Pitch Dark

an ear training game

by Yuval Adler, for Music 256A 2017, final project

What:

A video game that would make ear training exercises more fun.

Why:

Ear training routines are often done with a kind of focus and within a stimulus vacuum that some students find difficult to commit to.

The Product:

Offers an environment that engages the student in a familiar, enjoyable setting that mimics common video games, while strengthening symbolic recognition of pitched sounds' pitch names.

The Desired Outcome:

A successful design would offer an experience that would be pursued leisurely while offering significant help in ear training. The motivating educational purpose should not disrupt flow and enjoyment.

Game Mechanics:

Details of the Software Created:

Source Code:

Unity project folder with all source code and assets: HERE.

Conclusions and Future Work:

The game is fun to play for more than just a few minutes, and performance improves with practice; an urge exists to play again and outperform previous attempts - this is good!

Some modifications to controls, sprite proportions, and scene layout could help movement flow better. Successful destruction of enemy units should produce a more pronounced immediate positive feedback to the player; examples can be taken from addictive mobile/on-line games but with the appropriate caution and refinement. Testing shows early confusion regarding the attack animation as being a defensive move, and although this clears-up with play, it should be redesigned visually.