Meet Sungha Hong | Sound Designer & Cellist for Video Games

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sungha Hong and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sungha, can you tell us about a book that has had a meaningful impact on you?
Reading “Deep Work” by Cal Newport really got me thinking about how I manage my time and focus. In today’s world, with all the tech around us 24/7, staying on track can be a real challenge. When I’ve got a tough task ahead, it’s way too easy to get sidetracked by checking my phone or getting lost watching cat videos.

But, recognizing that these distractions were seriously messing with my productivity, I decided it was time to take action.

That’s when I picked up “Atomic Habits” by James Clear. I’m about halfway through, and it’s already giving me some solid pointers on building better daily routines. It’s like Clear’s shining a light on those little habits I didn’t even realize I had, and showing me how to make the good ones stick and ditch the bad ones. Really eye-opening stuff.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am both a sound designer and cellist in the world of video games!

I’m currently working full-time as a sound designer at ProbablyMonsters, an independent AAA video game company. My gig involves cooking up all sorts of custom sound effects for the game, like ambience, creepy creature noises, UI blips, and whatever else the game needs to feel immersive. Then, I dive into the technical side, implementing those sounds into the game engine with a little help from my tech-savvy teammates. We’re all about teamwork, constantly playtesting and tweaking based on feedback from the dev team. It’s been a total blast collaborating with folks from different corners of game development, like VFX and animation.

But after hours, I do recording gigs for composers and musicians as a side hustle. One of the highlights for me was teaming up with Lena Raine on the beautiful, award-winning indie game, Chicory: A Colorful Tale. Hearing my cello notes in a game soundtrack still gives me goosebumps. Occasionally, people reach out to me and share lovely comments about my playing, which truly brightens my day. As of now, I’m open for cello commissions, so please hit me up!

My journey to this point wasn’t exactly a walk in the park. I had to switch gears big time from being solely focused on cello to diving deep into sound design. There were moments when I seriously felt like throwing in the towel, especially when I received countless job rejections from game studios.

But then, at my first Game Developers Conference (GDC) back in 2018, I had this real heart-to-heart with a friend about how he got into sound design and game audio. Turns out, a lot of my pals had put in some serious hustle to land gigs within a couple of years. That chat was a major lightbulb moment for me. Whenever I hit a rough patch, I think back to that conversation. Surrounding myself with hardworking friends has been key. Otherwise, I might’ve thought it’d take me forever to break into the industry.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My partner, who is also a game sound designer, has been a massive inspiration to me. Not only does he persevere to become the best version of himself as a sound designer, but he’s also super giving, sharing his knowledge by creating online tutorials for the community. Plus, we’re each other’s biggest cheerleaders. When times get tough, he’s always there to lend an ear and dive into those deep chats. And when I’m riding high on success, he’s genuinely thrilled for me, celebrating every win like it’s his own. Honestly, he’s the most compassionate, understanding, and loving person I could ever ask for.

Big shoutout to my sound design mentor, too. We actually first connected through Twitter, and even though we never met face-to-face before then, he poured tons of time and energy into helping me out. From critiquing my demo reel to helping me land my first full-time gig at ArenaNet, I owe him big time for all the support and guidance.

Website: http://sunghahong.com/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/SungHaHong

Image Credits
Rishabh Rajan