One more week, we're back with the Arma X project, and this time we're doing it to talk about the level design and the progress made so far.
The first thing that has had to be taken into account when designing the level has obviously been the narrative and another important aspect that has had to be taken into account is the game mechanics that had already been implemented, such as the Parkour System. Starting with these two conditions, you have to create a consistent level and in this case, you had to emulate a space similar to that of the coasts of Iceland with a sea and a coast with a cliff that would cover both narrative and gameplay needs.
Another important aspect to take into account, which was already briefly discussed in the narrative design post, is the flow of the game. This flow is the in-game objective that the player must achieve to complete the game.
These objectives are:
• Reach the perimeter of the base undetected
• Find a way to penetrate the base
• Find the nuclear weapon.
• Locate the SS commander's office
• Eliminate the SS commander
• Retrieve the secret documentation
• Escape from the enemy base
It is a linear structure that guides the player through the game's narrative and the level design is designed to make this gameplay consistent and accessible for all types of players while gradually increasing the difficulty of the game with the presence of more enemies as the player gets closer to his objective.
The level should indicate which way to go so the intention is that the player can press the touchpad and receive a voice message from Colonel Harris indicating the next objective.
The level also presents some diversity as it progresses whereby the gameplay combines elements of exploration, stealth, and action at the end of the game or when the player has been discovered by an enemy.
The replayability of the level is planned in such a way that once the mission and the story of the game are overcome, the map can be replayed with other objectives and other visual changes such as carrying out the mission on a sunny day since the main plot involves transporting the player to a dark stormy night where the light factor in the scene plays an important role in the game.
There is still a lot to work on and polish in terms of level design and above all a lot to optimize since the scene requires a lot of additional lighting that requires a lot of resources. But these details will be addressed in future updates for the moment we have to continue working on the narrative and present an introduction to the narrative, a main menu, and a cinematic that introduces the gameplay to the player.
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