tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31837373592551729372024-03-21T19:44:25.510-07:00A Dangerous GameDanny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-86059539273829149012010-04-12T12:22:00.000-07:002010-04-14T10:47:01.089-07:00El Toro (executable)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfds6xyx2L8tRYdTExCGoPxQ8MLY1IUBFs3eBWgauMNdzCh_yT5ej5tkJCnk5sclWTrf8zpGydNhN0X1mTmvIsNerbxw3_-1ezfNsvN6U2QfGYq5Ndv28F9W9GVco2vJSQ2IRs3RqVO-Gd/s1600/Screenshots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfds6xyx2L8tRYdTExCGoPxQ8MLY1IUBFs3eBWgauMNdzCh_yT5ej5tkJCnk5sclWTrf8zpGydNhN0X1mTmvIsNerbxw3_-1ezfNsvN6U2QfGYq5Ndv28F9W9GVco2vJSQ2IRs3RqVO-Gd/s640/Screenshots.jpg" width="152" /></a></div><br />
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El Toro is a side-scrolling platformer where you use music as a weapon. My friend, Allyn Limson, came up with the concept and made all the art, while I assisted on design and wrote the gameplay code. The game ended up winning the "Best Game Design" award at our school that year. The game was developed on and off over the course of a year, but probably boiled down into about two months of work.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://cid-0cecc68b703ac64b.skydrive.live.com/embedicon.aspx/.Public/El%20Toro.exe" style="background-color: #fcfcfc; height: 115px; padding: 0pt; width: 98px;" title="Preview"></iframe>Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-54555443945432551082010-04-12T12:14:00.000-07:002010-04-14T10:49:06.877-07:00Polarity (executable)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3j2b4V-7spRXlynRmJ1XBwSbiiX3ZQmqd3lshagSnOhn6y1LrWOY9_AiSC0UYbOMrXbSJxbP2LdSGHO_5IG19SL1iRyw_paonOlzeEJDGPCH5iY860p12VShc6KTz-riJeeWiVipBw7rf/s1600/GAM-004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3j2b4V-7spRXlynRmJ1XBwSbiiX3ZQmqd3lshagSnOhn6y1LrWOY9_AiSC0UYbOMrXbSJxbP2LdSGHO_5IG19SL1iRyw_paonOlzeEJDGPCH5iY860p12VShc6KTz-riJeeWiVipBw7rf/s640/GAM-004.jpg" width="148" /></a></div><br />
Polarity is a game I made for my senior project. It is an action/fighting game with same keyboard multiplayer. The intent was to create a game that was mainly about design and not context. I wanted to avoid any real world constraints unless I specifically chose to use them, such as gravity. I believe the game turned out more enjoyable because of this design first approach, yet I believe it could still be re-branded to something more accessible if necessary. This game took about three months to fully develop, even though the initial prototype was completed in two days.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://cid-0cecc68b703ac64b.skydrive.live.com/embedicon.aspx/.Public/Polarity.exe" style="background-color: #fcfcfc; height: 115px; padding: 0pt; width: 98px;" title="Preview"></iframe>Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-8075021450461152992010-04-05T19:48:00.000-07:002010-04-05T19:48:28.125-07:00Stack Trace<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh26IGgCPG3X7jQfWeUELnnekrs8TGXt-tWq58TofkT359uPixKxksR9qvoaq4-g8steMJ5QuHfey6a3frFHyxnnf5cN4BR1AlENqbOIe-Zkv_r8EVS04dkhS4Az0ASswkvDBopMP2st8sa/s1600/screenshot_01.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh26IGgCPG3X7jQfWeUELnnekrs8TGXt-tWq58TofkT359uPixKxksR9qvoaq4-g8steMJ5QuHfey6a3frFHyxnnf5cN4BR1AlENqbOIe-Zkv_r8EVS04dkhS4Az0ASswkvDBopMP2st8sa/s320/screenshot_01.gif" /></a></div><br />
Yet another Game in a Day with the goal of making an abstract one button game. Possibly even more abstract than the last game, this basically boils down to moving down the screen without hitting the moving blocks. It sounds simpler than it looks, but it's pretty straightforward once you understand the basic functionality. Also a bit shallower than the last game, I would have to invent more new mechanics to keep it interesting. Still, it's moderately enjoyable.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYm77Z5n7W6Zw42htai8WT-ZKZsufkmu3XbmPjWUl9lCPI_Oz10t7Rywi7l-PXSbHZwGtrJaFZu-h5823A-raAMdx4hu7onZ3qNLJcrd6wErRM1W9pTAmROMe6zKrtfrReT5dKj1hw0JIK/s1600/screenshot_02.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYm77Z5n7W6Zw42htai8WT-ZKZsufkmu3XbmPjWUl9lCPI_Oz10t7Rywi7l-PXSbHZwGtrJaFZu-h5823A-raAMdx4hu7onZ3qNLJcrd6wErRM1W9pTAmROMe6zKrtfrReT5dKj1hw0JIK/s320/screenshot_02.gif" /></a></div><br />
Download the executable below.<br />
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://cid-0cecc68b703ac64b.skydrive.live.com/embedicon.aspx/.Public/StackTrace.exe" style="background-color: #fcfcfc; height: 115px; padding: 0pt; width: 98px;" title="Preview"></iframe>Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-80323702127035690372010-04-05T19:34:00.000-07:002010-07-11T22:06:23.606-07:00s(pl)ine<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC5oHKgi1YLqELVrNfPefZXL4AgNCIAOK9JhA2Souvl7OJnVajrSDbFehRbBkEvSz2wp-tBGwieRrZUpkPhS8IbjD83PSKjuDtfdn1LHfbiWhpVYOVEsYfmKgsuk_2pVcwTGmIySxBbj8z/s1600/screenshot_01.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC5oHKgi1YLqELVrNfPefZXL4AgNCIAOK9JhA2Souvl7OJnVajrSDbFehRbBkEvSz2wp-tBGwieRrZUpkPhS8IbjD83PSKjuDtfdn1LHfbiWhpVYOVEsYfmKgsuk_2pVcwTGmIySxBbj8z/s320/screenshot_01.gif" /></a></div><br />
A simple and abstract game that uses only one button. This is only a prototype so there are just a few levels, but I still tried to ramp up the difficulty over time. The game was made with the "Game in a day" concept that I used back in school. The goal is to create something playable within a day, but given the short deadline you tend to focus more. You also quickly arrive at the answer to the essential question: Is the idea any good? I would consider this game a success and could see it fleshed out with more features.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoIuPY8KJHF44cGaFPjilcb6gaEFAmwt01t6sNTFU41EbFm9PoY6SncDI4S6SS9m-3cYvdiNnmztDo1K4uIHQoOL50NAuiCLxqdCRFYYoLYbPASALYsOSyTYBUUdPJJ3LCPhdC6g-ccAkG/s1600/screenshot_02.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoIuPY8KJHF44cGaFPjilcb6gaEFAmwt01t6sNTFU41EbFm9PoY6SncDI4S6SS9m-3cYvdiNnmztDo1K4uIHQoOL50NAuiCLxqdCRFYYoLYbPASALYsOSyTYBUUdPJJ3LCPhdC6g-ccAkG/s320/screenshot_02.gif" /></a></div>Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-48316661060920041172010-03-24T20:40:00.000-07:002010-04-12T13:15:22.754-07:00Web (Rules)Here are the <a href="https://docs.google.com/fileview?id=0B3-qKeUi-jlbNTJkMGJlNWUtOGQ1My00ODllLWFkYzMtNzZlOTVlOGJmNjY0&hl=en">rules</a> for a board game I created, co-designed by <a href="http://www.leveldesigner.net/">Jeremy Welch</a>, a couple years ago called Web. It is an asymmetrical game where one player controls a single spider trying to eat flies, and the other player controls the flies attempting to cross the board. The spider can lay down webs on the board to block or trap flies, but the flies have the advantage in numbers.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdzdIJdFZ4KBhxML6rdCXPEl8V0ICy4X9Dre2wDPQv-r2Ckzi_ENQLHsQMkCDaG77yye2OkuoCTZqnnv3NI9xOcu6omclTh0p8Fcx1FcOKKyX5coXxU8hde86a3kgxv2E5-MdBg6TaSeLL/s1600/DSC00764.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdzdIJdFZ4KBhxML6rdCXPEl8V0ICy4X9Dre2wDPQv-r2Ckzi_ENQLHsQMkCDaG77yye2OkuoCTZqnnv3NI9xOcu6omclTh0p8Fcx1FcOKKyX5coXxU8hde86a3kgxv2E5-MdBg6TaSeLL/s320/DSC00764.JPG" /></a></div>Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-73047338478491864352009-06-18T16:17:00.000-07:002009-06-18T16:23:28.733-07:00Playable (Visuals)Get the <a href="http://drop.io/dannyjohnson/asset/visualslevel-zip">playable level</a> so that you can check it out firsthand. You need to have Unreal 3 to run the level, and having the most recent patch is advised since it won't look correct if you don't. I have included a Readme that gives instructions for where to add the file and how to run it. Read the original <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/06/challenge-visuals.html">Challenge</a> to understand the intent of the level or view the picture <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/06/walkthrough-visuals.html">walkthrough</a> if you don't have Unreal.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-77392714770712657232009-06-16T19:38:00.001-07:002009-06-16T20:08:53.727-07:00Walkthrough (Visuals)I have created a picture walkthrough of the level I created for the visuals <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/06/challenge-visuals.html">Challenge</a>. You should be able to follow the pictures through the level Myst-style. <br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_01.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_01.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_02.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_02.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_03.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_03.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_04.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_04.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_05.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_05.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_06.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_06.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_06b.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_06b.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_07.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_07.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_08.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_08.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_08b.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_08b.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_08c.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_08c.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_09.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_09.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_10.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_10.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_11.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_11.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_12.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_12.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_13.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_13.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_14.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_14.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_15.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_15.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_16.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_16.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_17.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_17.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_18.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_18.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_19.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Walkthrough_19.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br />--<br /><br />I have also included some shots taken from Unreal Editor to show behind the scenes.<br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Editor_04.