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论游戏关卡设计中的艺术和技术

发布时间:2011-07-30 15:55:31 Tags:,,

作者:Cliff Bleszinski

游戏开发团队中存在着这么一个角色——“关卡设计师”,但要定义这类成员,将变得越来越困难。关卡设计是一门艺术,正如它也是一门科学;关卡设计需要艺术技巧、专门技能和大量的技术知识。一个拥有了大量传统艺术和建筑经验的设计师,如果没有掌握诸如帧速率、游戏流程和节奏等概念,是不能胜任的。理解这些术语但对建筑或艺术体验一窍不通的设计师也必然会失败。艺术和科学是设计中的“阴”和“阳”,阴阳平衡是一种最和谐的状态;放到关卡设计中,代表的是艺术与科学完美结合的高品质。所以,高品质的关卡离不开天才般的设计师的专注、专业和努力。

角色定义

在游戏产业发展的早期,并不存在所谓的关卡设计师。编程人员就是游戏制作的顶峰:一手包揽设计、制作和后期的工作。随着3D技术的兴起,对这些“数字构建”人才的需要呼之欲出;同时,3D场景的华美也远超以往。

除了上文概述的内容,任何项目的关卡设计师的角色定义都取决于以下两个关键因素:

本项目需要什么技术?

雇用具有编辑工具经验的人才,项目负责人可以大大削减培训费用和时间。例如,Unreal技术持证人打算雇人才,如果持证人已经知道某人曾经编辑过在线发行的内容、或者曾从事另一种技术项目,那么他们就会受益良多。内行招聘专员会地毯式搜索设计资料和严密审查使用相同技术制作出来的内容。

要使用这种设计做什么项目?

让一个精通“死亡模式”关卡的设计师为《无尽的任务》这类MMRPG制作不规则地形,那就大错特错了。即使这个设计师能够适应并确实做出了不起的成果,训练他学习新设计和方向所花的时间和费用之大,也不值一试。利用另一种风格的技术水平考验正在找工作的设计师,从而给潜在雇主留下深刻的印象,这是有可能的。但他完成并可展示成果的时候,他可能早就错过了这份工作。虽然许多设计元素都具有普遍性、且可以从一种风格的游戏移植到另一种风格的游戏,但减少额外时间和规避雇用新人才的预算增长风险也很关键。

EverQuest II(from file-extensions.org)

EverQuest II(from file-extensions.org)

所有权

直到最近,许多开发工作室才在关卡设计范围中诞生了“所有权”的概念。一个关卡“归属”一个设计师;没人可以碰这个设计师的工作,他是唯一负责这部分内容的人。如果另一个关卡设计师建议修改他的工作,这个关卡设计师们会有所抵抗、甚至带有敌意。

游戏是一个不断演变的产业。不能应时而变的设计师、编程员和硬件制造商的命运就是,淘汰和灭亡。关卡设计师也不能从这种法则中幸免。也就是说,一个LD(关卡设计师)保持对一个关卡的“所有权”,就像他占有电脑和游戏制作机器,已经是不可能的了。他人在自己的作品上做修改和改进是不可避免的,所以受雇人必需对此习以为常。

技术能够实现的细节和设计师对特定的关卡所有权的总量之间,存在着直接的联系。因为摩尔定律的有效性(游戏邦注:处理器的速度每八个月翻倍一次)和3D加速器的日新月异,游戏引擎能支持的细节着实令人惊愕。让一个人在指派的时间内,在关卡位置中加入大量必要的细节,这是不可能的。而且,所需的细节技术越多,参与到关卡工作的人也越多。

除了专门的世界纹理美工和环境概念设计师,对专门的“支柱”人员(创造静态和空洞场景填充物设计师)的需求,不久也将形成。大多数建筑是比较简单的,现实世界的许多细节来自“混乱”和填充“混乱”的椅子、桌子和装饰物等。

