LevelDesign BlockOut video

On By brear2020

REFERENCES:

PERSPECTIVE

My level is in first person one of the reasons I chose this is horror games tend to suite this camera angle/perspective better. This is talked about in Totten, C. W. book (2019) An Architectural Approach to Level Designwhere he says, ‘First-person games are those where the camera is located in the “head” of the player character mesh (if the game uses a defined mesh for the player character at all) and action is viewed from the character’s eye level. This is the most natural game view, as it is the view from which we view our own world’ This has also influenced my decision as I I didn’t want to create a player model and allows me to have a natural view at eye level.

Totten, C. W. (2019) An Architectural Approach to Level Design, 2nd Edition. Boca Raton: Taylor & Francis, CRC Press

VERTICALITY

I have used verticality in my level, not to a huge extent and is different to how it is talked about in Barclay, M (2016). My Level Design Guidelines. In this verticality is talked about giving players strategic advantages in combat, however my level doesn’t involve combat or enemies. So the verticality in my level is the landscape being un even and I have a few hills the player can access possibly for items. I have also added in a treehouse with a ladder the player is able to climb.

Barclay, M (2016). My Level Design Guidelines. Available online: http://www.mikebarclay.co.uk/my-level-design-guidelines/   [Accessed 30/11/21]

BACK TRACKING and NARROW-WIDE

In this video back tracking, and narrow-wide are mentioned in helping create tension in certain situations the developers wanted you to as the player. Some ways of doing this is, reducing visibility, making the paths narrow and once you reach the end having visibility come back and the world open up again. In my level I’ve done this to an extent however visibility is already reduced to only a flashlight and some lights in the map, so I just added a couple of triggers to turn the flash light off when the player collides with it adding to the horror aspect. Narrow-Wide I feel like ive used a decent amount making the trees all different densities making the player want to get to the bigger area asap, I also feel like this links in with confusion and back tracking since the player might go to places multiple times trying to find the last note or code etc.

GameMakersToolKit,(2020). How level design can tell a story. Available Online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwlnCn2EB9o [Accessed 01/12/21]

STEPPING STONES

This can again be linked back to Disneyland and how the rides etc light up when it starts to get dark to attract customers and keep them paying. Well in my level since its set at night there are some lights along the path which hint at the main place the player should go however they could ignore that if they chose to.

WEENIES

Looking at Disneyland and how they made the rides all tall and viewable from the middle of the park I’ve done a similar thing in my level. One of my weenies is the tree house which can be seen over the trees it also has a flickering light to try and tempt the player over to it. The other stands out because of the light attached to it, this is the main building/house, which has a dark red light on near the door which the player can see from the start of the level.

CONFUSION

Dan Taylor mentions how confusion in level design is good by using the example the favelas in modern warfare 2, there isn’t a clear path in that level, and it all looks very similar alongside enemies appearing from different places shooting at you doesn’t help, however its fun. He then goes on to say it creates good dramatic tension when you mix it all together. This influenced how I made the trees and the notes system, mixed in with sounds (in the future).

GDC, (2018). Ten principles of good level design. Available Online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNEe3KhMvXM [Accessed 01/12/21]