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Editor_04.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Editor_02.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Editor_02.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Editor_03.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Editor_03.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Editor_01.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Visuals/Editor_01.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="388"></a>Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-27450917870243986992009-06-16T19:29:00.000-07:002009-06-18T16:58:44.375-07:00Challenge (Visuals)<span style="font-weight:bold;">The Challenge:</span><br />Make a level in Unreal that is visually impressive. Time limit is three days. Additional time is given for cleanup and bug fixes.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Point:</span><br />To show that I can make good looking and well designed levels.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Design:</span><br />I am making a level inspired by Blade Runner that will feature alleyways and a street scene. I am going to be using existing pieces in Unreal so that I can focus on making the level rather than constructing new pieces. I will be doing all layout, lighting, and texture placement.<br /><br />--<br /><br />You can find the walkthrough of the level <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/06/walkthrough-visuals.html">here</a>.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-72872130619634006882009-06-10T20:18:00.000-07:002010-04-12T11:49:54.858-07:00Sample Design DocHere is the Design Document (<a href="http://drop.io/dannyjohnson/asset/dannyj-sampledesigndoc-pdf">PDF</a> format) I created based off the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/06/challenge-design-doc.html">Challenge</a> I wrote about previously. Sorry, but the MS Word version does not turn out correctly when saved from Open Office.<br />
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I wanted to make a document for a game that would be possible to create while still having unique concepts that would make it worth developing. I by no means expect this design to ever be used, rather it served as good practice. Be aware that it is indeed a sample and does not contain all of the details for every system in the game. For example, I don't mention every level or every weapon as this would balloon the document to unnecessary lengths for my purposes. The terminology used is also intentionally generic as I didn't bother to create the cool sounding marketable terms for the weapons and such, since that stuff would be added later.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-46923834479235278502009-06-09T00:58:00.000-07:002009-06-17T14:26:16.920-07:00Challenge (Design Doc)<span style="font-weight:bold;">The Challenge:</span><br />Write a sample design document for a production game. The document will only contain a portion of the full design, but provide enough examples to show the process. Time limit is two days.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Point:</span><br />To create a design document that would be suitable for professional use.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Thought Process:</span><br />I feel that it may be appropriate to create a design for a first person shooter (FPS) since this type of game is commonplace in todays market, but also so that I may come up with new design ideas for the genre. Many games reuse mechanics that have been established in existing games and choose to modify other specific areas. This practice should not be condemned as the standard process of game development is uncertain and demanding at its simplest. As such I will attempt to create new mechanics while keeping in mind the feasibility of these features pertaining to real world game development.<br /><br />One of the main focuses in a FPS is quite obviously the weapons, which is why it is strange that so many games use similar, if not the same, types of weapons. Nearly all of these games have some or all of these weapons: pistol, submachine gun, assault rifle, shotgun, sniper rifle, rocket launcher and grenades. Where these games manage to derive uniqueness is in the subtlety of the differences in these guns compared to those in other games. The specific method of aiming, number of shots, accuracy and recoil all play a part in the experience of using these weapons.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Design:</span><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Number One with a Bullet</span><br />The game is set in a future war where infantry is as important as ever, but they require advanced equipment that allows them to face new enemies. The trouble has become that the expense for every soldier has grown so high that only a limited amount of equipment for them can be produced. The most rare part of a soldiers arsenal has become their bullets which are specially made to penetrate the enemy armor. However, the soldiers can collect ammunition from the fallen enemies or catch bullets with their magnetic shield. <br /><br />Each soldier has a main weapon that can use almost any type of ammunition. The weapon changes according to the kind of bullet loaded to provide the most effective means of aiming and firing. Still, different weapons can be found that can use ammo types unsupported by the standard weapon. Ammunition types vary from long range bullets for increased flight and accuracy to slugs that penetrate and knock down a foe.<br /><br />--<br /><br />The document can be found <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/06/sample-design-doc.html">here</a>.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-59092944400459849892009-05-31T10:14:00.000-07:002011-07-21T12:44:26.978-07:00Resume<span style="font-weight: bold;">Danny Johnson</span><br />
Email:<br />
<a href="mailto:velcrosneakers@gmail.com" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342171011928948194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXpHEmpG_CbtQV1sDPYNL0XClCJq_uQ1Y4Pvrbf7XCewE2oQ1xheuYl78Wr3j0hiPToQ7vdyP6qKnb3R2yf5BzbViHVU2wnDOUimvw2BiH8xXGvQDFgUA4twXJL6AwWXSa8Yyn5dIqbEpT/s320/email_gmail.gif" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 16px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 169px;" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />
<u>Objective</u><br />
To expand my creativity and design skills so that I may assist with the creation of exceptional games.<br />
<br />
<u>Experience</u><br />
<b>Designer at Gaijin Games </b>(July 2010 – Present)<br />
<i>BIT.TIP COMPLETE</i> for Nintendo Wii<br />
<i>BIT.TRIP SAGA</i> for Nintendo 3DS<br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><i>BIT.TRIP FLUX</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">for WiiWare</span></i><br />
<i>BIT.TRIP FATE</i> for WiiWare<br />
<br />
<b>Lead Designer at TikiBeast</b> (August 2009 – May 2010)<br />
<i>Tiki Bongk</i> for iPhone<br />
• Created and prototyped original design<br />
• Implemented features, tuned gameplay and wrote documentation<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Lead Designer at Santa Cruz Games</span> (September 2008 – May 2009)<br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">Unannounced racing game</span> for Xbox Live Arcade<br />
• Co-created initial design and wrote entire design document<br />
• Designed and implemented all levels<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />
Designer at Santa Cruz Games</span> (July 2007 – August 2008)<br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">Tomb Raider: Underworld</span> for Nintendo DS<br />
• Designed and implemented a majority of the levels in the game using a proprietary level editor<br />
• Wrote most all of the scripted events in the game<br />
• Helped write and maintain design documentation<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Quality Assurance Tester at Locomotive Games</span> (January - July 2007)<br />
• Tested Ratatouille (PSP) and Destroy All Humans: Big Willy Unleashed (Wii)<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />
Customer Quality Control Tester at Electronic Arts</span> (June - November 2006)<br />
• Final testing on over a dozen titles across all platforms <br />
• Recognized on three occasions for being one of the top testers<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">President of Cogswell Game Development Club</span><br />
• Elected by peers in the Summer of 2005<br />
• Led development teams and managed club affairs<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Won Cogswell Fusion Awards for best Game Design two years in a row</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Extensive knowledge of current and past video games</span><br />
<br />
<u>Education</u><br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Cogswell Polytechnical College, Sunnyvale, CA</span> (September 2003 - December 2005)<br />
• Received B.A. degree in Computer And Video Imaging with a concentration in Game Design<br />
• Recipient of the President’s Award for an outstanding student in the 2006 graduating class<br />
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<u>Skills</u><br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong knowledge:</span> Game Design, Level Design, Scripting, Writing <br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Moderate knowledge:</span> Concept drawing, Modeling, 2D/3D Animating, Group leadership<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong software skill:</span> Unity, Maya, Photoshop, Gimp, Microsoft Office, Game MakerDanny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-14327292746541697282009-05-30T15:35:00.000-07:002009-05-31T18:29:02.049-07:00The Level Design of Tomb Raider: UnderworldI was very fortunate to be able to work as a designer on a storied franchise such as Tomb Raider. While the game I worked on was <span style="font-style:italic;">only</span> the Nintendo DS version, I learned a great deal about game development in the process. Thankfully, I have been given permission to share the original design concepts for the levels I created. The design document for the console version of Tomb Raider: Underworld was used to understand the basic structure of the game, but all level designs were created uniquely for the DS version. All designs were created by me with feedback and assistance from the Creative Director- <a href="http://gaijingames.com/">Alex Neuse</a>. I also apologize that I will not be completely in-depth with the design process to safeguard any confidential information that is the property of Santa Cruz Games, Crystal Dynamics or Eidos.<br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />Please note that the terminology for the project referred to each playable area as a "scene" and a set of scenes is a "level."</span><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow1.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow1.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1 flow</span><br />These diagrams were created for each level to help visualize the size and movement through the scene, as well as to define the type of scene.