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The Media File Structure

It is helpful to understand how media files are stored in a Wwise project, particularly if you are working as part of a team. Media files are stored in two separate folders:

  • Originals folder

  • .cache folder

Originals folder

When you import media files into Wwise, they are copied to the Originals project folder and remain unconverted and unchanged. Generally, this project folder is stored under source control in a location that is accessible to all people working on the project. The location of the Originals folder is specified when the project is created, but you can change the location in the Project Settings dialog box. These "original" files are played back in Wwise when you select Original in the Transport Control or Soundcaster.

The Originals folder is sub-divided into the following folders:

  • Plugins

  • SFX

  • Voices

All media files imported into Wwise are categorized by type, so that Wwise can manage them effectively.

As your project grows in size, you may want these files within these folders to be organized into sub-folders. If this is the case, you need to be aware of the following restrictions before importing your files:

  • Media files organized into sub-folders need to be imported into Wwise from within the sub-folder. This allows Wwise to manage the location of each media file by saving the media file using its full path and name.

  • Each file path must be unique. This means that all media file names within a particular folder must be unique. This does not, however, prevent two media files from having the same name, they just have to reside within a different folder.

If you have already imported your media files into the project, you can also move your source media files between folders. For more information on moving your source media files, refer to Reorganizing Media Files within the Originals Folder.

.cache folder

By default, the cache folder is stored within your Wwise project and contains the converted media files for each of the platforms that you are developing for your game. These converted files are played back in Wwise when the Original button is not selected in the Transport Control or Soundcaster.

[Note] Note

You can modify the location of the cache folder in the Project Settings dialog box. For more information on modifying the location of your project cache folder, refer to Defining Cache Folder Settings.

It is important to note, however, that playing converted files in Wwise is not always possible for some formats. When you convert an audio file for a particular platform, it is converted to meet the specific hardware requirements of that platform. As a result, you may not be able to play back these converted files in Wwise if the authoring tool is running on a platform that does not support the file type.

To test your converted files in Wwise, you can do the following:

  • PCM - Select the Windows platform.

  • ADPCM - Select the Windows platform.

  • Vorbis - Select the Windows platform.

[Caution] Caution

Do not include this folder in your source control system.

Each platform folder is further sub-divided into the following folders:

  • Plugins

  • SFX

  • Voices

Wwise manages the contents of these folders for you, so you will never have to make any changes directly in these folders.

[Note] Note

The cache folder also contains a file called CacheVersion. This file includes information about the version of your cache. When you open a project, Wwise looks for the file and verifies to make sure that the version number of the cache matches the version number of Wwise. If no file exists or if the cache version is different than Wwise, the cache will be deleted and you will have to re-convert the platform version files before they can be played back again in Wwise.


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