Resident Evil 4’s Sound Director And Composer Break Down The Remake’s Haunting Soundtrack

Sound design is an often overlooked and underappreciated element of many games, but it’s an element Capcom takes very seriously in Resident Evil 4. As horrific as the game looks, it’s the soundtrack and creepy sound effects that do much of the heavy lifting in building fear and tension. To understand how the remake remixes and enhances the original game’s soundscape, I picked the brains of RE4 sound director Hiroshi Tamura and lead composer Kota Suzuki to learn how they’re making the game sound as good as it plays. 

Game Informer: A goal for the Resident Evil 4 remake is to create more believable soundscapes. What does that mean, can you give some examples and explain why this is important?

Hiroshi TamuraThe sound was a key aspect of the remake. We took great care in making the sound good and realistic. 

Here’s a brief explanation of what it means. Many players have enjoyed RE4 the original. It is important that we are aware of this fact, and give RE4 the respect it deserves. We are also releasing RE4’s remake in 2023 as a brand new video game, using the most recent technology. It is difficult to find the right balance between these two elements in RE4’s audio. However, that was the goal of the sound team when they created this sound. 

Our Capcom sound team is capable of producing realistic sound effects like the ones found in contemporary games. We would loose the essence of RE4 if we tried to make the sound realistic. We discussed with our director, producer, how to make changes, and when we needed to stop, as we worked on the music for the remake.

Is there a way to make something sound more realistic?

Tamura:One example is the sounds of nature that create space.  That was something that we gave much attention. The base tone for a space’s or room’s environmental sound is composed of both ‘outside and ‘inside sounds. The remake uses ambisonic technology to create all of these sounds. This is the base, no matter where you are. There are also random tones. These sounds are created for a specific space, such as the clack or creaks, animals cries or falling pebbles. 

There’s also the sound of wind. The sound of wind will be heard inside rooms if you get closer to openings like windows or doors. The GPU calculates the speed and direction of the wind in real time if the user is outside. The sound effects of wind and rain match what is displayed on the screen. This gives you a sense that immersion is possible. A second example would be grass and trees that are swaying or rustling. They are in harmony with each other, so the intensity of their movement and speed and direction of wind enhance the experience.

You also have the unique, stationary and selected environmental sounds. Weather sounds such as rain. These five layers are used to create the soundscape for each room. This mimics how the environment sounds in real life and adds an element of reality. Character sounds are created within that framework. A gunshot is one example.

You can hear the sound of the gun firing as it sounds. The closer you are to the real gunshot the more you feel the effect. It is very cold and mechanical to hear a gunshot, which makes it feel less real. We balance real sounds with action sounds that are designed to make the experience more enjoyable.

Could you please discuss, in relation to music, the special challenges that come with iterating an already existing score?

Kota Suzuki:Tamura stated that we must respect the original while creating something new. Before I started this project, I first played the original and then analysed the approach and reasons for it. From the first, RE4 has been my favorite game. After much thought, I decided to bring the original to life and add something new. The save music and merchant music are examples of original RE4 music. These are familiar elements that I hope fans of the original will enjoy. However, music to battle a Ganado was very innovative in its time for horror games.

We kept the approach the same, but if we use the same sounds today, it won’t be right. We have instead used modern techniques in order to communicate the same nuances as the original. The idea of creating fear was something we thought about a lot. Tone is very important. This is why I paid so much attention when I was creating the music.

The sound effects of the enemies were rerecorded entirely from scratch.

Tamura:Most of these sounds are recreated completely from scratch. All sounds were modified or arranged from original RE4 sounds and are used in this remake. The sounds we created from scratch were not just any sound we chose. We referenced the original sound, figured out the essence, then recreated it using the same techniques. Some fans might not be able tell the difference between the sound and the one that is based on the original once they play the game.

Do you have a favorite enemy that you are eager to update and revisit?

Tamura: Del Lago saw this enemy in one trailer. Although it doesn’t make a lot, there are a few sounds that could be used. However, Del Lago had to go through a lot before finding the right sound for him, such as its cry. Because it’s an enemy you must face while out on the sea, creating a sound that is both authentic and distinct from other environmental sounds was a difficult task.

Do you have any music that is new in RE4? Is there any new music in RE4? If yes, which ones? Which song did it go with?

Suzuki:No song was copied from the original. However, we did manage to keep about 30% of the songs with the melody from the original and arrange the phrase. Another 70% of the tracks are brand new. Some of that music is remade with the original idea. In the case of Ganado music, I used lots of noise sounds. But for another track, you could use an irregular rhythm or creepy sounds that sound almost like voices. We have a slightly different approach for certain tracks. We may have taken a different approach to a song that had an overwhelming horror vibe in its original version. In the remake, we chose a more dramatic track. The soundtrack is full of diversity, I believe.

You created the sound of the Las Plaga popping from a Ganado neck. Is there a unique way to create a sound effect like this?

