@nicolasngNicolas Ng

Hi! I’m a Journalism student writing gaming stories with the Hacker Noon Blogging Fellowship!

Disclaimer: The HIVE software was provided for free for this review

Tested on a Logitech G231

Surround sound in gaming can be a surprising game changer. Being able to hear the game as though your head is in the same place as your character’s is an experience on par with playing on a new graphics card. Details that you might not normally notice like a distant NPC shouting or nearby enemies inching closer from all directions are suddenly more noticeable. Effects that you might hear often like bullets whizzing past your head or the roars of enemies suddenly feel more real as they sound like they are actually where they appear.

Surround sound usually requires specialised headphones to work but the audio company, Embody, has managed to create software that works with most headphones. Embody’s usual work has been professional audio software that creates a personalised audio profile that is used to create ideal conditions for audio mixing to happen. This same technology is applied surprisingly well to gaming through their HIVE software. 

Embody’s Immersive Gaming HIVE software somehow manages to simulate surround sound in software without requiring expensive, specialised hardware. It even goes a step further and claims to be more accurate than conventional solutions. Their trick is to use AI to analyse a picture of your ear to create what they call a “personalised HRTF”, a unique profile that their software uses to apply to your computer’s audio output to help space out the audio to create a software-based surround sound solution. 

It’s explained in the video below. 

Putting it to use

It’s easy to set up Immersive Gaming by simply following the instructions. The only thing to be aware of is that you’ll need to send in a picture of your ear. They’ll analyse it in moments and everything will be ready to start. 

The software is managed through this simple and easy-to-use page. In it, you can select your headset from one of the many options or take a generic option if your headset isn’t supported, like mine. Tooltips explain most everything. 

It’s worth noting that Immerse will be registered as an audio device in Windows and will basically act as a middle man for your computer’s audio. This doesn’t introduce any noticeable latency in your gameplay though it will prevent you from controlling the audio output’s volume using hardware keys, something which I do very often. Instead, you’ll need to use the slider in the software. 

Immerse Gaming operates in three main modes:

1. Close combat mode
2. Immerse mode
3. Awaken

These modes are generally differentiated by how close sounds seem to you and for good reason. Immerse Gaming’s software isn’t tailored to specific games and doesn’t automatically determine how far away sounds need to appear. It’s not much of a limitation if you follow the modes’ suggestions. 

Close Combat Mode

Close combat mode, designed around RPGs and driving games, simulates sound at point-blank, making things seem as though they’re happening inches from your face. In this mode, things feel more visceral and even more immersive. It works amazingly in games that heavily feature melee combat. Dark Souls 3 became even more tense thanks to Immerse Gaming when hearing footsteps all around me and hearing a weapon arc past me on a near miss.

Immerse Mode

Immerse Mode is advertised as something more appropriate for shooters. Sound is simulated at a sort of “medium”. Neither too close nor too far. When used in games like Apex: Legends and Insurgency: Sandstorm, HIVE shows off what it can do. Pinpointing enemies rushing up stairs or opening doors is easy thanks to the software. I could even distinguish between someone on a catwalk above me and another coming up the stairs behind me. It was impressive. However, it might be a little too good. In Rainbow Six: Siege, things sound a little close and was enough to throw me off. More time in the game might help but it does show that it needs some refinement. 

Awaken Mode

Awaken, intended for MMOs and MOBAs, was a mixed bag. It does, indeed, live up to its name when tested in FFXIV and Genshin Impact. I could hear every little sound around me, from the grunts of my party members to the boss’ voice lines. This would be great if not for HIVE’s greatest pitfall. Sensory overload is still sensory overload. Maybe it’s my dyspraxia but there’s not much point in hearing everything if it all comes together in a mess. Those games also have enough visual cues to make any advantage in audio a little meaningless. 

Similarly, HIVE’s impressive spatial audio doesn’t really make much of a difference when there’s alot going on. It’s not noticeable in a massive firefight in Insurgency or just playing Titanfall. 

The Sonic Radar

There’s another important feature. Immerse Gaming has what they call the Sonic Radar, which gives a visual aid that helps you figure out where sounds are coming from. 

Personally, Immerse Gaming works so well that the Sonic Radar is just a distracting thing on my screen but if you struggle with processing sounds it might be really helpful to have. 

Is HIVE worth the buzz?

HIVE is provided on a subscription basis, for about $15 a year and based on your headphone’s manufacturer. It’s quite a low barrier for entry for something that will improve your gaming experience. According to a spokesperson, the main reason for using a subscription model is to “stay engaged with our users while working to continuously improve Immerse over time”.

It does what it says it will do well and even works on hardware that doesn’t normally support surround sound. It’s cheaper than buying a pricier headset for surround sound that isn’t even as precise as Immerse Gaming. There’s even a free trial, so you might as well give it a shot. 

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Source: https://hackernoon.com/immersive-gaming-hive-review-a-new-way-to-listen-in-gaming-jd2835ep?source=rss