Sound Distractions

While playing and researching video games has been my intellectual bread and butter over the last few years, I was taken a bit aback this morning how annoyingly repetitive game sounds are when you are not the one playing. No big secret really. But I really thought that since I had become accustomed to my partner’s late night gaming sessions (we have a set up in our bedroom for such sessions) that I would be unbothered by such things. Unfortunately, trying to work and trying to sleep are two different things. As I settled into my office this morning to work, my partner had already climbed into the daybed and had the xbox up and running (I swear he races me in there when he knows I have to work!). While normally, I can work with any amount of background noise (having two kids since the beginning of your academic career will do that to you) today’s game (Ninety-Nine Nights .. ) drove me batty with all the repetitive battle sounds. Nary an interesting cut-scene to happily distract me, instead its lots of grunts, groans and clanging swords. I suppose when you are not enveloped in the gameplay, everything sounds the same, looping over and over and over again… and all I have to say is ‘aaaarrgh’!