Level Design

In my previous entry I talked about how composition of visual elements are used in video games to influence players and guide them through the level as well as creating mood, emotion and emersion in a game level.  Whilst it is true that this is a very important aspect of the finished game it is not the only part of the development process.

 

Though video games are primarily thought of as an artistic exercise, often thought of in the same way as Films or TV shows but they have a unique element not present in these media; video games have to house a player who will experience and interact with the level. The player’s actions dictate the outcome to some extent but it is the job of the level to be clear enough to direct the player to the solution or conclusion whilst still being challenging enough. Modern games contain assets and environments with dynamic behaviours interactability and huge environments which call for creative solutions to maintain frame rates.

 

The level has to be able to cope with the dynamic actions of a player whilst directing the player along the course of the game. With game levels becoming larger and many games are becoming increasingly free-roam or turning towards a sandbox style which means that the underlying elements and design of the level have to be exceptional in order to support the large amount of assets that the game will house.

 

Therefore it is the job of the level designers to produce this. Without relying on the visual aspects of the level game designers build levels with mechanics and layout in mind. Things like trigger boxes, portals (Used so that the game loads portions of a level rather than the entire level all at once) and interactive areas and objects are all planned out and tested in this stage.

 

In the early days of the industry, games were produced solely by programmers but with the evolution of 3D levels it’s become necessary to diversify the roles within the team. Design became more refined; games became larger and required a more diverse range of skills. Now that games are bigger, more complex and more open, games need to be tested multiple times to ensure their playability and function. To this end, Level designers will produce game levels using white box elements as stand-ins for game elements. Interactable elements may be represented by different coloured textures and it is in this stage that the interactive architecture of the level is planned and tested. These basic versions of the finished level help developers to test out their level functions and mechanics without the distractions and influences of the visual elements. This also means that changes can be quickly and easily made. Not to mention that as the level is built without the need for the visual assets and art, there’s no need to wait for testing to start. This means that the game can be tested and improved for longer, improving efficiency in the development process. This extra time also means that there is more time to find and fix problems and bugs in the game and has become a vital part of the development process that supports the rest of the game’s production.