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My Design Process

Preproduction Process

At the beginning of every project, it is important to develop the core concept of the game and start to ask questions like:

  • What is the scope of the project

  • What are the mechanisms of gameplay I want to focus on

  • Characters

  • Story

  • Art style

Research

The next step in my process is to do some research. I do this by:

  • Focus on the game’s demographics. Who is this game intended for? What audience am I trying to market to?

  • Look at similar games in the same genre. What worked for them? What did not?

  • Look to see if the current project is saturated, and if so, focus on game elements that would set the project apart from the competition.

  • Build a reference library.

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Design

During this phase of development, I begin to conceptualize how the game’s mechanics and moment-to-moment gameplay will work.

  • Defining my design goals

  • Creating a Design Document

  • Determining which design model the game will use:

    • Linear

    • Branching or Non-Linear

    • Hub and Spoke

    • Open world/sandbox

  • Sketching visual ideas for game mechanics and levels

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Prototyping

An important stage in my process. A time to fail fast and fail often. Learn what works for the project and what needs to go.

  • Using a gym scene to test the game’s core mechanics, metrics, and movement. Get a feeling of how the player character interacts within the playspace.

  • Whiteboxing environment

    • I want to quickly get into the engine and start mapping out the playspace. This helps with:

      • Flow

      • Critical and Non-Critical Paths for the player

      • Intensity ramping

      • Pacing

      • Landmark placement

      • Encounters

      • Use of mechanics

Applying “The 10 Principles of Good Level Design”

In 2013, Dan Taylor wrote an article outlining principles he used to enhance his work as a designer. The following is how I try to apply these principles to my work:

  1. Good Level Design Is Fun to Navigate

    • Focus on making sure there is consistent visual communication for the player to follow.

    • Good patterns and rhythm.

  2. Good Level Design Does Not Rely on Words to Tell the Story

    • Determining what type of narrative structure to use for the levels.

      • Implicit

      • Explicit

      • Emergent

  3. Good Level Design Tells What, but Not How

    • Give the player the tools they need to complete the objective without over-explaining and taking away control.

    • Don’t punish for creativity, encourage it.

  4. Good Level Design Constantly Teaches

    • Try to introduce a new level by introducing or subverting a key game mechanic.

    • Design identifying patterns for players.

  5. Good Level Design is Surprising

    • Don’t follow the roller coaster method.

    • Try to disrupt paradigms of the genre.

  6. Good Level Design Empowers the Player

    • Deliver on the fantasy/role you are trying to deliver to the player. Make them feel like they are in the world you have created.

  7. Good Level Design is Easy, Medium, and Hard.

    • Risk vs Reward.

      • Encourage players to engage in difficult challenges, but don’t punish those who want a simpler experience.

  8. Good Level Design is Efficient

    • Determine if a modular design will work.

    • Bi-Directional gameplay.

      • How can I make the same play space feel different when players revisit the area?

  9. Good Level Design Will Create Emotion

    • The use of spatial empathy and architectural theory.

      • Creating emotion through the use of complex spaces.

  10. Good Level Design is Driven by Mechanics

    • Use the existing mechanics to enhance the game, not detract from it.

    • Creatively reuse existing mechanics.

    • Not doing the same actions repeatedly.

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Playtest & Collaboration

When working with a team, it is essential to communicate and collaborate with other departments to ensure the project stays on track. Once the team has new elements of the project, I do my best to implement them into the levels as quickly as possible. This way I can communicate if there are any problems, or if I have any questions on how to implement their work. If I am working on a solo project, I reach out to peers to get their thoughts on what could be improved in my work.

 

During the playtest stage, I get the most valuable feedback. During this time, I like to observe what the players are doing and see if they are following the course I set forth for them. I ask myself the following questions:

  • Do they understand the current objective?

  • Do they feel lost/frustrated?

  • Are they having fun?

  • How long are they spending in a specific area?

Polish & Postmortem

Finally, after every playtest, there is a time to polish what is implemented into the game and add more completed assets to the level. This process repeats until the game is ready to be shipped.
 

After every project is completed, I take the time to reflect on what could be improved during my time spent on a project. I reflect on any shortcomings I might have had, but also focus on what I learned and how I could bring those lessons to future game projects.

  • How do I feel about my work?

  • What could be improved?

  • Team feedback on my performance.

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