Overview
A sound meter is a meter on the HUD that tells the player how much noise is being made by the player character in games that feature stealth. Making too much noise according to a sound meter may alert nearby guards to your presence. Despite being largely considered a novel concept for the stealth genre, the sound meter is seen in very few games.
In Soldier of Fortune, the sound meter goes up as you fire weapons. This forces the player to limit the amount of gunfire that is used and to mix up their style of play.
In the case of Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, the sound meter is affected by weapons as well as movement - however, the player can make as much noise as there is in the ambient environment. This means the sound of heavy machinery or stormy weather can be used to mask the player's movement.
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