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Abstract
This thesis assesses how game audio that is designed to create immersion or presence in video games has an effect on the player’s ability to play the game. The paper outlines research to define immersive game audio in its role in video games as well as its dual nature as a carrier of information. I used Unreal Engine 5 to create an audio based game to test reaction time of the research subjects. The game advances with increasing difficulty due to a steady increase of immersive audio. Looking at how immersive audio impacts a player’s ability to react and make decisions, we can identify a threshold of tolerance, (or a lack thereof) for immersive audio before it starts to distract the player from important task related information. The results yield a prospective opportunity for the gaming industry, as technology progresses and moves forward and continues to utilize binaural signal processing for audio localization in virtual spaces.
