FIEA Level Dev Blog

This week, I spent more time developing the Operation Retrieve level design document. The level is a shooter set in a lab, where the player’s objective is to infiltrate and retrieve a virus. I’ve incorporated an option for stealth, creating both a main path and a stealth path. While certain sections of the level may favor one approach over the other, the player ultimately has the freedom to choose their preferred playstyle. To guide the player along the main path, I’ve been focusing on using leading lines. My goal is to keep the level as linear as possible while supporting these different gameplay styles. I’ll continue refining this project until it becomes a solid portfolio piece.

This past week we finished and presented our RPP 2 game. Our team's game Belly Beat is a rhythm game where you play as a mortician drumming to the notes of songs on the bellies of bodies in their lab. As dark as that sounds, we managed to keep it lighthearted and amusing. The level itself was just a small morgue and a small office room, but what I enjoyed most about working on this project was the set dressing. People usually say level design is most similar to architecture, but I find that some spaces feel more like doing interior design, maybe because I have a strong interest in both interior and industrial design. I enjoy set dressing because it’s all about the details. If this character were a real person, how would they interact with their space? How would they lay it out? What would they have and in what orientation to make things efficient for them? I don't think things should just be thrown together for the sake of moving a plot along or for mere player convenience. I...

This week I mostly worked on RPP 2, where we started bringing assets into the level I blocked out. One important lesson I learned while working on this project is the value of providing a comprehensive asset list of what will likely end up in the level. It’s also crucial to give artists a reference board and not leave them guessing. What we ended up with worked, but it could’ve made the process smoother, and in the future, this can prevent the artists from hating me.

  I followed along to the videos Nick recorded and made this hammer in ZBrush. I don't think I would want to use ZModeler again if I could help it but found still found it helpful.

Made my first head in ZBrush mostly by following along to the video and coming back to it later and adding hair.

This week in Level Design I, we started working with Maya. Since it’s my first time using the software, I’m finding it a bit harder to navigate compared to Blender. Auditing the 3D art course has given me extra in-class time to get more familiar with it, which has been helpful. For Rapid Prototyping Production (RPP), I blocked out a basic morgue level. I used this opportunity to practice in Maya by modeling a couple of tables for the level, which I then exported to Unity.