游戏开发团队不久就会发现“脚本”人员(游戏邦注:负责游戏事件的剧情脚本、协助设计和事件的导向)的加入。掌握这些技能的人需要电影制作的经验、制作“电影”工具(脚本语言或编辑器等)的使用经验。

极有可能的情况是:关卡设计师就像一个主厨,将各种“客人”从其他人才中挑选出来,然后根据一个设计文件的“菜谱”,将其搭配成一道特别的菜肴。现在的游戏公司中,有专门负责关卡亮度的设计师和根据总体要求制作自定义纹理的设计师——他们的工作需要关卡设计师,这个项目中心的连系角色,将所有分离的事物整合起来。

终极权威

Jay Wilbur曾说过:“关卡设计师是终极权威。”

这句话至今仍是真理,也适用于未来。关卡设计师很变就会变成开发团队中最重要的成员。

编程员十有八九是项目中的瓶颈。在排除所有“A”级漏洞以前,游戏是无法发行的。排除漏洞和发行游戏与编程的关系更密切。在许多项目中,这个瓶颈会不知不觉地落入关卡设计师的工作范畴中,因为他们是“终极权威”。LD是将所有人的努力成果合成一个紧密整体的人。LD把美工制作的纹理贴到关卡图形上,或者要求美工为关卡制作自定的纹理。编程员和3D设计师制作的敌对AI在何时何地出现,是由LD决定的,虽然这些工作最终是交由引擎编程员去实现。

LD不只是一个建筑顽童或一个将“酷玩意”丢进开发之壶的家伙。此外,他们需要的能力还有:判断什么是有趣的和什么是有效的游戏元素。在确保他的工作与游戏的其他部分紧密结合的过程中,他还得判断什么文本内容有用。

设计戒律

我们已经定义了关卡设计师的角色,接下来还有几条关卡设计师应该遵守的原则。

自我评估

最好的LD从来就不惧怕反思和重新评估自己的成果。这通常需要一段工作暂缓时间;距离可以驱散内心的阴霾。伟大的设计师不会害怕把自己的成果抛出来重制需要注意的概念。

能够意识到什么时候厌烦了自己的工作、什么时候他的工作脱节了,这对LD也是极其重要的。比如,一个设计师非常厌烦反复测试自己的关卡;因为开发周期的延期或设计师感到某关卡已经不如当初那么新鲜了,一个优秀的关卡就可能因此会被废弃或重制。设计师必须意识到,他的感觉变味了——整整一个月他都在玩这个关卡,自然而然地,这个关卡对他就毫无新意可言了。然而这并不意味着这个关卡在玩家当中的影响力就会减少。此时,设计师该做的是让新老玩家反复测试地图,然后只对关卡进行必要修饰,而不是重置。

寻求同行的批评

组成并维持一个优秀的设计师团队是一项有挑战的任务。雇些容易相处的人才也很重要。优秀的设计师从来就不害怕接受同行的批评——事实上,优秀的设计师是自己加上同行组成的。许多设计师认为他们比新人更有才能,这种自大心理会成为设计团队中的弱肋。优秀的设计师甚至能够听取那些他认为“不如己”的人的批评。最好的方法是,实行定期的“同行评估”:总设计师或总关卡设计师挑选两名设计师互相评价对方的工作,而自己则作为中介人。

重视竞争

除了采纳别人的建议,还要让LD彼此产生“胜人一筹”的渴望。在开发团队中,任何健康竞争都意味着进步。但是,如果一名设计师控诉别一名设计师剽窃自己的风格或设计,积极的、健康的竞争可能就会露出丑陋一面。

设计师效仿另一个人的风格,也可能对项目有利,因为整体场景就会变得更加一致。总设计师应该鼓励重叠设计和平复矛盾的工作;艺术监督应该引导团队的美术设计,以确保场景一致。

“充电”