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S04_horiz.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S04_horiz.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 0, Scene 1 (Prologue)</span><br />The intent of this scenes is to teach the player the basic techniques while offering enough gameplay so that it does not feel like it is all a tutorial. The fire engulfing the scene is supposed to give a sense of danger and urgency even though the player is safe most of the time.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S01.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S01.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1, Scene 1 (Discovery)</span><br />I tried to make this scene somewhat wide open without giving too much room for the player to get lost. There is not much room to either side, but the player will then see that there is much room below. The enemies were meant to be rather easy to fight, but could also be passed since the aim of this scene was not focused on combat. The annotations in the red boxes were created by Alex to determine the combat scenarios we would have in each scene with any kind of fighting.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S02_horiz.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S02_horiz.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1, Scene 2 and 3 (Entrance and Approach)</span><br />This section was split into two scenes for various reason, but the idea was that the player had entered a large cavernous space. I tried to make the scene feel like it could have been traversed in the past, but had since become dilapidated so the player would have to take an alternate path. After the scene was split, I then added a traversal portion at the beginning of Scene 3 so that it felt like the length of a full scene.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S03_verthoriz.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S03_verthoriz.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1, Scene 4 (Encounter)</span><br />This is the first scene that offers a puzzle that the player has to solve by navigating the rest of the scene. I wanted the player to see the non-working contraption first so that they had a sense of purpose going through the rest of the level. I like the simple complexity to this level and wish I made more like it.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S04_phys.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S04_phys.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1, Scene 5 (Lair)</span><br />This scene is meant to be the first "boss" battle, but is solved through navigation and not fighting. I aspect I liked about these vertical scenes was that the further the player progressed, the higher and therefore more dangerous their position. This was somewhat diminished by the fact that you could not look down like in the console version.<br /><br><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">No picture available</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1, Scene 6 (Artifact)</span><br />There is no concept for this scene because we did not expect to have an entire area dedicated to it, but because the moment is so important that it deserves to be separate. I liked this scene because it is one of the few examples where I was able to rotate the camera all of the way around the character, which hopefully made the scene notable even if it is short.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S05_vert.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S05_vert.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1, Scene 7 (Stolen)</span><br />The scene is vertically aligned to indicate that the character is climbing up and out of the tomb. I tried making a split in the path during this scene but because of the linearity of the past scenes but the players seemed to be confused by it. There were various reasons why we couldn't do more branching paths, so instead we focused on making the scenes have a flowing momentum to them so that the player did not get caught up too long at one spot.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S06_swim.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S06_swim.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1, Scene 8 (Surface)</span><br />As you can see the original design for the scene turned out to be different than what appeared in the game. The initial ideas was that explosive barrels would drop and the player would have to dodge them on their way to the surface, but this concept didn't play very well and had other difficulties. The change was to then make the scene more straightforward and continue the feeling of climbing upwards out of the tomb.<br /><br><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">No picture available</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1, Scene 9 (Combat)</span><br />This scene also was not in the original design but I pushed for its addition after learning that players often had a hard time getting used to the combat at first. The problem was that the players were not aware of all of the abilities at their disposal, so having each one explained seemed to improve the situation.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S07_combat.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S07_combat.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1, Scene 10 (Battle)</span><br />Again, we conceptualized how to best set up the fights so that the player could use abilities they just learned. <br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S08_vertswim.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L01_S08_vertswim.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 1, Scene 11 (Sinking)</span><br />The original design called for three parts to this scene with the ship at different stages of sinking. Two of these parts were scrapped but we still retained the swimming section with the ship turning upside down. I wanted to create a bit of unease when swimming underwater by making it cluttered in this section, but really the path is quite easy. This idea of perceived danger with little actual danger present was something I tried to add to a number of the scenes, but worked to varying degrees in the end.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow2.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow2.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2 flow</span><br />As you can see there was meant to be a swimming scene used at the beginning and end but it ended up being cut. We tried to ensure we kept the general flow of the scenes even when one was cut which was one of the challenges faced when removing parts of the game.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S01_swim.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S01_swim.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2, Deleted Scene</span><br />This was another swimming scene that was originally planned, but ended up being cut. One interesting aspect of the scene was that it showed the exit to tomb seen in Scene 9, but the player would not understand what it was until the then.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S02_vertical.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S02_vertical.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2, Scene 1 (Cliffs)</span><br />Another scene that is meant to be treacherous because the player is climbing so high up. I tried to accentuate the danger by making some sections hang out above the void.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S03.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S03.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2, Scene 2 (Jungle)</span><br />I tried to keep in mind the art for the scenes when I was making them so that the ledges and ropes would make sense. I tried not to concern myself too much with rationalizing the layout, as the artists would remind me that is their job, so that I could come up with a good level design whether it makes sense or not.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S04_vertcomb.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S04_vertcomb.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2, Scene 3 (Ruins)</span><br />There was combat originally planned to take place in this scene but was moved to Scene 2 because of certain complications. The scene still retained enough navigation that it still worked well. There are little touches throughout the game, such as the retracting pole section in this scene, that I added as one time events to provide a unique experiences during the course of the game.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S05_horiz.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S05_horiz.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2, Scene 4 (Shiva)</span><br />This scene was designed by Alex, but I ended up implementing it and adding a few small parts. The interesting part of this scene was preventing the player from skipping ahead by falling down during the first section. It was small challenges such as these that popped up and required creative solutions so that the original design could be kept intact. This room was also unique because it is the only puzzle that occurred over multiple scenes, which also required some clever tricks to make work.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S06.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S06.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2, Scene 5 (Moon Room)</span><br />Another scene designed by Alex, this scene was meant to be fairly easy to traverse forward but would be more difficult on the way out because of the darkness and the time limit.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S08.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S08.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2, Scene 6 (Eye Room)</span><br />In this scene the player is able to breeze through to get the tablet but then must quickly fight to get back out. This scene provided an interesting question for me because I had to decide if I should allow the player time to fight the Naga, or if I should put the door on a short timer so that they had to avoid them. I ended up making the timer long so that it accommodated players who stuck around to fight but could be exited if they decided to run.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S07.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S07.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2, Scene 7 (Sun Room)</span><br />Another scene that seems straightforward, but after the tablet is taken it becomes much more complicated. There is also a treasure chest that the player has to go out of their way to get which makes it even more frantic, but can be quite rewarding if done correctly.<br /><br><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">No picture available</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2, Scene 8 (RJC)</span><br />Similar to Level 1, Scene 6, this scene was separated so that it would have more impact when the player got to this point. I didn't bother doing a concept because I knew it would just be a straight line. <br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S09_thor.