Tips and tricks
Contact: moc.kooltuo@rengised_level (spell it backwards)
This site's goal isn't to be a bible of level design. The main goal is to learn. Read other sources and then produce texts, give hints and tips and apply the acquired knowledge in my own levels. To write about level design is also a learning process.
One of the most important parts of a game is for the environment to be intelligible and easy to navigate. A confusing environment leaves the player lost without a sense of direction. A good level design should provide hints and be navigable in a way that allows the player to find its way. In some aspects it can share concepts with the urban planning of cities.
Every level has a more rational and logic side that is about function. At the same time there is the artistic side that is about expressing emotions. Both sides should talk to each other in a level. In some cases the emotions are more important. In other cases the function is more important. There isn't a single and universal solution for all problems. What can't happen is for a level to be a problem for both the player and the game.
Curiosity. There is something that goes wrong in the brain of some people that causes a severe inability to memorize paths and/or a lack of sense of direction. In a game a person may get lost and more often this is caused by the level design itself. If you extend that to real cities and parks, the architecture and design choices made may cause people to get lost in there. However, for some people getting lost and lacking a sense of direction is way beyond the average and they have trouble inside schools, buildings, colleges or supermarkets. There is no specific cause but it seems to have roots in genetics.
Landmarks
Videogame Landmarks and Real Life Architecture - Courtney Raine
Meaningful geography in breath of the wild - Tom Battey
A taxonomy of Weenies: the landmarks that define Ghost of Tsushima - Bryant Francis
Facilitate Mental Mapping - Clement Melendez
One Level Design Mistake I Learned to Avoid From Playing "Mirror's Edge" - World of Level Design
Environmental storytelling
Evironmental storytelling - Bart Stewart
An Examination Into Environmental Storytelling - Josh Bycer
How Arkane Studios' Prey Perfects The Art Of Environmental Storytelling - Jade King
Dabble in Design: Until Dawn and Environmental Storytelling - Michael Hancock
A Visual Feast: Learning the Movements of Environmental Storytelling - Nick Jones
What you Give is What you Get: Environmental Storytelling in Games - Caleb Compton
‘Destiny 2’ Is Finally Doing Solid Environmental Storytelling, But Everyone Is Missing It - Paul Tassi
Environmental Storytelling and Gone Home - Adrew Yoder
Environmental Storytelling in Games - Jethro Jongeneel
Level Design: Enhance Games with Environmental Storytelling - Prakash Gautam
Dishonored got it right, The Order got it wrong - Ashley Reed
How Level Design Can Tell a Story - Game Maker's Toolkit
Environmental Narrative: Telling Stories in Spaces Without Saying Anything Aloud - Laura E. Hall
The Art of Dear Esther – Building an Environment to tell a Story - Robert Briscoe
Environmental Storytelling, a Bloodborne Crash Course - Lux Noctis
In Level Storytelling - 7 Level Design Tips - Art of level design
Intro to Environmental Storytelling | Video Game Design - The last bacon
Advanced Environmental Storytelling in 'Spider: Rite of the Shrouded Moon' - Randy Smith
What Happened Here? Environmental Storytelling - Matthias Worch
Guiding the player in the level
How to Guide Players through Games – Game Design Tips - Lindsay Schardon
Level Design Tips and Tricks - Tom Pugh
Level Design Workshop: Invisible Intuition: Blockmesh and Lighting Tips to Guide Players and Set the Mood - David Shaver, Robert Yang
Uncharted: The Lost Legacy's Rooftop Chase Is An Example Of Perfect Level Design - Issy Van der Velde
My problem with classic 90s FPS - Getting Lost - Reddit user
Dealing With Navigation & Players’ Behavior - David Shaver
Wayfinding: player navigation, how to "guide" the player through a level - Open Source, many authors
Level design: Tricks of the trade - Jonathon Wilson
How the Uncharted games implement player navigation - Abhishek Iyer
The Ingenuity in Ghost of Tsushima's Guiding wind - Player's Narrative
Ghost of Tsushima guide: How to use the Guiding Wind - Jeff Ramos
Architecture and design
Interior Design and Environment Art: Mastering Space, Mastering Place - Dan Cox
