PRE-PRODUCTION
RESEARCH
I researched Events, Level Affordance, and video game Landmarks to create my initial sketches. As well as gather reference material.
The Office acts as the tutorial level where the player is first introduced to our game mechanics and events system.
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The Frankfurter Experiments is the last level of Unemployed and being so meant I needed to make sure this is where the player felt the most challenged, whether it be through parkour, or problem-solving.
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STAYING ON TRACK
During the pre-prod phase, we created an Asana board, where we wrote down each task that needed to be done in order to realize the goals we set for ourselves. This also helped me keep track of my progress and made it easier to cut content when needed.
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THE OFFICE
Quick Overview
This level serves as a tutorial level.
Upon starting the player will be greeted by a Secretary. She thinks you're the new intern and informs you that there are 3 people in need of your help in the office.
BLOCKOUT
LEVEL FLOCHART
The TP event
The player needs to find toilet paper
Either you give the TP to help the manager or give him sandpaper to annoy him.
The Chili Event
The Slides Event
The player needs to find the "presentation slides" that were left in the breakroom or you can go to the printer and print funny images to ruin his presentation.
A man located at the staircase needs your help to bring his huge chili pot to the breakroom the catch is you need to balance it while walking.
You either bring it to the break room without spilling on the floor by crashing into somebody else or you spill it and ruin everyone's lunch.
The Lakehouse
Exterior Walkthrough
Interior Walkthrough
Project information
The Lakehouse was by far the hardest project I've made atmospheric-wise. Being a 10-day project meant that I had to be efficient with my time and carefully pick where my research came from.
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My main challenges were learning how to properly use color correction from the Post Process and the use of the Exponential Height Fog.
Takeaways
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Overall improvement of my workflow methods.
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Realistic World Building and Set Dressing to achieve the mood wanted.
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Good use of modular assets from Megascans.
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Better ability to tell a story through Level Design.
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An In-depth Look
The Lakehouse was my first realistic project. After looking into the multiple different projects from Quixel, the Medieval Game Environment stood out instantly. High level of detail and storytelling through level design. Looking further into the Quixel project, I knew where I was going to take inspiration from.
Although, for the general atmosphere, I looked towards RE4's opening Level.
In the end it relies on 2 pillars for immersion.
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- Constant feel of dread
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- Telling a story through level design
References
Pre-production & Research
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The research included composition, post-process color correction, lighting, and Quixel Project videos to better understand the workflow behind realistic scenes. One-shot in Quixel's Medieval Village Environment captivated me and inspired me especially for the entry to The Lakehouse.
Blockout & Terrain Sculpting
I wanted the player to feel alone and uneasy. The first step was to mold the landscape in the shape of a crater, so the forest would always be elevated around you. I kept the house area elevated so it would remain the focal point. The final iteration of the blockout added a shed that I hadn't planned on and plots of land around the pathways that act as gardening areas.
Set Dressing
When set dressing I tend to first go through my content browser to see if any ideas pop from certain assets and write them down. Afterwards I work on my landscape by creating its material, adding the foliage and re-molding with more detail. Then I go for POI and end it with a final pass on the landscape.