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L02_S09_thor.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 2, Scene 9 (Strength)</span><br />This is the first full scene using Thor's gauntlet and I made the blocks quite large to give the sense that these were magical and could not possibly be moved by Lara normally. These blocks were also a new way to change up the navigation since they provided a changing element.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow3.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow3.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 3 flow</span><br />As you will see the size of the scenes does not always match with what was planned in this flow. We removed what was initially the first scene for this level and I think I compensated by making the next scene much longer. Flexibility is one of the keys of game development since the final design will often deviate greatly from what was originally conceived.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S02.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S02.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 3, Scene 1 (Caverns)</span><br />This is one of the larger scenes, but there needed to be enough room to fit the grapple sections. Opposite of Level 1, Scene 4, this scene contains a puzzle where the player encounters the working contraption, but then figures out later how to use it. The problem with this type of puzzle is if the player thinks they can solve it before moving on, but we made sure to convey that it cannot be solved yet.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S03.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S03.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 3, Scene 2 (Power Up)</span><br />Again, I liked these kinds of levels because I thought they fit into the Tomb Raider style. The player can go to any part of the scene but they must perform several actions in order before they can actually exit. All of the actions fit logically together and the player hopefully feels a sense of accomplishment for connecting the dots.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S04_horiz.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S04_horiz.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 3, Scene 3 (Fire)</span><br />The player finally returns to where they were in the tutorial so most of the level should be familiar, but I wanted to provide a little extra so that they feel that it is not just a rehash.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S05_horizswim.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S05_horizswim.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 3, Scene 4 (Winston)</span><br />One thing of note in this scene is the scripted event of the rubble that falls shortly after starting. This was the first script ever written for the game, and is actually one of the few scripts that I did not write.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S06_physics.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L03_S06_physics.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 3, Scene 5 (Zip)</span><br />I conceptualized this scene with Lara shooting the chandelier to knock down the flaming bookcase and someone questioned if that made any sense. I thought it was quite fitting that Lara would do something so dramatic, and then the idea was raised to have her riding the chandelier as it fell which was even more outrageously appropriate for this video game heroine.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow4.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow4.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 4 flow</span><br />There were two scenes planned near the end of this level that ended up being too complicated and were later changed. Although these ideas were cut I am sure to remember them in case they fit into any future projects.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S01.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S01.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 4, Scene 1 (Forest)</span><br />This scene was completely redesigned after we decided to use it at the beginning and end of the level. I had to make sure it is traversable in both directions but I also wanted to make sure there were unique experiences in each so that it did not just feel like the same scene recycled. This scene also introduces the wall jump, which was a feature we did not plan on having in the game but ended up adding part way through the project to be similar to the console version.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S02.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S02.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 4, Scene 2 (Calendar)</span><br />This scene had a big portion cut out of it, but since the important part was the calendar puzzle it retained the design. This was meant to be a scene where there was not a lot of traversal, and instead I tried to convey the vastness of the scene especially when running across the bottom section.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S031.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S031.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 4, Scene 3 (Razor House)</span><br />The first of the "Houses," these rooms were inspired by actual myths. The stories of these trap rooms were too perfect to pass up so we tried to figure out ways to make each scene fit. In the Razor House I took the existing spikes and tried to use them in all sorts of ways that hadn't been done up to this point.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S032.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S032.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 4, Scene 4 (Dark House)</span><br />This was originally planned as part of the Razor House but was split up to separate each "House," even though I thought it was somewhat small after being divided. The artists though this was actually the ideal sized scene because it was small and could have a lot of detail while requiring the player to re-traverse sections so they saw parts more than once. We never butted heads over these kinds of issues, but it is interesting that as a designer I often wanted the most gameplay but the artists wanted small concentrated scenes.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S04.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S04.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 4, Scene 5 (Jaguar House)</span><br />Another example of a high perceived danger is the goo pit spanning the entire scene. The player would only have to jump over it in several sections, but the sense of being surrounded by this toxic ooze was a feeling I wanted to convey.<br /><br><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">No picture available</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 4, Scene 6 (Megingjord)</span><br />Once again, this is a small yet important scene because of the new story and ability introduced. I added the rising goo to add just a bit of gameplay so that the player could not get their reward too easily.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S05.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S05.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 4, Scene 7 (Fire House)</span><br />People around the office liked this scene because it encapsulated many of Tomb Raider elements in a single scene. There are traps, movable objects, pressure plates and puzzle you have to solve. Had I more time to design all the scenes I probably would have made every one like this, but alas there are limitations and deadlines that must be heeded.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S062.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S062.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 4, Scene 8 (Cold House)</span><br />Another scene that people quite liked, but it originally started off being much simpler. It is a unique concept, that there is a built-in time limit, so I decided that it deserved a more complex layout. I also threw in switches so that the player had to stop for a moment, but then made sure the player did not lose life during these parts or it would seem unfair.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S02.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L04_S02.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 4, Scene 9 and 10 (Bat House and Depart)</span><br />Like I mentioned in Scene 1, I redesigned this scene so that it would work backwards and still be interesting. We split off the Bat House part for the same reason we broke apart the Razor and Dark House, but the touch screen puzzles made the scene memorable even though it was short.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow5.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow5.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 5 flow</span><br />As you can see there were some parts we were unclear on because Crystal Dynamics had not decided on how it would work in their version. It was no fault of their, they were just working on a much bigger game that took longer to develop than our version. Still, we were able to learn what they planned on doing so that we could match it appropriately.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L07_S01.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L07_S01.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 5, Scene 1 (Descent)</span><br />This is perhaps my favorite scene because it has the most traversal and has some inventive parts. If this scene seems fairly hard compared to the previous scenes, it is because we swapped this with Level 7, Scene 1 for story reasons. Also, the player gets their first glimpse of a rotating scene, which will be used again later to purposefully greater effect.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L05_S03.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L05_S03.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 5, Scene 2 (Within)</span><br />I wanted to create two somewhat mirrored scenes with the first conveying that the player is delving down into a hidden area, and then later climbing back out to the surface. This planning ahead allowed me to hint at a puzzle that wouldn't be used until the player was making their way out.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L05_S04.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L05_S04.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 5, Scene 3 (Valgrind)</span><br />This scenes was meant to ramp up the combat so that they player would have a tough time fighting each enemy because we then have a role reversal when the player returns here. I was also the one who put together the yeti fight at the end even though it was not planned. I thought that introducing a new enemy should be an important event rather than getting lost amongst the other fights.