Advanced Level Design
Alien Landing Day
Level Design
Unreal Engine
Solo
5 Weeks
FPS, Stealth
Project Brief
This was our assignment for the Advanced Level Design course. We were tasked to come up with and create a level blockout that met a list of requirements, provide documentation for the ideation phase and iterate on the level through playtesting during the 5 weeks of the course. The requirements were as follows:
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Player has a first person perspective
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Level boundries maximum of 100x100 meters
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At least 2 levels of verticality
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A well defined start and end
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2 possible routes to the end
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Feature a gameplay system to exploit in the level
The rest of the level aspects and gameplay details was left for us to figure out and create.
Timelapse
Setting and Narrative
I chose to create a level set in a modern city that is being invaded by Aliens, as the invasion has just begun the player is looking to find a way to evacuate the city.
The gameplay is focused on stealth, as the player only has a melee attack they are not equiped to fight the Aliens, forcing them to sneak around the city on their way to escape.
Ideation Phase
During the ideation phase I explored different ideas and looked at reference images to find the idea I described above. With the idea found I moved onto sketching 2d maps, planning key moments and ideating what gameplay system I was going to feature.
The Sketch
An early idea I had was to feature a set piece with a bridge; the player would start on one end of the bridge and the goal would be on the other, with the twist of having the bridge collapse as the player got close, forcing them to find another way around. I based my sketch around this idea.
As the level was set to have a well defined start and end, I decided on having a mostly linear level but with branching paths for player choice in how they reach the location. I outlined different districts of the level to map out the flow, deciding where the player would be challenged and when they would get a break from the action.
The Gameplay System
For the gameplay system I wanted to have something that the player could interact with in the level that changed how they navigated the space. What I came up with was the low gravity zone.
They would be some sort of Alien device that changed the player's gravity while standing within it. This would allow the player to reach new platforms and maneuver around the Aliens in unique ways.
First Iteration
The first iteration a blockout of the path from start to end without much further detail. It was done using wall and floor pieces that were 4x4 meters wide and alligned to the grid to make future iterations easier.
This set the focus for future iterations to focus on figuring out the layout for the different stealth challenges in the different districts I had outlined.
The Districts
The different districts were built to be either a challenge or a break for the player all set in different city environments, featuring the low gravity zones and the difficulty of the challenges increasing over the duration for the level.
Starting Area
The player starts in a narrow alleyway to set up the reveal of the bridge. This is where the player is
made aware of their end goal and is forced to find a way to reach it. The low gravity zones are also introduced in a safe environment.
Shopping District
This is the first Alien encounter, where the player gets to see how they operate as the layout is designed to not be too intense. The low gravity zones can be used to reach elevated platforms, safe from the Aliens vision.
The Dead End
Acts as a quick breather for the player after their first encounter. This area also hosts the entrance to the alternative route, if the player chooses to explore they can access the docks, which acts as a shortcut to the end.
The Rooftop Garden
This acts as the second challenge along the main path, sitting in a rooftop garden. There are various routes to take as the rooftop features plenty of furniture to hide behind. The low gravity zones can be used to access safety once more.
The Highway
After climbing down from the rooftop garden, lies the highway stretching over another bridge leading to the end. This acts as the final challenge of the main path, including various routes with low gravity zones and more Aliens for an intense finale.
The Docks
Accessed through the hidden alternative path, the docks acts as a shortcut. The player must avoid falling into the water while sneaking around Aliens. There is once more various paths to take using low gravity zones, quicker but riskier routes or safer ones.
The level ends on the other side of the bridge, where evacuation vehicles are present allowing the player to escape.
Design Techniques
As previously mentioned the level was built around the idea of the collapsed bridge, acting as a narrative block in progress and a landmark.
Showing the End
The goal is revealed to the player at the start, giving them an objective to work towards throughout the level.
The Collapsed Bridge
The collapsed bridge is visible from various parts of the level, giving them a way to meassure their progress. In the end, they arrive on the other side and get to look over to where they first started.
Additional Landmark
The level features a second landmark at the end of the level; a tall skyscraper with a crashed U.F.O. next to it. This one is tall enough to be visible throughout the entire level, giving the player a hint of where they are.
Iterations
Throughout the course, I playtested the level with other people to get feedback and determine what to focus on when iterating.
A lot of iterations focused on adjusting the layout of various districts to provide better communicated challenges and to convey the space they took place in. See examples below:
Before
After
These are two versions of the Rooftop Garden district. When iterating I had the focus of incorporating more detailed and believable furniture as obstacles and differentiating the different paths from each other.
Before
After
This is the skyscraper landmark, where I had moved the U.F.O. to the ground as part of an iteration. The idea being to solve an issue I had where the start and end of the level looked too similar as they were both roads on different sides of the bridge. By making the player walk next to the U.F.O. it was easier to tell you had reached a new area.
One of the biggest changes was for the theoretical changes to the gameplay; at first I had imagined the player to also have access to ranged weapons but due to the level featuing mostly smaller spaces and plenty access to high ground, I decided to change it so the player only has a melee attack.
Reflection
I faced a lot of challenges making this level, there were lots of improvements made through the level's iterations but there were some issues that remained unsolved.
The biggest issue the level has is the realisation of the space, in feedback I got it was expressed that the level did not quite feel like a believable real life city. The docks for example feels very small and cramped, with the boats not fitting into the river in a believable way and the boarding bridges being too thin. Additionally, there was an overreliance on crashed cars to block of where the player was not supposed to go, which made the level feel too convenient according to feedback. A lot of these issues stemmed from the planning phase, I had planned the level from mostly a gameplay perspective, resulting in the city planning and believability being flawed. The setting of the city also made it tricky as it is a naturally open-ended location chosen for a mostly linear level. With more time going into researching city layouts in early stages this issue could have been mitigated, as it was a flaw with the core layout it was difficult to improve through iterations.
However, I am still happy with the end result. Throughout the level's iterations, I made the level as sharp as it can be with this layout. With adjustments to district layouts and making the landmarks properly stand out just to name a few. The issues with the planning acted as an important learning experience that I brought into the following projects.