Myth & Legend

Cellar

Shield Room

Tavern

Wireframe and Elevation

This project was a lot of fun to work on. I was able to use my original concept from earlier in the class to move forward with an overall level design layout for the first couple sections of the level. I realized through this process that although I would be able to work as a Level Designer I do not have a passion to strive to become one. I would rather work with the initial concept development rather than the Level Designs. However, I would be willing to help out any team if they needed assistance with the Level Design portion of their development.

Dungeon

I designed a multi room medieval dungeon that would have the player searching for treasures below a tavern. Hidden deep in the depths of the dungeon lies a room filled with riches beyond any dream.

2 Room Greybox

Overview

Temple Entrance

Temple Corridor

Put together a two room greybox level with connecting hallways. Out keyword when going into this project was "Crash." Therefore, I decided to go with the story of a pilot who crashes down into a bog and seeks refuge in an old temple until his team arrives. From there the player will end up getting trapped inside of the temple. They will have to fight their way out, but they will continue to move further into the temple.

Level Design

Today in class we went over the difference between being an Environmental Artist and being a Level Designer. We found out that the Environmental Artist is there to make the level look pretty. Whereas the Level Designer is there to design the gray box of the level and design the flow of the level.  The Level Designer works on creating experiences for the player. They think up different events that occur throughout the level to make interesting and original game play.

In the first chapter of "The Hows and Whys of Level Design: Second Edition" the author talks about how the beginning of the level is one of the most important aspects. If a player jumps into a game and the beginning of the level is boring, they may not want to continue playing the game.  He also goes over balancing your workloads and going through a basic checklist so you get a well rounded level.  (Time, Tech, Limitations, Requirements, Purpose, Gameplay, & Theme are all part of the checklist.) Each of these has their own importance when designing a level. Overall starting in level design you will need to practice to come up with good level designs.Work as efficiently as possible and try to be as original as you can without impeding your progress.

5 Levels Designed

Using the information I learned from Yesterday's class and the first chapter of the book, I designed 5 unique levels.  I focused on designing my levels to make them interesting to the player. What helped me create the levels was thinking of a story in my head and drawing out some concepts. From those concepts I started to rough out top down maps to understand where I want the player to encounter enemies and world dangers.  I focused on trying to make each level unique in style and game play. I will use what I learned from chapter one about managing your resources and being original when creating my gray box levels.

Concept Sketches

Layouts

Level Concepts

Down Below Concept