<br /><br><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">No picture available</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 5, Scene 4 (Mjolnir)</span><br />I couldn't seem to find the original design for this scene but was quite similar to what was envisioned. Similar to the trap rooms in Level 2, I liked the idea of traversing the scene in relative safety but then being forced to take a dangerous path on the way back out.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L05_S042.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L05_S042.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 5, Scene 5 (Armed)</span><br />Like I mentioned in Scene 3, this scene was meant to provide the player with a feeling of power now that they had the hammer. The weapon is by far the most powerful but we also tried to make sure it was not a cakewalk using it against the enemies, so we made it fairly slow to swing.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L05_S06.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L05_S06.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 5, Scene 6 (Ascent)</span><br />I thought the puzzle at the beginning was appropriate to the Tomb Raider series because it fit in the environment and did not feel like an obvious puzzle. Also, if the artifacts hidden throughout the game seem to be a little easy to find, it is because we added that feature to the game after all of the levels had been created. These are just the punches game development throws that you have to learn to take.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow6.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/Jelly_Flow6.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 6 flow</span><br />Not much to the flow, and we even shortened the level from what was planned. This level was not meant to be as significant as the other levels, but we still wanted enough gameplay so that it felt worthwhile.<br /><br><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">No picture available</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 6, Scene 1 (Infiltrate)</span><br />This scene was redesigned later on so that it could be traversed forward and backwards. This is actually one of the few scenes that I did not really concept before making and tried to see how it turned out by creating it on-the-fly. I thought it turned out well because I had the experience of making all of the other level so I knew what worked, otherwise it probably would have been less interesting if I tried to do this earlier.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L06_S04.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L06_S04.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 6, Scene 2 (Natla)</span><br />I probably did not need to concept this scene, but it was probably more for the artists to see the intended size. Originally the scene just had two tough enemies that I had named Bigs and Wedge in the code, just to be a nerd.<br /><br><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">No picture available</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 6, Scene 3 (Escape)</span><br />The first path through this scene did not include any fighting, so I wanted to mix it up by making this scene all fighting and little traversal. Now that the player has the hammer I tried to find ways to make the combat not too easy by putting the positional advantage in the enemy's favor.<br /><br><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">No picture available</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 7 flow</span><br />Level 7 probably had a flow at some point but it changed so much that I don't think we kept it. We toyed around with lots of ways to make this last level seem epic, and I think our final result is pretty good.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L05_S02.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L05_S02.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 7, Scene 1 (Sea Floor)</span><br />As I said before, this scene was originally in Level 5, but was moved for story reasons. Since the scene is so big I made sure to point out the orbs that the player needed to find so that they were not aimlessly searching.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L07_S03.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L07_S03.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 7, Scene 2 (Emerge)</span><br />The situational adrenaline moment at the beginning of the scene was not in the original design but I wanted to add this feature to more points in the game. I like this one because the player may not realize they are in danger at first but then sees what is about to happen and jumps out of the way.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L07_S05.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L07_S05.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 7, Scene 3 (Runes)</span><br />I wanted to make the puzzle to end all puzzles in this scene, but ended up scaling it back because I did not want to prevent people from reaching the end of the game if they came this far. I liked how just getting to the pieces to move them was a challenge in itself, so that if the player knew what they had to do they still needed to exert effort to perform it successfully.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L07_S06.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Tomb%20Raider/L07_S06.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 7, Scene 4 and 5 (Deeper and Falls)</span><br />This level was split because we thought having the big reveal happen in its own scene would be appropriate. The first part of Scene 4 was another example where I tried to mix up the traversal by expanding upon one mechanic. The event that occurs in Scene 5 was not planned by us or the original development team, but I thought it important to make such a moment be interactive rather than just play out in a cinematic.<br /><br><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">No picture available</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Level 7, Scene 6 (Serpent)</span><br />This scene went through several iterations because we did not feel that the designs were epic enough to end the game with. The engineers conceptualized the rotating scene and we ended up going with that idea. Some people may not think it is a big deal to have this kind of 3D environment in a game because of all the fully 3D games out there, but this was significant because we added it to a game that was meant to be played on a 2D plane. The fight may not be that difficult, but I think the combination of the touch screen puzzles and the rising goo is enough to give a sense of epic-ness. I also liked the final jump, I think more games could have this kind of moment to punctuate the very end of actual gameplay.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-61091990276362862052009-05-29T17:21:00.000-07:002009-05-30T16:39:41.368-07:00Walkthrough (Crackdown)I have created a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4lK5F2bvTU">video walkthrough</a> that briefly shows off the boss locations and overall level layout. Below are some rendered images from the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/model-crackdown.html">model file</a> and descriptions of each section. <br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Within the constraints of the Challenge I was only able to make three boss areas where I had originally intended there to be five. I may return to this level again but I am still happy how it turned out.</span><br /><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Crackdown_pic4.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Crackdown_pic4.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Crackdown_pic1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Crackdown_pic1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br />The layout of islands is meant to provide a different experience in each area. The cities are dense with enemies but also have a lot of opportunities to attack from any angle or escape up a building. The mountainous area was meant to have a boss, but still provides a different kind of terrain to navigate and look for Agility orbs. The forested section is not meant to provide much gameplay but helps separate the two islands so that the player knows when they are crossing from one area to the next. The tower is supposed to be a constancy noticeable structure that acts as a looming threat the entire time on the islands. The player would likely know the tower holds the final boss of the level even if they weren't told.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Crackdown_pic.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Crackdown_pic.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Shaded_boss1.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Shaded_boss1.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br />Boss 1 is located in the central part of the west island on a tall building. The player cannot directly climb all of the way up the building because there is a large overhang preventing near the top. The player can climb to the top with even the lowest amount of Agility, but added Agility allows the player faster ascent and multiple paths to get up top. Driving helps the player to clear out the thugs on the street level much easier. Explosive skills can eliminate groups of thugs on the street level or on the roof. Strength affords a faster method of killing the enemies on the cramped rooftop. Firearms are generally useful for killing the basic thugs, but longer range weapons allow thugs to be picked off from a nearby rooftop making the boss easier to focus on when closing in for the kill.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Shaded_boss2.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Shaded_boss2.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Wireframe_boss2.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Wireframe_boss2.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br />The second Boss is located in a highly fortified industrial plant. The player must work their way through corridors inside the main building in order to reach the boss. Agility will aid the player in their battle with the enemies outside but will be of limited use indoors. Driving can be helpful since there is lots of room outdoors to drive around, but the player must get out of the car when going inside. Explosives are somewhat useful outdoors but when the player enters the main building the enemies are grouped together which provides better opportunities for multiple kills. Strength will be very useful indoors as the fighting is usually close quarters and a quick melee attack could be more efficient than using weapons. Firearms are useful both indoors and outdoors but favor larger areas where cover is available.<br /><br><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Shaded_boss3.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Shaded_boss3.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Wireframe_boss3.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Wireframe_boss3.