Level Design
This project is about designing three 2D platforming levels with appropriate mood boards and documentation to go along with it. This will be a detailed look into my process as well as discussing my level maps.
Mood Boards
These are mood boards that show the ideas I made for my first level. First I discuss some of the environments the player will visit. A medieval castle and a modern city were two ideas I had which I then developed further especially the castle theme. I was heavily inspired by the games Crash Bandicoot, Mario, Dark Souls and GTA5. I especially looked at the Dark Souls 3 castle as it created a medieval eeriness which was the look I wanted to go for. The city in GTA 5 had a lot of areas in which I could have taken inspiration from which is why I used it in my mood boards; as well as it being based on a real location.
I continued to discuss the gameplay elements inside the levels like combat and platforming and I used Crash Bandicoot and God of War as examples. Crash bandicoot’s tight and difficult platforming and God of Wars combat are both areas that I was interested in. I also discussed other combat styles in other games like Super Smash Bros Ultimate with it’s platforming and fighting hybrid gameplay.
I subsequently go on to discuss the mechanics of the each level. I discuss how power-ups would work and how I have taken inspiration from games like Crash Bandicoot 4 it’s about time and Super Mario Galaxy. I was heavily inspired by these two games as they both had elements that I wanted to explore.
My last two slides discuss what kind of story the game would have and how it would effect the level design and themes. Although the story section was not necessary it does impact the level’s themes and why the characters are there, it gives the levels purpose. The second slide discusses any kind of collectables the player will be able to pickup throughout each level. The reason I wrote about this in detail was because players generally enjoy collecting pickups. A good example of this is the Mario Coin or the Crash Bandicoot Wumpa Fruit.
My last two slides discuss hazards discusses elements that can damage the player and other discusses small miscellaneous items that appear throughout the stage.
Levels
My levels consist of three themes, two of which I talked about in my environment mood boards. A medieval castle, a modern city and a frozen apocalyptic city. I will give a short summary about the three levels below.
Medieval Castle
The medieval castle is the first level of the game and because of that this is also somewhat of a tutorial. I tried to make sure that the tutorial was subtle so the player could progress at their own pace. I decided to make this level a contrast to other 2D Platformer games where they will use the castle stage at the end of the game. My reasons for this are that the game starts when the main character is framed for murdering the king of the land.
Modern City
A modern city was an idea that was floating around in my head for the longest time. This level would raise the difficulty slightly and create some alternative pathways for the player to explore. Later in the level the player must run through a burning building creating more hazards and platforming elements. I liked the idea of a medieval character traveling to a modern city creating a contrast between character and environment.
Frozen Apocalyptic City
The frozen apocalyptic city is also another contrast to perceived apocalyptic images which usually depicts burning buildings. I imagined it would be a complete opposite of Sonic the Hedgehog’s Crisis City. The environment would be ruined but frozen in ice. Players must find a way to escape before they too become frozen. The level has multiple pathways for the player to explore. The difficulty level as again been raised. I thought this would be an interesting theme.
Documentation
My documentation goes in-depth about all three levels as well as discussing topics that were not mentioned early. It also explores the fastest way to get to the end level as well as obtaining every secret in the stage. To view the documentation please download the Level Design project folder below.