Level Design Workshop: Architecture in Level Design - Claire Hosking
An Architectural Approach to Level Design: Creating an Art Theory for Game Worlds (and So Can You!) - Christopher Totten
Level Design in a Day: Level Design Histories and Futures - Robert Yang
Learning Lighting for Video Games - Gabe Betancourt
The Theory of Lighting - Commander Keen (wayback machine)
Procedural world generation
Scale and proportion
Level Design: Scaling and Best Practices - Epic Games
GDC 2002: Realistic Level Design in Max Payne - Remedy Entertainment
Level Design Principles and Whiteboxing - Scott Morin
UE4: Guide to Player Scale and World/Architecture Dimensions Tutorial - World of level design
Metrics: The proportions and distances of the level, how big the level feels - Open source, many authors
Importance of Small Scale FPS Level Design – Mainstream Development - Alex Cicala
Real scale doesn't work in games - Nikolay Shamaev
Design Tips: In-Game Proportions and Scale - Yuriy Sivers
Level design for multiplayer
Singleplayer vs. Multiplayer Level Design: A Paradigm Shift - Elisabeth Beinke-Schwartz
The Holy Grail of Multiplayer Level Design: Casual and Competitive Maps - Andrew Yoder
Practical guide on first person level design - IronEqual
Analysis of level schemes to improve multiplayer shooters - Curtis Gaut
Multiplayer Level Design In-Depth, Part 1: The Specific Constraints of Multiplayer Level Design - Pascal Luban
Community Level Design for Competitive CS:GO - Shawn Snelling, Salvatore Garozzo
What makes a good multiplayer level? - Gavin Annand
Multiplayer level design - Thomas Buijtenweg
Overwatch and Asymmetric Level Design - What Makes the Maps Fun? - Extra Credits
Blizzard's Aaron Keller Breaks Down Overwatch Map Design - Ars Technica
A CS:GO Level Design concept : the pathways - Enzo Menegazzi
Multiplayer Map Theory (Gears of War) - Epic Games
Deathmatch Map Design: The Architecture of Flow - Game Developer staff
Assorted
The importance of nothing: Using negative space in level design - Jim Brown
Learning From The Masters: Level Design In The Legend Of Zelda - Mike Stout
Open world level design: spatial composition and flow in Breath of the Wild - Radiator Blog
Breath of the Wild’s brilliant game design, explained - Allegra Frank
Legend Of Zelda Study : Level Design - TheCGMaster
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild's dungeon design - Game Maker Toolkit
How Zelda's Puzzle Box Dungeons Work - Game Maker Toolkit
Depicting the Level Design of a Legend of Zelda Dungeon - Salim Larochelle
The Door Problem of Combat Design - Andrew Yoder
Designing Better Levels Through Human Survival Instincts - Christoper Totten
Platform Games
Planes of vulnerability in Commander Keen 5 - Pieter Smal
Rational Design: The Core of Rayman Origins - Chris McEntee
How Mega Man 11's Levels Do More With Less - Game Maker's Toolkit
The World Design of Super Metroid - Game Maker's Toolkit
How To Level Design in 2D Platformers - Let's Talk Game Design
How to Design Breathtaking 2D Platformer Levels - Tadeas Salvatore Jun
Designing Fun Platforming Levels: Tips and Best Practices - Alejandro Hitti
How are the puzzles constructed in LIMBO? - Game Design with Michael
Dissecting Design -- Super Meat Boy's Platforming Greatness - Game Wisdom
Good Game Design - Super Meat Boy: Motivational Punishment - Snowman Gaming
Hollow Knight Review | Analysis on Game, Sound, Level Design and Cohesion - dragnerz
The World Design of Hollow Knight - Gamer Maker's Toolkit
Books
Game Balance - Ian Schreiber, Brenda Romero
Architectural Approach to Level Design - Christopher W. Totten
Level Design: Processes and Experiences - Christopher W. Totten
Preproduction Blueprint: How to Plan Game Environments and Level Designs - Alex Galuzin
Game Development Essentials: Game Level Design - Jeannie Novak, Travis Castillo
Mastering Unreal Technology: The Art of Level Design - Jason Busby
Video Game Level Design: How to Create Video Games with Emotion, Interaction, and Engagement - Michael Salmond
Level Design: Concept, Theory, and Practice - Rudolf Kremers
The Hows and Whys of Level Design - Sjoerd “Hourences” De Jong
Articles discussing the difficulty of some people regarding memorizing routes
Directional Dyslexia - Reading Well
Problem with remembering routes - Memory Improvements Tips
Why Certain People Have a Terrible Sense of Direction - David Ludden