大量工作转移到艺术监督和艺术小组的范畴后,设计师仍然要继续数字构建、关卡的外观和感觉的设计工作。因此,如果项目需要准确的罗马帝国风格,那么每个人最好能够自己去“充电”。例如,如果能够共享关于伺者和艺术宝典的R+D图像目录,所有相关设计师和美工就能促成更加一致的外观和感觉。

在开发过程的任何时候,设计师必须能够后退一步看待自己的工作,并思考:“这样做合理吗?”通常他会发现少许不合理的细节,诸如结构上不可能的建筑看起来很不合适,或者冰兽太接近火山区。玩家可能不会有意识地去注意这些细节,但一定会下意识地有所觉察,从而对整体游戏体验造成消极影响。

良好的帧数率

如果设计师使用的技术一次性可以推动1亿个多边形,那么他们就要尝试着把这项技术运用得像能够一次性推动原数目的3倍。尽管大多帧数率的工作是编程员负责的,借助细节技术的优化和升级,设计师有必要对帧数率、精细关卡和RAM使用进行硬性指导。

总关卡设计师应该负责加强硬性设计限制。《虚幻竞技场》对关卡图形的精细化程度和总体帧数率有极端严格的限制。

虚幻竞技场3(from xooob.com)

虚幻竞技场3(from xooob.com)

如果游戏的节奏比较慢,也不需要动作反射,那么,帧数率就可以适当作出让步。然而,如果团队在开发的是一款动作游戏,且关卡很多而帧数率很低,那么硬核动作玩家就会拒绝玩这个游戏,且每次看到它都会丢下一句评语:“金玉其外、败絮其中。”

“小诡计”

别在意成为“暗箱操作”的人。设计师可以靠一些小伎俩模拟更新的技术,这是绝对允许和鼓励的。如果编程员惊呼“我不记得编过这些东西!”或者“你怎么做到的?” 那就继续你的小把戏吧。如果一个场景中加入创意材质后看起来更加精细,那就放手去做。如果凹凸贴图或反射光照可以伪造,就算引擎不能“真正地”支持,那么为什么不那么做?只有骨灰级玩家才会看出这其中的细微差别。

除了关卡设计,这个思考模式还可以运用到开发的方方面面。例如,编程员可以创意地仿制新特效;狡猾的美工可以通过高超的纹理贴图或多边形的灵活运用让角色看起来更加细致。

最基本的例子是,利用“模糊”纹理创造一种图形很精细的错觉。如,在墙上打个壁炉可以通过模糊纹理来达到效果,而不必真的用笔刷画个洞。在《虚幻竞技场》中,模糊和半透明表面被广泛运用于模拟雨雪等天气。

设计技术

这些技术中,有许多既可以运用于单人游戏,也可以运用于多人游戏。每一种技术都受到一个共同概念的支配——“游戏流程”。正是这种神秘的“生命力”使游戏变得如此有趣——正是这种十足的奖励反应系统为玩家提供挑战、然后“犒劳”完成任务的玩家。这种文件一次又一次地被当作“悬挂在棍子末端的奖赏”。这个鼓励玩家坚持下去的诱因;许多“奖赏”都是LD种下的。

单人游戏的游戏流程完全受LD左右。他是设计任务后把奖赏挂在玩家眼前的人,以此鼓励玩家完成任务。它正是一种因果设计,“因”是制造问题、“果”是鼓励玩家解决问题。这就是为什么许多游戏会利用暴力作为焦点,因为暴力是战斗的基本雏形。

多人的游戏流程与单人的游戏流程截然不同——更多关于社交环境下的分配风险和奖励。设计多人游戏的LD非常像操场建筑师。他建造的空间让真人进行游戏并亲身经历活动,即玩家本身很大程度上支配了游戏流程。设计师置入元素,如AI或剧情通常能够刺激游戏流程,但多半还是玩家自己成为把奖赏固定在棍子末端的激励因素。在《创世纪OL》这种游戏创造的世界中,设计师精心地围绕玩家设定资源,收获这些资源的玩家可以很自豪地使用从战争中得到的战利品。这就为“穷人”创造了一种企富、求荣和掌权的渴望。

