Multi-Path Level Design

Block Mesh & Mechanic Design & Implimentation

July 2023

Block Mesh 1

Block Mesh 2- With Mechanics

What Went Right:

Feeling - Since my level is set in a post-apocalyptic city, I wanted it to feel like the player was mostly alone, with the exception of the ghosts, but I also didn't want it to be static and boring. To fix this I added movement to tarps, dripping and flowing acid, memories throughout the level, and pebbles with physics. These additions added something that could draw the player's eyes around the level and make it more interesting.

Layout - I am happy with how I laid out the buildings and the paths for this level. The player has a lot of areas that they can explore, but with the time restraint, they still have to be careful to make it to the end before the rain. I am also happy with the outskirts of my level as a cityscape. The only thing I would change with it is adding more offshoot paths between the buildings with rubble and debris.

The Subway - The Subway is the beginning area of my level and the place that I am most proud of. I did end up spending a large chunk in designing this area because I wanted it to help tell the story of the city and tell the player what to do without specifically giving instructions. I added the acid so the player would learn that if they are about to die from a dangerous situation, they will be transported back to safety and to show them what they should fear in the level. I also added a collapsed tunnel area with bricks, pipes, and broken ceiling tiles to help make it appear that there was a cave-in. I like how all the pieces tie together and make it look believable. To help the story along, I have a poster on the wall for the Big Tech Store and as the player climbs the stairs, they can see the store sign in the distance as their waypoint.

Added Clutter/Research - After the first Block-Mesh showcase video for my level, I got some great feedback about little things I should add to the level to make it believable. I then went back to researching more cityscapes and stores to give me more ideas for what to add to fill out my level. Though I think that there is still a lot more that I can do to fill out this level, I am happy that I have more of an eye and mindset to look closer at the reference photos and to find inspiration in my own experiences and places I visit. I also did some research as to which plants would possibly be able to thrive in an area with highly acidic soil and found that hydrangeas turn blue because of the acidity in the soil. Though most players may not get the grander meaning behind the blue of the flowers, there may be a handful that will notice that small detail and find it enjoyable, while the majority will hopefully find it pretty like I do.

Animation - For this level, there were some specific animations that I wanted to have, including checking the watch and having the kid sitting and swinging their legs. Although neither of these animations are anywhere near perfect, it was still a great experience to learn how to animate a simple motion and put it in the level. In the future, it will be something that I want to experiment with in my (very elusive) free time along with customizing the skeletal meshes like with the dog. Even though it isn't perfect, I feel that adding it in helps to explain my ideas for the scene better.

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What Went Wrong:

Memories - I didn't add enough to flush out the memories in the block mesh, although I really should have. I started with the idea that the memories would be cutscenes that would appear before the player, but for one of the mechanic discussions, I decided to talk about the memories and looked for inspiration in other games to help show my idea and that was when I realized that cutscenes would break the immersion in the game. I then decided that the better course of action was to set the memories to play while the player was able to walk around and view them at their discretion. The reason that I count this as something that went wrong is I didn't do enough research on how I should do this mechanic in the beginning so when I changed my mind I had to rush it.

Pebble before Floor - For one of my mechanics, I have the player able to throw a pebble that is tied to the collapsing floors. I tried to add a teaching moment for the player when they first exit the subway, the player will kick a pebble and it will cause the floor tile to break (turn red) to warn the player of danger. I think one of the main reasons that it was a slow mechanic to master is that there are no reasons for the player to throw pebbles in the first place, so when the player is introduced to the collapsing floor, they don't know that the two are connected. I think if I were to do it again, I would have something introduce the player to the danger first, then to the solution.

Misleading - Some parts of my level have been misleading to my playtesters. I have two doors that the player cannot interact with, but they look just like interactable doors. This similarity has caused players to not trust or try the doors that they can and do need to open to finish the level.

Too Sudden or Drawn Out Death - I wanted the player to feel the need to escape the level quickly, so I added the acid rain. If the player doesn't escape in time the acid rain starts and the player will lose the level and be dissolved in the acid. At first, I made it so the player would die after a few moments when the rain started, but I changed my mind and made it so the player would die if they made contact with the raising acid. This can be a little jarring if the player doesn't realize they died to that. The other issue with tying it to the acid vs the rain, is that there are places that the player can be where the acid cannot touch them unless they choose to dive into it. Both of these instances subtract from the experience.

Execution - I had a lot of ideas for this project, but instead of doing them one at a time, I would work on three or four at a time. I think that because of this I spread myself too thin and it was easy to get lost in the project. This project has helped to drill the importance of time management and scheduling breaks so that my mind has time to reset between tasks and let me look at problems with a new mindset and more patience.

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Conclusion:

Overall, this project was intensive and the lack of restrictions made it easy to go overboard, but I had a lot of fun with this project and I think most importantly I learned a lot from it. I explored more mechanics, widgets, and aspects of unreal that I hadn't tried before and I feel that I now have a better understanding of them. I also have a better appreciation for the beginning steps of a project and planning out the level before even touching the block mesh. I found the initial level design document to be a very helpful guide that I kept returning to throughout the level design process.