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384"></a><br />The final Boss is located in the large building in the center of the islands. The building is even difficult to approach before the player eliminates the other bosses, since the overall forces dwindle as the bosses are taken down. The main entrance is locked but can be opened by destroying power generators located around the upper city. An alternate entrance to the building is at the bottom near water level, but the player would have to fight through a large amount of extra thugs going that route.<br /><br />Agility is very useful due to the vertical nature of the structure, but less agile characters can still progress to the top, just slower. Driving cannot be used in the building but finding the power generators can be done more easily in a car. Explosives are needed to blow up the power generators but are also useful fighting the difficult enemies within the tower. Strength can also be handy when fighting the stronger enemies since an enemy can be killed faster with a melee attack than with weapons. Firearms are still very useful because many enemies are located above the character where explosive or melee attacks cannot reach.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-75514240259230911002009-05-27T23:23:00.000-07:002009-06-17T13:10:27.116-07:00Model (Crackdown)This is the model of the level created for the Crackdown <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/challenge-crackdown.html">Challenge</a>. Get the Autodesk Maya file for the level <a href="http://drop.io/dannyjohnson/asset/crackdown-08-ma">right here</a>. The file is a 6MB download. You can also view the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/walkthrough-crackdown.html">walkthrough</a> of the level if you don't have Maya.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-22480408829257027342009-05-27T11:16:00.000-07:002009-05-31T19:48:20.005-07:00Challenge (Crackdown)<span style="font-weight:bold;">The Challenge:</span><br />Create a nonlinear level design with a set of missions that emphasized the variety of options available within the environment. Time limit is two days.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Point:</span><br />To create a level based around the ideas of freedom and nonlinear gameplay.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Thought Process:</span><br />Freedom in gameplay is a area that I would like to explore as a developer because it attracts me as a game player. I want to get a better understanding of how to create levels where the path to success is not clearly set, but where I can provide a variety of options for how the player may proceed. Ideally no single play style would be the most effective, and almost any play style would be supported.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Design:</span><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Level design for Crackdown</span><br />The key elements to nonlinearity in Crackdown are represented by the different skills the player can increase throughout the game. The skills include Agility which represents the speed and jumping height of the character, Driving which covers vehicle handling, Explosives that affect the blast radius of grenades and rockets, Strength determines melee damage and weight of objects that can be lifted, and Firearms which increases the accuracy and damage of weapons. Each of these skills can be leveled up as little or as much as the player chooses and the level design should accommodate this variety. If the player just wants to use explosives then they should be empowered to use that skill without being prevented by the level layout.<br /><br />I am building this level so that it would fit into the main game and simply be an extra set of islands for the player to explore. The player could travel to these islands at any time but there would be an expectation that they beat at least one full area already. The skills of the player may still be fairly low, but this level could be also approached later on where the skills of the character are at the maximum.<br /><br />--<br /><br />This design shows the basic layout of the islands and the locations of the bosses. All of the streets are not fleshed out yet as it will be easier to create those specifics when the level is being made. The layout is meant to have mountains in the norther part, a small forested area in the south and cities in the east and west. The center tower would be the hideout of the final boss for the area and there is a raised platform surrounding it with another boss in this area.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi130dnSDL_CtXjC_0cEFq8olcpuyEGNHChr-3uoNkk30NaXUYMUrM-K-Y7fcjIeljTFWmEqS-rnKVOr9AL6zPHm__b7mRH3Icgqkfn4TQaHbVpA7zJ1cLMo8O24dcUHrpFARrgfktoflLv/s1600-h/Crackdown_concept.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 185px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi130dnSDL_CtXjC_0cEFq8olcpuyEGNHChr-3uoNkk30NaXUYMUrM-K-Y7fcjIeljTFWmEqS-rnKVOr9AL6zPHm__b7mRH3Icgqkfn4TQaHbVpA7zJ1cLMo8O24dcUHrpFARrgfktoflLv/s320/Crackdown_concept.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340570495481384786" /></a><br /><br />--<br /><br />A preview of the final result<br /><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Wireframe_top.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Crackdown/Wireframe_top.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" width="384" height="341"></a><br /><br />View the final <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/model-crackdown.html">model</a> or the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/walkthrough-crackdown.html">walkthrough</a>.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-71117791061899939572009-05-24T12:06:00.000-07:002009-05-30T16:41:02.314-07:00Walkthrough (Gears 2)I have created a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gK83sW4pQZY">video walkthrough</a> for the level but I also have a picture walkthrough located below with more information about each section. It would be appropriate to read the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/challenge-gears-2.html">Challenge</a> post beforehand to better understand the intent of the level.<br /><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_01.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_01.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />1. The player starts out next to the vehicle- the block to the right- after it has been stopped by the grappling hooks. At this point most of the Locust soldiers outside have been killed so there is no opposition at the moment.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_02.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_02.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />2. Ascending the ramp the player will see the first enemy which they can choose do engage right away, but there is little cover at this spot and the enemy has the high ground.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_03.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_03.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />3. Now with some cover the player can fight the enemy more effectively, but there are now more options available. There are three doors that lead into the main building with the most obvious choice being the one to the near left.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_04.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_04.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />4. Walking into the first door reveals enemies further in the room, but not much cover between. The player could still navigate forward, but would likely have to proceed cautiously.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_05.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_05.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />5. If the player chooses to move to the third door from the outside they will enter the room in a flanking position. The player could also see this strategy after entering the first or second door and circle around to get to this spot.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_06.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_06.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />6. During or after the fight the player would notice the turret that fired an electrified grappling hook inside the room. To get past the player needs to first shoot the turret so that the power to the wire is interrupted, and then cut the wire with their chainsaw. If this is not understood within a short time, one of the characters would hint at the solution so that the player is not stuck too long.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_07.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_07.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />7. The player enters the next room to notice two elevated platforms with cover. In co-op it may be advantageous to have one player get onto the platform and the other stay below to attack from different angles.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_08.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_08.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />8. Vaulting onto the raised platform allows the player a better view of the room, but has limited mobility. The player would not have a good shot at disabling the turret from this location, but they could jump down on either side of the wire.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_09.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_09.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />9. On the ground level the player has to contend with a grappling hooks dividing the room. From this vantage point the player is able to shoot the turret and cut the wire in relative safety, but only needs to do so if they want the extra room to maneuver.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_11.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_11.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />10. After clearing out the room the player then moves into a narrow hallway with two Locust at the opposite end. This would be a quick battle, but if the player looks behind the cover where the enemy was positioned they would see a weapon and ammo pickups.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_12.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_12.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />11. The next large room features a staircase that wraps around the perimeter with slanted supports in the center to provide extra cover.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_13.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_13.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />12. Climbing up the slope the player encounters an enemy up ahead, but also starts to get fire from enemies above. The player can use the railing as cover and shoot the turret in the corner of the room.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_14.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_14.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />13. Disrupting the turret will cause the electricity in the wire to turn on and off, but if the player does not clear out all of the enemies in the room it will be difficult to cut while engaged in combat. The wire has enough clearance that the player can dive or run under it safely.