受控的自由

让玩家认为自己拥有所往所得的选择权,但温和地引导他达到他的目的。

这是一个激烈的讨论话题——如果玩家有行动的自由(许多玩家的要求),那么他会很快迷失和受挫。保持关卡设计的线型,同时让玩家产生一种拥有多种道路可走的自由选择权,那么玩家就会有更好的游戏体验。这样,玩家就能同时得到两种最好的结果:玩家得到挂在棍子末端的奖赏,并且感到自己做了正确的方向决定。

这要花费许多设计时间,但最终增加了单人游戏的乐趣。创造一个围绕“去任何地方、做任何事”的概念的游戏是完全可能的,但制作这种游戏的设计师必须合理分配时间和资金使之成为现实。那种设计非常开放的游戏会让玩家产生一种迷失和疑惑(“我要做什么?”),只有最铁杆的玩家才会坚持这种太过开放的游戏。这种游戏的诞生需要的只是更长的设计时间和更多的焦点型和专注型玩家。

节奏

持续的惊吓会使感觉麻痹。

system shock 2(from techtree.com)

system shock 2(from techtree.com)

最惊悚的恐怖电影会诱使观众产生一种错误的安全感,然后再用一些惊心动魄的元素刺激他们。优秀的关卡与此类似。最近的一个范例是《System Shock 2》。前一分钟玩家正在被挥舞着管子的疯狂杂交怪追赶,下一分钟他又在一个安静的卧房里一边畅饮,一边阅读已故船员的日志,心里还盘算着下一步怎么走。如果怪物不断地出现在玩家面前,那么这个游戏就不再恐怖了。然而,短暂的休整让玩家暂时忘记了身自所陷的危险。就是在这么短短的一段时间里,玩家放松戒备,然后又被下一个怪物吓到(或杀死)。

最卓越的多人游戏受到良好的智能资源分配的节奏系统控制。这种游戏需要大量技术上的努力或提升游戏的“角色”,然后移植到网络世界。例如,在死亡模式或合作模式的游戏中,玩家需要通过研究战场和定位来学习技能。设计师的关卡节奏会判定游戏的成效如何,如果每个角色都从疯狂的兵工厂开始,或者,如果存在不可能被攻破或防守的地区,那么游戏就不再具有娱乐性了。对于更倾向角色扮演或策略的游戏,设计师必须注意财富和资源。假设冒险游戏中的矿区没有足够多的矿石,那么玩家就不能打造武器,从面导致游戏系统的崩溃。设计师是维持整个游戏系统运作的关键,他们得反复琢磨自己的想法,以确保想法与游戏世界之间的平衡。

风险诱因

在单人游戏的设计中,设计师可以运用多种方法实现玩家自主决定寻宝的风险程度。

这是风险诱因的美妙之处。玩家权衡风险,然后评估挑战,最后下决定。玩家感到自己拥有对游戏的掌控权,而设计师只给予玩家选择权。

例如,在传统的射击游戏中,设计师可能会把弹药或命值补给品放在一对哨岗角楼之下。如果在桌子的掩护之下匍匐前进,就可以轻松避开角楼,然而,如果玩家想以最快的速度得到补给品,那就得直接猛冲过去。因此,如果他被子弹射得七零八落,就只能怪自己,而不是抱怨设计师。

在死亡模式下的游戏中,玩家有机会成功获得武器,但前提是他敢冒着掉脑袋的风险进入看守严密的地点。

永远别小看技术的用途。

重访

“重访”的概念是指,玩家看到关卡中难以企及的区域,疑惑自己如何才能达到;之后玩家继续完成一系列游戏线路任务,突然意识到自己居然已经达到这片区域了。

从另一个角度来说,重返区域是值得设计师投入实践的。当玩家玩游戏时,它可以保证玩家的动机和节省开发时间及金钱。从不同的角度看待相同的空间,可以避免设计师构建更多区域。随着关卡越来越精细化、制作成本越来越高,重访的益处将越来越明显。

