build inherits the approved design: game rules commit events while presentation makes them audible or visible. Dragging volume should not open a door, grant an item, repeat a settled warning or automatically choose “leave.”
Whether time advances while settings are open follows existing design; real-time and turn-based games may differ. Muting must not secretly introduce pausing. When dialogue changes, check the old voice asset. Missing audio or autoplay restrictions use the agreed text fallback rather than treating silence as proof that no story event occurred.
A visual fallback preserves existing information. If sound gives an indistinct direction, text must not reveal the hidden answer outright. Offer equivalent communication rather than extra clues for turning sound off.
Complete example: leaving the east gallery without hearing the warning
Original paper game: the current time is 20:59 and the museum’s east gallery closes at 21:00. An attendant says, “The east gallery is closing. Use the south corridor.” The player remains inside and has not chosen to leave. This design explicitly stops time in settings, uses master mute for all sound and preserves that preference across restart. The closing event displays the same line and a south-corridor exit cue without moving the player.
| Route | Expected change |
|---|---|
| Open settings before the 21:00 warning and mute | Only the audio preference changes; the player remains in the gallery. |
| Resume; let the existing game clock reach 21:00 and trigger its warning | No sound plays. Text identifies the attendant and preserves the line; the exit cue appears once. |
| Choose “Leave through the south corridor” | The original rule moves the player into the corridor and displays the departure result without requiring voice. |
| Restart | Story state resets and this example’s mute preference remains; the old closing event does not immediately recur. |
Check a meaningful countercase: unmuting must neither return the player to the gallery nor submit the warning again as a new event. Simulate the missing voice file and complete the same route through its agreed text fallback. Before the warning occurs, a settings preview must not insert future dialogue into history.
The table is not evidence of a running game. After implementation, check actual playback controls, muted readability and state through settings, resuming, departure and restart on the target runtime. Timing and preference persistence may differ in another design, but must remain consistent.
Verify playback and the route, beyond a slider screenshot
Reproduce the original loss: what information disappears when muted, and what action becomes impossible? Repair the responsible design, art or build layer, then replay the failing route and an adjacent countercase. The voice-production contract checks actual triggering, subtitles, mute, damaged files and restart; test design requires real input and outcomes rather than static settings screenshots.
Verify only adopted sounds and existing controls. This tutorial does not require adding music, voice or more settings to every game. Listening preferences can continue to evolve, while actual candidate evidence should establish that sound can be disabled, information remains readable and results are not rewritten.
FAQ
Must every sound become a subtitle when muted?
No. Preserve information needed for rules, goals, choices and results. Appropriate visuals can support ambience without revealing otherwise unknown facts.
Do it with the skill
Use $game-build with approved sound layers, muted fallback, timing and restart rules. Settings affect playback while retaining essential text and committed results. Verify mute, unmute, missing audio and restart in the actual runtime.
Read the method: Sound hierarchy and muted visual channels · Speech, text, missing-audio and restart checks · Actual route and adjacent countercase