Game Design 0.6: Audio Games

So last class we had to make a game that consisted of audio only. No visual cues or physical cues could be used. There is a reason there is no such game that sells well enough for everyone to hear of it (no pun intended). If anyone has made a game that is purely audio-based well then I feel bad for them if they thought it would sell well. I'm not trying to bash people who've tried making audio games. I'm just stating a fact. Think about it, if you had the option of playing a game with the shiniest graphics, realistic normal maps, beautiful landscapes,  terrifying enemies, and sweet weapons, and a game with no graphics at all, which would you chose?

Audio is definitely an important part of a game. Horror games with no audio would not be scary at all. Games like Skyrim, have music that is so good, I actually listen to the theme song when I'm bored sometimes. And what would it be like if your guns didn't make shooting sounds. The game would be bland and you'd always feel like it was missing something important.

Audio is just ONE part of what makes a good game though.

To make a FUN game based solely on sound is a huge challenge. Is the player not allowed to interact with the keyboard? If so, they would have to go through annoying menus (where the AI asks you to reply "yes or no" then misunderstands your yes for a no and you get frustrated and want to take a hammer to it to end its meaningless, annoying existence).

Even if you are allowed to touch the keys, your game choices are limited. The only genre I can think of is a text-based adventure or mystery game, where instead of reading, everything is read to you. There are a set number of options and you press certain keys to select them. Everything is pre-scripted.

A game like this would require some work though. It is not easy to think of a good, exciting, original story. After that all of the sound must be recorded and the engine must be scripted to take into account every possibility. It's not an easy or menial task by any means.

As an aside, this type of game could not be implemented in real life in a classroom setting with students as sound sources in half an hour. A script would have to be written, parts would have to be memorized, and timing would have to be implacable  It would take as much time and skill as organizing a great play, or maybe more because a play's story-line is linear.