http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Gtv62NnHrOcC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Casual+Game+Design:Designing+Play+For+The+Gamer+In+All+Of+Us&hl=en&ei=OuDETufsF4ik8gPpr-GCCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&sqi=2&ved=0CEEQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false
Page 41 talks about level design, I hadn't seen this before but thought it best to save the link for use later.
Thursday, 17 November 2011
Wednesday, 16 November 2011
RPG level research
The concept drawing of my design is taking a little longer than anticipated, it should not be a problem since I still have till Monday next week to finish it. The problem I am finding is designing a 3D level on a 2D piece of paper. Top down view is all well and good however it is proving difficult to draw more 'organic' shapes for the level which represent the cave pieces.
I will continue on with it for now and see where it is on Monday.
On with the main body of this post however. This blog post talks about some practical research that I have undertaken over the past week on and off.
The level I am designing for Fallout: New Vegas is what is commonly referred to in RPG terms as a 'dungeon'. Dungeons are contained levels in an interior location that has two very common elements: Monsters (or enemies) and Loot (or prizes). Unlike FPS games and more liniar games, the levels/dungeons in RPG games are a more free roaming experience allowing the player to take whatever path they may choose, as long as they navigate said dungeon to get to the end and get the loot.
While navigating the dungeon the player may come accross a variety of obstacles that they must pass. Whether it be a puzzle, a monster/enemy or a trap. While designing my level it is important to note that I must allow for one of these possibilities to properly call it a 'dungeon'.
Over the week i have player Mass Effect 2, Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Dungeon Siege II, Borderlands, Dragon Age and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.
All these games share one common trait: They are RPG games although they may reside within different subcategories of the RPG genre. All these games have a dungeon of some kind located within them. However the approach to how dungeons are designed can be very different. One thing I definately noticed, the games distributed by Bethesda Softworks: Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, all have a very specific feature to a majority if not all of their dungeons.
The dungeons in said games have a design niché that the others do not. At the end of the dungeon there is an exit which brings the player out of the dungeon more or less instantly, or reveals a shortcut which brings the player back to the start of the dungeon quickly. I feel the reason for this is as followed.
In a game when you complete a level, it ends. That is a very simple observation, however in these games the game continues even once the quest is over, they stay within the game world and go on to their next quest. Because of the lack of an 'end' to the level. A substitute is given, a 'placebo' ending which creates the feeling that the level is at and end and provides the player with a means of getting out of the dungeon to the 'overworld' quickly without having to retrace their steps through a very lengthy dungeon.
As such this is one design feature I will attempt to include in the level if it is needed.
I will continue on with it for now and see where it is on Monday.
On with the main body of this post however. This blog post talks about some practical research that I have undertaken over the past week on and off.
The level I am designing for Fallout: New Vegas is what is commonly referred to in RPG terms as a 'dungeon'. Dungeons are contained levels in an interior location that has two very common elements: Monsters (or enemies) and Loot (or prizes). Unlike FPS games and more liniar games, the levels/dungeons in RPG games are a more free roaming experience allowing the player to take whatever path they may choose, as long as they navigate said dungeon to get to the end and get the loot.
While navigating the dungeon the player may come accross a variety of obstacles that they must pass. Whether it be a puzzle, a monster/enemy or a trap. While designing my level it is important to note that I must allow for one of these possibilities to properly call it a 'dungeon'.
Over the week i have player Mass Effect 2, Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Dungeon Siege II, Borderlands, Dragon Age and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.
All these games share one common trait: They are RPG games although they may reside within different subcategories of the RPG genre. All these games have a dungeon of some kind located within them. However the approach to how dungeons are designed can be very different. One thing I definately noticed, the games distributed by Bethesda Softworks: Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, all have a very specific feature to a majority if not all of their dungeons.
The dungeons in said games have a design niché that the others do not. At the end of the dungeon there is an exit which brings the player out of the dungeon more or less instantly, or reveals a shortcut which brings the player back to the start of the dungeon quickly. I feel the reason for this is as followed.
In a game when you complete a level, it ends. That is a very simple observation, however in these games the game continues even once the quest is over, they stay within the game world and go on to their next quest. Because of the lack of an 'end' to the level. A substitute is given, a 'placebo' ending which creates the feeling that the level is at and end and provides the player with a means of getting out of the dungeon to the 'overworld' quickly without having to retrace their steps through a very lengthy dungeon.
As such this is one design feature I will attempt to include in the level if it is needed.
Monday, 7 November 2011
Research: G.E.C.K
http://geck.bethsoft.com/index.php/Bethsoft_Tutorial_Navmesh
This past weekend I have been looking through the G.E.C.K to get to grips with it while comming up with concept for the level.
During my investigation of the G.E.C.K I discovered the whole process of 'Navmesh"-ing a level. The point of Navmesh is to place plane on the worldspace that you create, this is represented by a semi-transparent red floor. This tells the NPCs in the environment that this is the place in the game that you can walk. Going by the description on the GECK wiki it seems that it is only necessary if you intend to include NPC's in a level.
However my project is that of level design, more specifically the design of the worldspace, not NPC and quest design. The question I am asking myself is as followed:
"Should I Navmesh my level or not?"
If I were to Navmesh said level it would mean that should I wanted to expand my project to include a quest with NPCs and enemies I would be all set from the get go to start scripting and placing down AI characters.
However, Navmeshing the level would take time, time that could be considered wasted if the project is not then expanded upon.
I personally believe it is worth the extra time to Navmesh the level, it is worth attempting to get it in the level. Furthermore it would mean it is all prepared for NPCs and AI characters to be placed in the environment should they need to. If I am pushed for time or resources I can easily miss out the process if I need to.
This past weekend I have been looking through the G.E.C.K to get to grips with it while comming up with concept for the level.
During my investigation of the G.E.C.K I discovered the whole process of 'Navmesh"-ing a level. The point of Navmesh is to place plane on the worldspace that you create, this is represented by a semi-transparent red floor. This tells the NPCs in the environment that this is the place in the game that you can walk. Going by the description on the GECK wiki it seems that it is only necessary if you intend to include NPC's in a level.
However my project is that of level design, more specifically the design of the worldspace, not NPC and quest design. The question I am asking myself is as followed:
"Should I Navmesh my level or not?"
If I were to Navmesh said level it would mean that should I wanted to expand my project to include a quest with NPCs and enemies I would be all set from the get go to start scripting and placing down AI characters.
However, Navmeshing the level would take time, time that could be considered wasted if the project is not then expanded upon.
I personally believe it is worth the extra time to Navmesh the level, it is worth attempting to get it in the level. Furthermore it would mean it is all prepared for NPCs and AI characters to be placed in the environment should they need to. If I am pushed for time or resources I can easily miss out the process if I need to.
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