While working on making the Boss fight for level 1 more interesting entering into our Alpha release, I was trying to find something that just had that extra "wow" factor. The asset pack that we are utilizing comes with special effects and audio lines that suit the mesh, so I decided to check out the sounds to find appropriate audio for the various attacks and abilities that the boss uses.

Not thinking much of it, I implemented some interesting options using the provided Cues, which allows randomized sampling for appropriate attacks while also binding to specific audio channels. Immediately the boss came to life! No longer was she just hulking around and smashing down on the player, but she was becoming a more immersive component of the experience.

After a few moments of testing and feeling accomplished with my decision to include these Sound Cue files into the mix, I noticed that they also added on-screen subtitles! This is excellent as I had intended to develop a way for the boss characters to put out some visual form of dialog, however this posed an entirely new complication: How is this Sound Cue causing on-screen text to display?

After investigating further, I came across a clever system in Unreal Engine: Dialogue Waves. This system allows you to assign an audio file and implement an associated subtitle text, with localization!

Having discovered this system, I will be working towards acquiring and implementing more of this system to enrich the storytelling process within Heroes' Blunder. This may not seem like much on the surface, however as a user I felt that it truly helps to drastically improve the immersion of the environment and I look forward to implementing more in the future!

author: Clinton Butler
Posted on 5/25/2023