多人游戏依赖关卡的重访区域,正如多人游戏设计通常以角色互动为中心。循环设计对任何社交游戏都极其重要。

供应和需求

让玩家总是担忧弹药和命值的不济,但忽略了自己正在没有弹药的地方东奔西跑,不断地死,同时对设计师和游戏骂骂咧咧。这是另一只挂在棍子末端的奖赏,有利于游戏的顺利进行。它教会玩家怎么管理资源,同时当玩家找到弹药和命值补给品时,会得到更好的游戏体验。良好的供需设计可以使游戏物品更突显价值。

在多人游戏中,设计师得考虑到玩家正在尝试所有可行的方法来开发游戏和关卡设计。在任何多人游戏中,平衡可用资源总量、防止一小摄人霸占所有虚拟财富,是设计师的重要任务之一。

场景构成和对比

相对简单的物品以有趣的方式安排,可以产生吸引人的画面。这是艺术的真理,同样适用于建筑构成和关卡设计。当制作少图形几何体和细节预算严格时,这一种就变得尤其重要了。

许多艺术课都将重点放在场景构成的理念上。所以说,艺术背景对设计师迟早会派上用场。

与AI人员合作

AI与关卡的结构和构成存在直接的关系。因为那是AI发生作用的场所,是AI工作人员的努力成果展现的地方。

与AI工作人员合作时,要深入理解AI的作用,然后充分利用,这是LD要注意的另一个关键。例如,如果有个AI非常适合火战,可以躲在箱子后面瞄准玩家,设计师就应该构建一个放置及腰高的箱子的场景。如果AI专家们编写了一大批AI,那就把空间拓展到能够容纳的程度。AI通常不会运作得尽善尽美,所以当设计师成功排除系统故障时,仍然有必要勤加练习、相信AI人员。

明智的设计师和编程员会联手制作令人难忘的场景,其中,迷题和区域都围绕着巧妙的AI构建。

声音

Steven King在他的《死亡之舞》中曾描述道:

“当闪电划破天际,门吱地打开,你可以看到一只十足虫,你分神了,在心里暗想“啊,我还以为是二十足虫呢。”

设计师必须与声音技术人员合作,以确保玩家享受到深刻的音效体验。优秀的设计师从来不会低估他可以避免多少凹凸贴图。无论屏幕上的怪物做得多好,最吓人的永远是活在玩家脑海中的那只。如果游戏要让玩家吓得浑身颤抖,那就让声音发挥作用吧!

智能回溯

如果设计师强制玩家回溯(游戏邦注:相当于反复、分步进行“试错”,直到达到目标),他必须保证是以合理的方式进行、避免对玩家造成挫败感。这是设计上的危险期,就像看到新区域消失的“棍子上的奖赏”。设计师再次利用之前已见过的区域,当玩家进入时,要让该区域看起来新鲜或有趣。这通常需要场景的微妙调整,或添加新的敌人(防止场景看起来像报废的或用过的)。这就好比二手车交易商常常把旧车型再磨光。重复使用相同区域的设计师必须在场景的新鲜感上多下功夫。

设计师进行回溯时一定不能迷失自我。比如,假设玩家要排干充水的区域,他得激活抽水机,那么返回之前的危险区的线路必须相当简单。在此,“受控的自由”能够确保玩家知道他的前进方向——也许阻挡多余的区域,或是放置明显的标志来引导玩家,这样,玩家会有更多的游戏乐趣。