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_16.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_16.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />14. The next small encounter has two enemies on the other side of a wide barrier. The player can attempt to move around and flank, but may be confronted by the enemy before springing the trap. Simply sticking out of cover is also more dangerous because of the close proximity, but the enemy could also be taken down just as quickly.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_17.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_17.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />15. Another minor battle, but the player has options of which side to move forward or to just stay at a distance to fight. While Gears of War typically has a flood of enemies enter into an area and the player moves on when it is cleared out, this series of rooms is meant to be one flowing encounter. Since there are only a few enemies these skirmishes would operate as a "calm" moment.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_18.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_18.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />16. This setup provides the last major battle in this scenario. On opposite ends of the room are raised turret platforms and in the center is an octagonal section with two levels. The player could fight some of the enemies from this position but would have to move closer to clear out the distant enemies. Disrupting the turret would not do much yet as the player cannot cut the wire from here.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_19.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_19.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />17. Getting onto to octagonal centerpiece provides a location to fight the enemies from an even level and room to move around. Retreat would be slightly more difficult as the player would have to jump down from the ledge before they could run away.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_20.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_20.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />18. Nearing the end the player faces three doors with a single enemy guarding them. The player can deal with the enemy now or wait until later since it is not an immediate threat.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_21.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_21.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />19. The first room has a grappling hook turret that can be shot and the wire cut.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_22.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_22.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />20. There is some resistance in the next room with an enemy guarding the turret, but the player should be able to easily clear the room and cut the wire.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://s265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_23.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii210/velcrosneakers/Gears2Level_23.jpg" alt="Photobucket" width="384" border="0" /></a><br />21. The last enemy and wire to be cut down are in the room, and the player would be shown a short cinematic with Marcus telling the rest of the squad they are ready to head out. With the building all cleared of enemies it would be annoying to have to re-traverse the rooms to get back out, so the camera would just fade to the squad regrouped in the vehicle. The player would then start back into the driving level and finish off the remainder of the journey up the mountain.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-21133501397253401402009-05-21T11:22:00.000-07:002009-05-31T19:53:06.211-07:00Challenge (Gears 2)<span style="font-weight:bold;">The Challenge:</span><br />Create a level for Gears of War 2. Time limit is one day, although this may have to extend to compensate for re-learning Unreal.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Point:</span><br />To use the Unreal Editor to create a level that fits within the Gears of War framework.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Thought Process:</span><br />I am having to re-learn the Unreal Editor at this point, but I was quite familiar with it in the past. Since the Unreal Editor was used to create the Gears of War games I find it appropriate to use the same tool to create a level for the game. My intent is to build a level that has a solid layout and interesting design features, but I do not plan on making visually appealing. In game development it is best for the a level designer not to get caught up in the details of how something will look, but rather how it will play. I will use basic textures and create simple shapes to convey the gameplay instead of just placing the pre-made models because it would create a mishmash that neither looks appealing or focuses purely on level design.<br /><br />I have chosen to make a section of a level that would occur during the driving sequence up the snowy mountain. This level focuses mainly on quick action because the main gun is so powerful that most enemies die in a single shot. To break up the action I want to create a part of the level where the characters must get out and fight on foot. Similar to the vehicle sections in Half Life 2, this lull in activity provides a nice counterbalance to the fast paced driving portions.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Design:</span><br />About half way through the level the player will approach one of the large structures that has Locust streaming out of it. While driving past the building grappling hooks are fired at the vehicle and latch on it causing forward movement to be halted. The wires connecting the grappling hooks are electrified and cannot be cut from your end, but the player must investigate a way to disconnect them from inside the building. The wires also grab the cannon and prevent it from turning, which keeps you from using it to blast the wires free. <br /><br />Marcus and Dom enter while the others stay at the vehicle to prevent it from being attacked. Upon entering the building it is revealed that the enemy have more of the grappling hooks and use them to block your progress through this section. The electrified wires act as a barrier that hurts the characters if they touch one, but they can still fire around it easily. To get past the wires the player must first shoot at the turret that fired the grappling hook, but this only causes the electricity on the wire to cycle between on and off. The player must cut the wire during an off period, but must time it correctly so that it does not electrify them before they finish. The player eventually works their way up toward the top of the structure to the grappling hooks that where fired at the vehicle and uses the same technique to cut them.<br /><br />--<br /><br />The image is a bit light, but you can probably still get the gist of the design. The left layout is the bottom floor and the right side is the second floor. The design has already changed somewhat from this layout due to the ability to iterate in a gameplay environment. I will probably be able to post screenshots of the Unreal file soon. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWfx6E-oJkdkIPh9JUFIXiNN_q4kGMRgBioefQ_uk1NKT1p1bOXYASIgH7m0j31ia2Cf4gUcvenImZ_F5HwGzoT1Ncr3veRJOuhfGff9l4Eo7i9rW0pRY5u3GAuqJq7uCFXWtKC_d2DHbJ/s1600-h/Scan10001.gif"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 275px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWfx6E-oJkdkIPh9JUFIXiNN_q4kGMRgBioefQ_uk1NKT1p1bOXYASIgH7m0j31ia2Cf4gUcvenImZ_F5HwGzoT1Ncr3veRJOuhfGff9l4Eo7i9rW0pRY5u3GAuqJq7uCFXWtKC_d2DHbJ/s320/Scan10001.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338788350033322194" /></a><br /><br />--<br />A preview of how the level turned out. You can view the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/walkthrough-gears-2.html">walkthrough</a> for a detailed description of the level.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRPTX3j7_b0Wto5cqpV0OAF2AsPfq5hW5x2syKTNL-u_DHfNGEsC4ed1YOvyRf_PA3WIHkOEBrzlZ8k481koSzbgztmcODdfMsO3YB8H-YNLSbdoUZssoiUJdr_q8uax-NfPJ_inmFsmJD/s1600-h/Gears2Level_top.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 319px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRPTX3j7_b0Wto5cqpV0OAF2AsPfq5hW5x2syKTNL-u_DHfNGEsC4ed1YOvyRf_PA3WIHkOEBrzlZ8k481koSzbgztmcODdfMsO3YB8H-YNLSbdoUZssoiUJdr_q8uax-NfPJ_inmFsmJD/s320/Gears2Level_top.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338862886468722306" /></a>Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-82446317609099725512009-05-20T18:39:00.000-07:002009-05-31T20:03:37.962-07:00Walkthrough (Fear 2)You can view the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZES7FoMU3k">video walkthrough</a> for the Fear 2 <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/challenge-fear-2.html">Challenge</a>. Also check out the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/screenshots-fear-2.html">screenshots</a> and <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/model-fear-2.html">model</a>.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-56313529922927210002009-05-20T18:05:00.000-07:002009-06-17T14:31:59.883-07:00Model (Fear 2)This is the level created for the Fear 2 <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/challenge-fear-2.html">Challenge</a>. You can download the <a href="http://drop.io/dannyjohnson/asset/level-1-v07-ma">model</a> which requires Autodesk Maya to view, or check out the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/screenshots-fear-2.html">screenshots</a> and <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/walkthrough-fear-2.html">walkthrough</a>.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-13660824503586177742009-05-20T16:07:00.000-07:002009-05-31T19:58:36.699-07:00Screenshots (Fear 2)Here are some screenshots for the level created for the Fear 2 <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/challenge-fear-2.html">Challenge</a>. The red shapes represent enemy placement, and the arrows under them signify that they spawn and move in that direction. The light blue objects are weapon and health pickups. The starting position is at the aqua blue shape in the corner.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyO1mX_q9B-Tsa0HJ163-ZUpT4s6irT3tsQBQ8gxtw8k2_yrnGxRsHwbaINg56JBJRol_oj8wfb0ZP5Iz3Jt9N20SYNznKc7g981DID0FrsaqlRqjRDMBQLe9DRsZeNjhy1LLC3ydAXoI/s1600-h/Above_01.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyO1mX_q9B-Tsa0HJ163-ZUpT4s6irT3tsQBQ8gxtw8k2_yrnGxRsHwbaINg56JBJRol_oj8wfb0ZP5Iz3Jt9N20SYNznKc7g981DID0FrsaqlRqjRDMBQLe9DRsZeNjhy1LLC3ydAXoI/s320/Above_01.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338044975138744194" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixTqb4XcioW3ikVMrtcgLGBahA1g9w-QL0rky2nkx6SzJ1W39Ye3o4mM6BfNJign7SiuWdDCEWrt-3lnA6WejoGVZMhJVVsNMkUGZPBQNr4ei9rkB4s2WTONiH55-vt1dAGZTkoFwyaz8/s1600-h/Tilted_01.