Embedded Files
January 2019
Here is a video walk through of my Scraps mission. My section begins at 3:48. This project began as a bubble diagram and map layout (seen below). I then constructed all placeholder and final assets. The end product is the result of collaboration between myself and three other level designers. Enjoy
An abbreviated run down of the Security Cameras. This footage shows how I adhered to IPM when making this level. The level starts off easy, provides the player opportunities to practice, and challenges them at the end.
I followed the same philosophy when I designed the pipes puzzles as showcased in the full Level breakdown above.
To keep within the creative vision, the level should resemble a post apocalyptic universe. I chose a high school, inspired by the schools where I used to teach.
I designed each room as its own prefab, allowing me to relocate entire rooms with relative ease. I never needed to do this though. I was pleased with the level's direction as it came to be. The only room I moved was the last one, but that was only the exit- no setups or interactions.
Much of my feedback from classmates was centered on the security cameras. They could not figure out how to reset the camera and open the door if they were caught. I included the green light to bring attention to the computer, and players spawn right in front of it if they get caught. I felt this was appropriate for the introductory setup.
Time was a factor for this project, both in building the project, but also in play time. Per the assignment, players need to be able to complete the level within two to four minutes.
I wanted the player to crouch to get past this setup. But players could crawl under tables, which would let them by pass the intended path. Placeholder chairs made for good colliders to prevent cheating.
Sometimes, sneaking is not possible. I debated whether or not to include a ghost box for this optional setup. The camera is guarding a collectible, chalk. The chalk is not required for progression, and the solution would become far too obvious if I placed a ghost box as a clue. I do provide a UI hint on the bottom left, and there are only two movable objects in the room, both of which would properly block the camera's line of sight and allow access to the chalk.
Past experience suggests that whenever a player is presented with a "pick-a-door" situation, incorrect choices still provide a reward.
Don't mind the texturing, we were provided three materials to place on all objects. It might look nicer with a black floor, but you just do not often see that in a school. Perhaps a trim or detail in black would make this room a bit more visually appealing.
edit: yes, the tiles do look much better.
There is a reason this is the physics room. But Unity's physics would not cooperate with me. I parented everything to the seesaw and started with a hinge joint to achieve the up and down effect. The hinge joint was buggy and did not always work right. Chalk it up to the list of many functions I need to become more experienced in. To make it look correct, I opted to use animations and a trigger volume instead. It was the easy way out, but it is convincing enough to pass as believable to a player, and that is all that matters. Game design is just smoke and mirrors anyway, right?
My crowned jewel. The player needs to snap some objects in place to put out the fire. In the alpha on the left, the walls are all in tact. After building a .exe for some QA, someone noticed that I had forgotten to turn on the renderer for some of the walls. As a result, the player could look straight out into the compound. The final result is far more convincing and maintains the apocalyptic atmosphere.
The bubble diagram and map layout can be found below. Certainly much iteration took place. The finished level did not come out exactly as I initially planned it, but that is part of game design. Design, build, test, repeat until the game is more fun to play than to create.
The initial bubble diagram of the Abandoned School level in SCRAPS. To see the map in greater detail click here: https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/13QGX6LqqGZ1bpk07Sbtq5CbnzL6N-rCCVSPmjdKqTl8/edit?usp=sharing
August, 2018:
The next phase was to turn those bubbles into scaled rooms. It was very useful to laydown the map on a floor in Unity to ensure the proportions were all correct. I had to make some rooms bigger while minimizing others to ensure all the assets could fit in the alotted space. It was also helpful in determining the time to complete the level. The lead designer (my professor) requires each map to be beatable by a new player between 2 and 4 minutes. I also added notes for every encounter and interaction the player would experience, as well detailed notes about in game collectibles. You can see checkout the google drawing here: https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1SWnwM6rtz7vhG-IZyjrMjmn_0ofhDMoaHzueQdB6uYU/edit?usp=sharing
The key take from this project was the idea that a level should always have something for the player to do. My professor taught us the 10 second rule, the rule that no player should go more than 10 seconds without encountering a new set-up or interaction. I also learned about the importance of "bread crumb" collectibles and how to lead a player to the new areas of the map. The most important lesson though was that a game should facilitate play. Players should learn to use mechanics with introductory setups, then with tools and mechanics provided by the designer, have the opportunity to play with those mechanics to learn patterns and solve problems.
Now that I am comfortable using the ProBuilder in Unity, I am very excited to start constructing my map and testing those of my colleagues. Just gotta finish this stats course, first...
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