Cameron Singleton
Level Designer
Shoobel's Journey
Responsibilities:
Dev Time:
-Level Design
-AI Programming
-Lighting
-Environment Art
-Weapon System
-Sprite Animation
-Ammo/Health Pickup System
-Lava/Barrel Programming
-UI
-1 Week
DESIGN PROCESS
First I started off with what I wanted the gameplay loop to be. This allowed me to envision the level with a bit more clarity, and design with a set of rules in place. I also set development restrictions to keep the design process timely and attainable.
Next, I designed the top down map in Unreal. Typically, I use something like MS Paint or Picsart to develop a top-down map, however in this case I wanted a more intimate experience with the map, so that I could imagine different scenarios as I developed.
I added walls and placeholder lava hazards, as well as the final door objective after I was happy with the top-down design. This gave me a stronger idea of the level's size, main objectives, and enemy placement.
I fleshed out the routes I designed in the top-down map, then focused on each one by one. This is when I added enemies, hazards, ammo and health placements, and fleshed out platforming.
After I finished the blockout, I playtested heavily and received feedback from other developers who watched the above videos. I made a doc to log what I liked, disliked, and what should stay and what should change.
Finally, once the level was refined and to my liking, I added art. I hadn't originally planned on doing art, but I received feedback that the level was hard to perceive without texturing.
FEatures
Explosive barrels were added as a way to time attacks
to reduce the amount of ammo the player uses.
Due to the nature of the AI, sometimes the player will
have to lure them over, putting the player in harm's
way and potentially taking damage as well.
Shield pickups in the level are sparse, but allow the
player to experiment without the risk of losing
permanent health.
Ammo pickups give the player enough ammo to keep
moving forward, but drops are sparse in order to
make the player carefully consider to grab it or save
it for a more dire time.
Lava is a hazard seen when trying to obtain keys.
It ticks two health per second, which is only
revealed to the player when they interact with it.
Enemies are also immune to the lava to taunt the
player even more.
