“ <i>Chibi-Robo!</i> ”

Video game sound design plays a significant role in capturing a player’s attention and is crucial to the success of a game. Such sound can be divided into two non-speech audio feedback groups: auditory icons and earcons, terms that Elizabeth Medina-Gray borrows from the field of Human-Computer Interaction for ludomusicological analysis. Auditory icons are recognizable as real-life sounds such as footsteps or rain falling, whereas earcons represent sounds in more abstract ways, using melodic lines or motives to represent movement or interaction. In many games, video game sound leans more toward auditory icons. However, this paper analyzes Chibi-Robo! Plug Into Adventure (2005) as a case study for its focused use of earcons rather than auditory icons. Composer Hirofumi Taniguchi uses earcons to emulate the emotional experience of household sounds and robotic movement as the eponymous robot player-avatar walks around and interacts with their environment: tools used by the robot, for instance, are highlighted by earcons. The paper also examines Taniguchi’s use of background music: earcons directly associated with the player-avatar serve as melodic material for this music, which also evokes a sense of day or night through changes in timbre and instrumentation. Through a focus on Taniguchi’s use of earcons, this paper argues that Chibi-Robo! Plug Into Adventure produces a heightened state of immersion for the player as the gameworld radiates a distinct sense of character through a mix of sound and environment. Highly immersive gameplay allows players to connect more with the story, characters, and themes of a game due to increased believability.