Ryan - Games Design

I feel I have reached the end of development of this project! There are a few tiny tweaks that I shall inspect in the coming days just to tidy things up a little, but that's about it! I will also be developing this blog into a short PowerPoint presentation for easy explanation and so I can upload a recording of it to my website. This video is also a slightly older version of what I have developed, but I shall upload the final version next week as well as a recording of my design process PowerPoint and display them both here.

This week saw only a little progression due to illness, but still some steps forward! I developed 3 additional Action Blocks and implemented the best parts of them into my overall design which I also started this week. Using Action Blocks has meant that every step of the way I have been prototyping, playtesting and iterating. I've been super quick to move on from failed ideas and much less precious of my work. This process has meant that everything feels more interesting and coherant and that I can develop larger spaces in much less time. Because of this approach, I genuinely feel I'll be done with my level by the end of next week to present the week after. I have accomplished much more than I could have expected in spite of being unwell. The following week will be additional development of more features and potentially just clarifying more about the critical path and guiding the players.

This week I have focused on getting the blueprints fully functioning and switching over to th Megascans Castle Ruins asset pack in order to improve the overall look and feel of the project. Blueprints have mostly gone okay with the exception of a few features that I will continue to iron out next week. My other plans include fully switching over to the new assets and playtesting as much as possible!

This week has included creating puzzle blueprints and began working on UI. I have also started looking at assets to decorate the level with as I feel it will help with the overall look and feel of the game. There are many assets within the Megascans series by Quixel on the Unreal Marketplace that I feel will work very well so I will begin making a pass with those once I have decided on some. One of the core features of the game is the ability to use the internet from within the project rather than tabbing out to do research. Fortunately, this was very easy to create so I have implemented it already. Over the next week I shall finalise the puzzle blueprints and start transferring over to the new assets.

This week saw me developing a few Action Blocks in order to quickly prototype spaces. Post-pitch I wrote a list of level limitations, these are all the beats that each Action Block needed to hit. - Indoor/Outdoor - Respawn tend to use both exterior and interior elements in their explorable spaces. I wanted to include this in my Action Blocks so I could encourage more space being investigated - Reset Power - I wanted players to have an actionable goal within the space. Simply "reach the next part" wasn't sufficient. The idea of power being off meant that there could be spaces that players had to wait to explore until they had powered things back up. - Gunplay - I wanted there to be living obstacles they needed to interact with. While it wasn't important to fully contextualise them, the basic idea is that they are in the players way and they can only proceed by gunning them down. - Moving Elements - This part was intergral for the whole play experience. I ...

This week has seen a lot of development. Having pitched my idea I recieved good feedback and considerations for implementation. I started straight away on developing simple mechanics so I could dive straight in to creating Action Blocks. With that in place I created a simple wall run and slide mechanic that could be used to traverse over flipping platforms, these can later be used as part of the manufacturing process within the context of the game. I developed an action block based on flow, this section could be used at the beginning of the level as it is not too complex, but requires players to understand the mechanic overall. I was warned that wall running was used a lot in previous years and that I should develop it with purpose. That is why I came up with the idea of "magnetised boots". These seem to get used a lot in sci fi works but I think this could work within the game. This also got me thinking about how someone who runs along walls with magboots would trave...

Coming back from the summer I have been incredibly inspired to take my level design process up another notch! While I had some strong ideas last year, I was only really finding my feet towards the end of my time so I really wanted to hit the ground running as I came back. One pitch idea that has been posed to us is a "Studio Superfan" project. In essence, finding a studio that inspires you, taking some time to research their design principles and core mentalities, and then creating a project in a way that they would expect you to approach it. Respawn Entertainment is a studio I have admired for a long time. Games like the Titanfall series and the Star Wars Jedi titles have made it clear that they know how to get game-feel absolutely spot on and are always attempting to push their creations as far as they can go. It's also clear from Christopher Dionne's GDC talk in 2018 Designing Unforgettable Titanfall Single Player Levels with Action Blocks that they ar...