Let Power In
What you can see. Where you can go.
Level Design Focused Project
Project Pitch.
Experience Goal:
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Unstoppable Parkour Experience
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Smooth Traversal Experience
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Driven By Desire of Exploration
The level features the diversity of traversal paths. The level is designed to be completed in two critical paths, each containing optional paths encouraging exploration.
I used landmarks and pinching at the starting point to highlight level objectives, which is activating three power towers.
The level is designed following the same setting and mood as the game's prologue. It is a pity that the player cannot return to this fantastic forest in the later game. This is the reason I made this level.
The level features the diversity of traversal paths. The level is designed to be completed in two critical paths, each containing optional paths encouraging exploration.
Key Responsibilities:
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Designed and built the level blockout
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Documented and iterated level to shippable quality
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Scripted quest events and environment shifts
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Decorated the whole level with available assets to be visually pleasing
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Carried out the lighting pass and LoD to build aesthetic depth
Project Information.
The level focuses on creating an open-world parkour level experience with traversal level design principles. Meanwhile, it is a best practice of open-world layout design and planning player progression.
Engine: Chrome Engine
Mod for: Dying Light 2
Work Time: Feb, 2024 - May, 2024
Team Size: Individual
Play Time: 10 - 20 minutes
Features:
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Parkour
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Open World
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Traversal Level
"Let Power" In is a single-player level mod developed for Dying Light. The level is designed as a side quest after the game's prologue. In this quest, the player, Aiden Caldwell, is going to help Hakon to get the power supplies outside the City.
Design Process.
Because Dying Light 2 is an action-adventure game where the player matrix is vital to its level design, I created this Block Mesh level to test the player matrix to ensure all parkour challenges are appropriate.
This is the Whitebox stage of the project. I replaced all block meshes with assets to ensure the level scale is good.
This is the final pass I launched to the Dying Light 2 mod workshop. The whole level was arted, and the level mood was set up by in-game daytime and weather. I also made sure my traversal conveyances won't blend with the environment.
Because Dying Light 2 is an action-adventure game where the player matrix is vital to its level design, I created this Block Mesh level to test the player matrix to ensure all parkour challenges are appropriate.
Overview & Level Maps.
This is the exterior world layout and planning of encounters in the Level Design Document.
This is a snapshot of all the interior places and important areas in this project.
This is the exterior world layout and planning of encounters in the Level Design Document.
#1 Open.
The player can pick their paths freely.
Critical path 1 completing the quest
The player can freely plan their paths to approach the quest targets and enjoy the fun of traversing along the paths. The main paths are equivalent in terms of encounters and player growth, but the parkour moments and exploration opportunities are totally different.
#2 Encounters & Quick Paths
Paths allowing quick traversal are always available in encounters.
Parkour is the main action when the player is traveling in the level world. When the player wants to get out of/go through the dangerous encounters, quick paths are always available.
#3 Good Conveyance.
Consistent Traversal Conveyance Language.
The player perspective at the level start point
In an open-world level that features traversal and exploration, a consistent conveyance language is extremely important to help the player maneuver.
Postmortem.
What Went Well?
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Exploration
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The level experience is promoted by loot boxes and secret items providing lucrative rewards to the player.
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Conveyance
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The prologue of DL2 only provides limited assets, but I managed to create a strong sense of flow.
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Environment Design​
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My level successfully created an environmental mood and setting as the game's prologue. It allows the player to enjoy parkouring in a natural environment again.​​
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What Went
Wrong?
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AI Combat
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Same as Dying Light 1, the AI behaviors are black box meaning I cannot customize a lot. It leads to the result that the AI behaviors cannot adhere encounters well to encounters on different paths
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Assets​
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Because of insufficient natural assets, I overlapped different assets to decorate my level. This is not a correct way to art the level because it creates a lot of weird edges
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What I
Learned?
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Open World Design
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Landmarks are increasingly important to guide the player in a level as the level size increases.
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Traversal Level Design
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The player's sightline should always be open, allowing them to choose a path from branching designed routes.​
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When designing a traversal level, starting with designing multiple main/critical paths is the best starting point.
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In level emphasizing traversal, ​it is very important to have a consistent language of conveying traversal geometry
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Gallery.