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixTqb4XcioW3ikVMrtcgLGBahA1g9w-QL0rky2nkx6SzJ1W39Ye3o4mM6BfNJign7SiuWdDCEWrt-3lnA6WejoGVZMhJVVsNMkUGZPBQNr4ei9rkB4s2WTONiH55-vt1dAGZTkoFwyaz8/s320/Tilted_01.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338044976871368066" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA2e4LLfN0NxZB9yOYQBSh3x2wJ3Mcnyi_vRm5ajABTWkAjkFgprxrlHHY-D1UFMesMIcSZ9ToBKsnf9vH6xuSDLNb-qe2wDw3wYCXN0qAXZsb37cUblcpEscBXfAAUMUnoG4g8yf-oS0/s1600-h/Tilted_02.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA2e4LLfN0NxZB9yOYQBSh3x2wJ3Mcnyi_vRm5ajABTWkAjkFgprxrlHHY-D1UFMesMIcSZ9ToBKsnf9vH6xuSDLNb-qe2wDw3wYCXN0qAXZsb37cUblcpEscBXfAAUMUnoG4g8yf-oS0/s320/Tilted_02.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338044981365334482" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0AwMraz9P2IZlwcB6m-xRM4uIZhNA9JpU5V8HypS5uQpD_9Jr_R-rgaGFfHxV3S1a-MjCyZx9IGY72xT_ssQzhwGVrh-PNvNAhbm4N7uev3AJ4-M0oCuqOU70QrSAMPT-2T2RpeWTEPc/s1600-h/Tilted_03.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0AwMraz9P2IZlwcB6m-xRM4uIZhNA9JpU5V8HypS5uQpD_9Jr_R-rgaGFfHxV3S1a-MjCyZx9IGY72xT_ssQzhwGVrh-PNvNAhbm4N7uev3AJ4-M0oCuqOU70QrSAMPT-2T2RpeWTEPc/s320/Tilted_03.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338044983913126082" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipzy8SRx9DxwaM60VxZNGu4qPqRCREvrW-B8y5FnSCZhvVJ48ejCqclKee0OR-sLensovbbA8PoNsaDuMhHEFbdZFPprovj8bkq6IW8BTRwqlx5iqrWux3BuRLLvvAy2FjQItkPTH8XXk/s1600-h/Skew_01.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipzy8SRx9DxwaM60VxZNGu4qPqRCREvrW-B8y5FnSCZhvVJ48ejCqclKee0OR-sLensovbbA8PoNsaDuMhHEFbdZFPprovj8bkq6IW8BTRwqlx5iqrWux3BuRLLvvAy2FjQItkPTH8XXk/s320/Skew_01.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338044986445202882" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipNRVJAF9sSKy4J9EXir82nL9Lw4W5mgK9nQPTNlqXTPHxTpc__KM2KFCTNuRTibQqt4NBS9y6-aQp-kJ-QO39DkqLGsJcZrmvb6sFsOh1-f5qNRpK1I58-825OLOzD6yFhuvZfEREWdc/s1600-h/Skew_02.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipNRVJAF9sSKy4J9EXir82nL9Lw4W5mgK9nQPTNlqXTPHxTpc__KM2KFCTNuRTibQqt4NBS9y6-aQp-kJ-QO39DkqLGsJcZrmvb6sFsOh1-f5qNRpK1I58-825OLOzD6yFhuvZfEREWdc/s320/Skew_02.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338046050370085378" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRl0qkWlLlgyoG_K-wyBI8hmbG555E074IlkWkpv03OhC7cinEaoP6kQCWvqi1yYWGSDaqz-HaR7rCNjQwqaB5ZtBoEKCh6egcPnaK7P8xsaYj70bYHLqQJmrqfeZJCOAIo1UXrPFPufU/s1600-h/Skew_03.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRl0qkWlLlgyoG_K-wyBI8hmbG555E074IlkWkpv03OhC7cinEaoP6kQCWvqi1yYWGSDaqz-HaR7rCNjQwqaB5ZtBoEKCh6egcPnaK7P8xsaYj70bYHLqQJmrqfeZJCOAIo1UXrPFPufU/s320/Skew_03.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338046047444861778" border="0" /></a><blockquote></blockquote><br /><br />You can also view the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/model-fear-2.html">model</a> or the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/walkthrough-fear-2.html">walkthrough</a> for the level.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183737359255172937.post-81635173810651750452009-05-19T23:47:00.000-07:002009-05-31T19:56:10.617-07:00Challenge (Fear 2)<span style="font-weight: bold;">The Challenge:</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span>Create a level for F.E.A.R 2. The time limit is one day.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Purpose:</span><br />To adapt to a certain style of level design while keeping a certain degree of originality.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />The Thought Process:</span><br />First off I must admit that I have just started playing Fear 2 and did not get the chance to play much of the original Fear game. I am creating a level for Fear 2 because I want to try to achieve the balance between action scenarios with well conceived cover positioning and slower sections playing on a sense of uncertainty.<br /><br />Fear 2 would seemingly be boring because the environments are set in office buildings, but the threatening atmosphere create tensions even in this familiar surrounding. My task is to represent this environment faithfully while considering the elements that make the game interesting- dynamic firefights that require constant movement and short bursts of horror. Another key attribute of Fear 2 levels is that they have a constant flow by providing a straightforward path without seeming too obvious that the player is being led down a path. The player should be able to get a bearing on where they have been and where they should potentially be going, which may be more difficult than it appears because of the repetitive nature of office buildings.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Design:</span><br />This level could be considered to be an alternate version of an environment in the early part of the game. The goal of the player at this point is to find Genevieve Aristide who is located in an upper floor of the building, so the sub-goal is for the player to find a way to get up. The size of the level depends on the work flow, but there should be a complete scenario with enemies and items placed throughout. There should be at least one major “horror” events with smaller frightening situations included in the design and placed appropriately between action setups. There will be several major battle scenarios with smaller firefights happening in between, and each one should be suitably unique. Specific design for the level will now be fleshed out in the paper design phase and then move onto implementation.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Specifics:</span><br />I initially had an idea that the player would have to navigate to a exposed part of the building to get to the next level. I devised a general flow through the floor plan and created the rooms to fit the path. I mentally walked through each room to figure out how to make the combat interesting, but also how to provide non-critical path sections that the player could easily explore.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS5nMFS2Brhkcvdy8hYmvbozfyxmuAdxPpHNY7bHjZO6AIWeJfIq9wnNia1sbbCTS14sDBqWUWMjPQwSOBKb4c_laV-_vSBxQxxlqntawD4CyTt1B99aL4BDc8THMy11jBYyeMx1QKWay5/s1600-h/Fear2_concept2.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: center; cursor: pointer; width: 295px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS5nMFS2Brhkcvdy8hYmvbozfyxmuAdxPpHNY7bHjZO6AIWeJfIq9wnNia1sbbCTS14sDBqWUWMjPQwSOBKb4c_laV-_vSBxQxxlqntawD4CyTt1B99aL4BDc8THMy11jBYyeMx1QKWay5/s320/Fear2_concept2.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337799998397302706" border="0" /></a><br /><ol><li>Player start- The player arrives from the stairwell but still needs to continue by finding a way to the next floor. </li><br /><li>First fight- The player can faintly see enemies through the frosted glass windows and is prepared for the first fight. The player has the drop on the enemies and can choose to take down one of the two enemies on either side of the room, but then must quickly attack the other before he can respond. Two more enemies enter the room to add some surprise to this fight.</li><br /><li>First exploration- This hallway has dimmed lights, but there is no actual haunting yet. There is a store room and bathrooms to search that may seem to have a scare imminent but do not. The player would be able to see through the blocked doorway to the elevators, but probably can't tell they are inoperable from here.</li><br /><li>Major fight- The player has to jump over a low barrier to enter the main hall but does not see any enemies right away. Enemies then appear behind the barriers, and shortly after another enemy attacks from the balcony above. The barriers present and uncommon type of cover that seem to force forward movement, but the player can still see through the gaps to get a partial view of the opposite side. There are small pillars in the middle that provide some cover when moving but not enough protection to staying there. The player can choose to retreat out the doors to either side which have very little cover but remove the threat from above. As enemies are killed, new waves enter through the far doors but also a few new attackers come from behind on the second floor. The player may also notice that the elevator does not appear to be working on that floor, but they can continue on without this information if it is overlooked.</li><br /><li>Cool down- There is a short breather with a room to explore and debris to navigate, but the cool down is short lived.</li><br /><li>First scare- From around the corner the player can see a shadow of a person cast upon the floor. Turning the corner the player does not see a person, but there is a bright light pointing in their direction. The light is coming from an open door but the player cannot see what is in the room. When the player reaches the room, the light suddenly goes out to reveal that the player has walked off the edge of the building and begins to fall. The light flashes back on and the player realizes they are just in a supply closet. Their reward for enduring the scare is a shield pickup. It should also be noted that the player could choose to skip this scare and continue ahead, but they will see the shadow which lets them choose if they want to investigate or not.</li><br /><li>Ambush- The player enters an eating area with tables that can be used as cover, but no enemies appear yet. There is rubble blocking the way so the player must jump into the fountain to get through. Before the player can exit the other side of the fountain enemies appear. The player can then choose to stay in the fountain which provides some cover, retreat back to the tables, or continue to push ahead and attack close quarters. This fight is meant to promote movement either forward or backward, and even if the player stays put they need to stay nimble in the small fountain area which does not protect them from all sides.</li><br /><li>Last search- One last section to search around in before you reach the other side of the building. The player can move to the end of the hallway and see a stairway through the blocked door, but still need to find a way up.</li><br /><li>Room with a view- The player enters the room to see two enemies looking out of the broken wall to the city below. If the player shoots the enemies at this point they will fall out of the hole, but if they are alerted they will put up a fight. Looking out the hole the player sees the city and night sky. One of the stars is brighter than the other, and after a moment the light becomes Alma flying at high speed directly at the camera, then she dissolves before impact. Next to the hole leading upward is a piece of rubble that has ladder like footholds, and when the player walks near the scene fades out.</li><br /></ol>You can view the final <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/screenshots-fear-2.html">screenshots</a>, <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/model-fear-2.html">model</a>, or watch the <a href="http://a-dangerous-game.blogspot.com/2009/05/walkthrough-fear-2.html">walkthrough</a> to see how the level turned out.Danny Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02016343546169693636noreply@blogger.com0