Tamura: We paid close attention to the sound, its impact and the feeling of it. When you begin hearing this sound while you’re in close proximity to enemies you could be in serious danger. It is important that the game communicates this danger with its sounds. There are many other sounds to play, some of which can be very crucial. We had to find a way to communicate that information to players amongst all other sounds. We focused on the attack to make it easy for users to identify the sound and give the sound a natural feel. To enhance that impact, we balanced out the low-end.

To create the sound effects in the game, we used many different materials. While I haven’t much else to share, it is possible to speak about the collaboration with other companies that took us to new locations in order to collect sounds.

Which unique themes or instruments were used in composition?

Suzuki:A main theme is the most important thing in the game. To create fear and create an atmosphere, however, different tones were chosen. As an example, we used different tones for each part of the game (e.g. the village in the beginning). In the beginning, the village was a mix of traditional and modern music. The director said it was too modern sounding so he asked me to create the feel of an old village and align it with current trends. Capcom’s studio allowed us to use acoustic instruments with a bow and also brought in a piano. This was used for sound processing and music making. This was just one of many interesting and unique recordings that we made. This is how RE4 expressed its essence through music.

Do you believe the RE4 music is different from all other entries? How does it create and sustain a calm and unsettling mood?

Suzuki:Fighting with enemies in RE4 remake is very interactive. In many instances it is impossible to predict the location of the opponent, because the game depends heavily on player behavior. The linearity of many games is not possible. In most cases, the enemy will be defeated and then you can move forward. RE4 offers a lot more freedom. We took a lot care when creating this interactive music system. 

So, there are definitions for various statuses, such as “no enemies”, “enemy close but hasn’t seen the player,” or the neutral warning or battle status. The music will change depending on the status. It’s not enough to see an enemy before a battle starts. Also, the volume of an enemy’s sound is detected. So, for example, if an enemy can be heard close by, it might be treated the same way as an “in battle” status in the interactive music system. If there are many enemies in your vicinity, the music could be altered or the number of instruments may increase. All these things can add up and make music more in tune with the emotions of players than ever.

Are we going to see more audio tricks being played on players? It’s so much fun to mess with sound players!

Tamura:Culling can be used to reduce the processing load even with today’s powerful machines. Culling is basically turning off objects behind walls and other obstacles. Sometimes, this disables any sounds an object makes. This is an essential step. However, in the remake, if a Ganado is hidden behind a wall the player cannot see, or access, it’s okay to turn it off. So we cull the Ganado, and at the same we create another sound object. You can hear the Ganado through these sounds.

Doing this can create fear of things that you cannot see or hear. It also helps to make atmospheric sounds. This was something we treated very carefully in the remake. We also use the room portal feature in our remake. This breaks down in-game rooms according to acoustics, and adds what is called a portal to openings such as doors or windows to connect them. This is used throughout this world. This allows for sound occlusion to be natural stimulated. 

Let’s say you are in a tiny room that has one door open in front of your face. A direct pass would process these sounds to place an enemy on your right side, even if they were shouting at you. If there is a wall between the enemy and you, then you won’t be hearing it from your right. This yell in real life would sound as if it were coming from an open door. This effect can also be reproduced using the room portal feature in the game. It will sound as if the enemy is speaking from the direction that the door faces. The amount of sound you are able to hear will depend on how thick or dense the wall is.

Are you certain that this room portal is unique or used in any other RE-related games?

Tamura:It was used in part for titles such as Village. It’s implemented in a similar way to middleware, but room portal works as if it were. It was integrated into the RE engine. Each room requires a lot more manual labor. In previous titles it was only used to improve certain areas. It was designed to be usable throughout the game. Each area is technically a room. The game wouldn’t function if there weren’t.

What iconic score or sound effect do you remember as a sound professional? Which is your favourite?

Tamura:So when I think about sound, I often think of video games. Call of Duty or Battlefield are examples of this. One thing I love about Battlefield sounds is DICE’s in-house HDR sound engine. The dynamic range is amazing. Some of their sessions at GDC have impressed me. The Ubisoft The Division gunshot sounds are my favorite. Excellent multiplayer, with a sound design that is really great. I like the UI sound, gunshots and interactivity of background music. I enjoy these games as a hobby. (laughs)

Suzuki:A lot of music is something I enjoy and that I listen to. The music of movies and dramas are my inspirations. Some of the things I have seen recently where music has impressed me were, perhaps it isn’t so old, but TenetA drama series called DarkThe opening song to ‘The Greatest Song Ever Written’ is a wonderful example of this. The songs that have remained an influence on me are the ones I used to listen to long ago. Hans Zimmer’s music, and John William’s Star Wars music. For Star Wars, I love Episode 3 so much!

What emotions can you draw from the players through sound design and musical scores?

Tamura:Fans who played the original RE4 will feel some comfort. [and]It is clear how careful we took with the original when creating this remake. Players who have never played RE4 before will be able to see that this remake is as good or better than Village and RE2 Remake.

Suzuki:The same sentiments are mine. I also agree that the original RE4 contained a good mix of drama and horror. It was an enjoyable and entertaining game. This balance was maintained while modernizing the game. It is my hope that the players will feel the same and when they are done, can look back on the experience and see that it was both frightening and enjoyable.

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