Project Overview
Responsibilities:
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Blocked Level 5. Blocked Level 2 with co-designer.
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Placed enemies, lit, and set-dressed Levels 5 and 2.
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Planned-out player mechanics, level obstacles, and 3 Enemy AI in collaboration with other designers.
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Implemented and Balanced game and level mechanics alongside co-programmer.
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Writing, 3D Modeling, Animation, UI & 2D Art
Play as a blood-thirsty Vampire fighting through 5 heavily armed zones to claim your revenge in this 2D action-platformer
Team Size: 5
Timeline: 5 months
Play the game here:
https://storyboredartist.itch.io/blood-blitz
'Blood Blitz' Level Design
Note: Website still under construction. This page will be expanded with more diagrams, gifs, and text
Level Design Goal:
I wanted the levels I designed to feel like a coherent escalation of the resistance encountered in prior levels, with steadily increased enemy quantity/strength, more intricate and demanding platforming challenges, and requiring a higher level of aggression than previously to succeed.
• PRE-PRODUCTION •
References:
The first step was to gather references that
would inform the level's atmosphere, design
tropes for hazards/challenges, and aesthetic.
From this research I pulled elements like
chemical vials and barrels, pipes to platform
on, and a toxic floor that poses an intermittent
threat throughout the levels.
• 2D to Final Product •
Full Layouts: Level 2 (top). Level 5 (bottom)
Level 2 zoomed Layouts
2D Sketch:
I begin the layout process with a digital 2D sketch, allowing me to freely manipulate portions to test a variety of possibilities, as well as labeling elements/design intentions with text and color coding.
Quick iteration was especially useful when collaboratively plotting Level 2, since my co-designer could make suggestions such as "this portion should challenge the player out of reach enemies", and I could loosely sketch multiple variants of that concept as a starting point for discussion.
Designing Level 5, I decided to reimplement elements introduced in Level 2, but with heightened challenge.
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i.e. Toxic floor appears in both, but while Level 2 has more stable ground to avoid it, in Level 5 the player often use mobile, temporary platforms (popping bounce-bubbles, spinning vials, and even enemies).
Level 5 zoomed Layouts
3D Blockout to Set-Dress:
I blockout in Unreal using basic Primitives (mostly cubes), and place enemies. I playtest each portion multiple times as I construct them to ensure the design-intentions are being met, and blockout deviates from the sketch as a result-- platforms are added, deleted, or resized, the enemys' placement and difficulty levels are altered, etc.
Then I set-dress with the most recent meshes and textures, aesthetic props (such as the crashed blimp in Level 5), and atmospheric lighting to create a believable environment that sells the context.
Level 2 (top) and Level 3 (bottom) process
• Level Walkthrough •
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3. Toxic floor is introduced. The player must platform above it, while avoiding enemy shots from below
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4. The player must use a flying enemy as a springboard to higher ground
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the first time this happens with the threat of death if the player fails
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5. Toxic bubbles are introduced, surrounding a cow health item
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The cow heals whatever damage the player takes from the bubbles getting to it
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6. The player must again use enemies to reach higher ground, this time twice in a more intricate ladder structure
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7. The player must thread the needle between a descending staircase of Toxic Bubbles to reach a checkpoint below
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6. The level ends in an arena, where the player must eliminate all enemies.
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The level throws its core elements at the player-- toxic bubbles, toxic floor, and floating enemies/platforms.
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8. The Player exits through a pipe, and reappears outside of one in Level 3.
Level 2 Walkthrough:
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1. Enter from Level 1 via Sewer Pipe, falling into the stage
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Connects the 2 stages
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2. Enemy encounter that introduces Medium Level gunners who shoot twice
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Introduced in semi-safe environment where he can't hit you when you first see him
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Level 5 Walkthrough:
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1. Enter from Level 4 via Blimp, shown as crashed through the wall in 5.
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Connects the 2 stages, and explains the destruction throughout
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2. Enemy encounter that introduces Hard Level gunners who shoot a spray of bullets
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3. Platforming segment on broken pipe network (a central design motif), around toxic floors and deadly shattered pipe segments
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4. Small enemy arena where the player must quickly dispatch several enemies in a hazard-cramped environment
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A Medium enemy directly under a Health Cow creates a combo to deal with the Hard enemy
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5. The player must cross a large gap using a floating enemy to make the distance
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6. Another equally large gap, but now with purple bubbles instead of an enemy. The player must instead use these bubbles to cross
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A checkpoint encourages experimentation with this new object
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7. Another purple bubble beneath a flying enemy encourages the player to launch into a flying combo above the lower path, which rewards them with a Healing Cow
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If the player doesn't use this combo, they must avoid bullets on the lower level, and use a staircase of purple bubbles to ascend
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8. The player may choose a higher path filled with enemies to be used as platforms, or a lower path where they'd use a new spinning vial to cross the toxic lake
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The high path requires more aggression, and the low path more precise platforming to stay on the vial
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9. The player climbs up into another arena gauntlet of enemies, this one open with little cover. The only escape is to use a spinning vial to platform out
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The vial also functions as mobile cover if the player positions themselves behind it
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10. The player platforms down an inverted waterfall of Bounce-Bubbles while evading enemy fire, before climbing another Bounce Bubble staircase onto stable ground
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Bullets can pop bubbles, so its a very precarious segment
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11. The player crosses a long stretch of toxic floor by platforming across flying enemies and spinning vials
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Vials might catch the player if they miss an enemy
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12. A new gauntlet with enemies placed such that killing them all is unfeasible if approached from below, but more manageable from above
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Below path's strategy is to escape through the exit as fast as possible
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12. The final arena challenge where the player must defeat all enemies to complete the game. This arena is the most intricate within the game, with many viable routes to clear out the enemies
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All design elements from level 5 are present: A web of Pipes, Toxic and Bounce Bubbles, Toxic Floor, Spinning Vials, broken Pipe Segments, Hard-Level enemies
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Level 2 Flow:
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The level flow initially hovers a bit above ground level as the player evades the toxic floor, dips then rises using enemies as a ladder, before promptly falling again before the end arena.
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The initial elevation is low enough that the freshly introduced Toxic Floor is fully visible
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The major rise-and-fall coincides with the most difficult platforming challenge in the level
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Level 5 Flow:
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The level flow, in terms of the path the player takes, for level 5 was designed as the most complex in game, constantly climbing and lowering in elevation, and even having the the player to snake backwards instead of consistent left-to-right progression.
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This makes the level feel more unpredictable, and less safe than a consistent level flow
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Being the final level, I wanted a stark contrast to Level 1's mostly flat, left-to-right flow.
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• Design Techniques •
Color Coding:
Many hazards/objects are color-coded to indicate their relationship to the player.
For instance, green is used in levels 2 and 5 to indicate acid that deals damage on contact
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Green Acid Bubbles
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Green acid atop shattered glass on bubble dispensers / pipes
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Green Acid floors and waterfalls
This way green elements can be introduced without requiring trial-and-error from the player to understand that they're dangerous
'BloodBlitz' Walkthrough
Watch the Full Walkthrough here
Level 2... 1:50 - 2:53
Level 5... 5:21 - 8:05