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Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind

Year
2026
Country
Thailand
Duration
20 mins
Setup
4PCs, Aluminum profiles structure
Date
4 July 2026
Venue
Virtual Media Lab, 4th Floor, TCDC Bangkok (The Grand Postal Building)
For
STACK
Exhibition
PATCH NOTES THAT REFUSE A SETTLED WORLD

What happens when games become sites of archaeological listening? As preservation initiatives like Internet Archive work to save digital culture, this investigation addresses the acoustic worlds embedded in games—procedurally generated soundscapes, layered atmospheres, hidden environmental recordings—that risk being lost over time, harder to archive as new techniques like ray-tracing reshape how virtual worlds are rendered.

If we field record to capture the soundscapes of the real world, shouldn't we do the same for digital simulation sites?

This practice treats game worlds as sonic landscapes worth excavating. Not playing. Listening. Revealing the world-building beneath the surface.

Do The NPCs Hear the Simulated Wind: four stations, raw sound to composed music.

Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 01Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 02Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 03Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 04Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 05Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 06Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 07Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 08Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 09Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 10Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 11Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — performance documentation 12
Do The NPCs Hear The Simulated Wind — poster

1P.S. I tried to play 4 games at the same time and also tried to control/manipulate the sounds and visuals.

2P.S. You can try virtual field recording by yourself by entering an open world game, then go to setting and mute the music sound leaving only ambient and game sound.

Project Consultant
Pasuth Sa-ingthong

Structure design
putpat13o

Big thanks for folks that let me borrow their PCs
Pasuth Sa-ingthong
msyves
Roman Solodkov

Special Thank
toeeyt
Tentacles Gallery
Pathompong Manakitsomboon
uuunbbb
poc9.s
sthienwiwat

Photos by
frameofchaos

Organised by STACK and Team Stimulant , in collaboration with Goethe-Institut Thailand , with support from Thai Film Archive , Office of the Prime Minister, Creative Economy Agency (CEA), Virtual Media Lab, immertech, and REAL Bangkok.