Rachel Folasayo Oladoyin
Game Designer, Level Designer and Artist
Far cry 6 level
This was a FPS level I made in the Far Cry 5 level editor. The design challenge was to make a level for an existing game. I chose to make one for Far Cry 6, specifically an FND base level. I made sure to emulate Ubisoft's level design style when making this level, making sure it's approachable from any angle with multiple playstyles.
Project Duration: 3 months
Team Size: 1 person
Platform: PC
My Roles: Sole Level Designer
My responsibilities
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Made a Level Design Document (LDD) outlining the story, references, program and diagrams for the level.
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Grey boxed the level.
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Conducted playtests and collected feedback from said playtests.
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Iterated the level based on feedback from playtests
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Iterated the LDD based on the changes made to the level.
Design Process overview
Early process work
My early design process involved:
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Coming up with a story and reference environments for the level
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Creating diagrams to plan out the layout of the level
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Making a simple blockout of the level
Later process work
My later design process involved:
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Iterating on the blockout using feedback from playtests
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Ensuring gameplay was balanced for both stealthy and aggressive playstyles
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Refining the blockout by adding more detail and environmental storytelling
Detailed Design Process
Early Process work
Level Design Document
Before developing the level in engine, I planned out the level's layout, story and environment using a Level Design Document (LDD). I outlined the story, found references of places, characters, themes and objects related to the story in order to solidify the idea, then made a program of what would be in the level, diagrams and finally a map for the level.
Story and References
After playing Far Cry 6, I made a story that I could tell would integrate well with the rest of the game by ensuring there were similar themes to the ones in the game, and the objectives were similar to those that existed (but different enough to offer a new experience).
After writing the story, I found references of environments that resembled the type of environment the game would be in, objects I planned to have in the level, and characters and themes one would expect to find in the level. Each picture had a description so that I knew exactly what each one was for.
Program
After making the story and finding references for the level, I made a program outlining the different elements required for the level, both narratively and functionally. The narrative program contained things that were necessary for the level to properly sell the narrative it's trying to convey, while the gameplay program contained elements necessary for the level to function as a Far Cry 6 level.
Excerpts from the narrative and gameplay programs. Click to enlarge.
Diagrams and Maps
Once I knew what the level contained and what it was generally was going to look like, I made some diagrams to help visualize the idea. First of all, I made a rough sketch, to get a general idea of the kinds of buildings I wanted in the level.
Sketch I made to help visualize the structure of the level. Click to enlarge.
I also made beat and parti diagrams to help visualize the flow and structure of the level. It also helped me visualize what the positioning of the main elements of the level would be, and what kind of layout I would be going with (which ended up being a hub layout).
Beat Diagram (left) and Parti Diagram (right) i made to help visualize the level's flow and structure. Click to enlarge.
After making the diagrams, I measured the different character movement and object metrics, and made a table putting all the information together, so I could use it to make a map with an accurate scale.
Table I made to organize the metrics of the level. Click to enlarge.
Once I had all the metrics, I was able to make a map that was scaled to the level. I used this to make a clear guideline on how I would build the level in engine. I made a map for each floor of the level (as the level is two stories tall).
A screenshot of the map of level 1. Click to enlarge.
Blockout
Once I had finished putting the initial information in the LDD (which was still open to be changed whenever necessary), I made a simple blockout of the level, containing all the elements I had outlined in the LDD.
Later Process Work
Playtesting and Iterating
After I made the level blockout, I immediately started playtesting. I facilitated two different sets of playtests at different points in development, making sure to iterate on the level based off of the feedback I got after every playtest. Playtests helped me identify different points in my level that required changes that I couldn't spot on my own. For example, my level did not initially have enough hiding spots for stealth play (and I want to encourage all playstyles with this level). I found this out during playtesting and made changes to the amount of hiding spots I had in the level.
An example of a change I made to my level after playtesting. Added more cover for stealth players. Click to enlarge.
After refining the blockout based off of the playtests, I added in objects that aided the environmental storytelling, and colour-coded the buildings to make it easier to tell them apart. At this point, the level is ready to be art'd.
Challenges
My main challenge when designing this level was making the base enticing to enter for the player, and to make the buildings enticing as well. Many players during playtesting would hover around the base, or if they entered the base, hover around the buildings without really going in them.
Lessons learned
This taught me the importance of lighting! I found that if I made the lighting in the buildings and in the base enticing (by putting directional lights in the windows to make light shine outside of the buildings, drawing players towards the buildings), and made light outside of the base dimmer and less inviting, players were more likely to be drawn into the base, rather than hover around it.