未来

游戏的革命还在进行,并且是朝着各种方向发展,关卡设计师将站在革命的最前线。编程员将负责所有设计师所使用的工具组,所以设计师和编程员务必保持良好的协同作用。

编辑器

随着实时场景的进一步渲染,关卡编辑会便频繁地使用高端建模程序,如Lightwave或3dstudio max。许多开发者已经抛弃了传统的内部关卡编辑器,所以设计师学习Max、Maya或其他软件,这是有益无害的。但有朝一日,游戏内置编辑工具的复杂性可能会达到类似的水平。

Lightwave-Modeler(from wyattdesign.com)

Lightwave-Modeler(from wyattdesign.com)

这些程序是根据人人必知的基本3D概念构成的,无论是低多边形几何体还是高多边形几何体,设计师都该有所了解。

纹理

过去,几何体极其简单,几乎所有场景细节贴的都是这种纹理。时下许多游戏,在场景细节上使用了接近50/50的纹理细节率;关卡上使用了许多自定义纹理;简单的几何体建筑由自定义纹理构成,使之更显精细。真正的次世代游戏会有更多的细节“材料”系统,这样,简单的地图可以混合成现实的地表。例如,设计师将能够指定几何体要使用的光线、深度和任何材料的色彩。

AI

在将来,设计师会与内部编程员有更密切的合作。一方面,随着任务中的协商AI或战斗AI的不断进步,设计会变得更加容易;另一方面,因为玩家的要求更接近电影的体验,设计工作也是会更加精细。高明的设计师会构建大量AI“场景”,比如,设定一种介于敌人与队友之间的活跃中间方,同时,加入故障防护“后援”AI(如果玩家行动失利,此AI可以保持场景的吸引力)。能过“破坏”行动,玩家可能会激怒一个角色, 这个角色暴走时会翻窗或触发其他活动。

技术

Epic Games公司的每个关卡设计师都有主要和次要职务。一些设计师除了从事关卡设计,也胜任贴图美工;另一些设计师擅长人物建模或装饰。因为关卡设计工作的演变,关卡设计师越来越有必要熟悉美工和3D模型师所使用的工具。

这样可以减少潜在的“中间人”时间风险。例如,当贴图美工做好砖块的图样交给设计师之后休假去了,但纹理并没有正确地平铺在表面上,设计师就可以打开PS,自己把纹理贴好。

“全面发展”是福也是祸。如果他可以自己做纹理,建筑物、灯光和装饰,那就变成一个全能程序、单人设计机器。然而,这种天才般的设计师通常都有自己的工作达标概念,所以在“分享”设计时就相当难合作。全能设计师的另一个难题是,他的时间被分割成纹理、世界观、装饰等等,这相当于把他截成好几部分!在项目的最初,这类设计师最不需要管理,但到了项目的最后,也就是在这时候,他们不得不挣扎着去完成所有自己启动的工作。

结论

游戏开发过程的最后一部分,也是对整个团队最重要的部分,特别是关卡设计师,因为经常崩坏的关卡会在最后运转起来,然后游戏才可以确定下来。此时,真正的天才设计师才会发光发热。

切记,正如许多运动,制作游戏不是“独角戏”。尽管关卡设计师对整个团队非常重要,但如果没有编程员和美工的协力,他们也会一事无成。反之亦然。

游戏产业时刻都在演变——不久以前,根本不存在所谓的“关卡设计师,现在却是项目中的关键成员。如果他打算把所有人的努力成果整合成一流的产品,关卡设计师必须明白如何与其他天才人物一起工作、培养宽广的心胸和设计美感。

游戏邦注:本文是2000年GDC大会发言稿,所述内容以当时为背景。(本文为游邦/gamerboom.com编译,如需转载请联系:游戏邦

The Art and Science of Level Design

Cliff Bleszinski

It is becoming increasingly difficult to define the role of the team member known as the “Level Designer.” Level design is as much an art as it is a science; it requires artistic skills and know-how as well as an extensive technical knowledge. A designer with tremendous traditional art or architectural experience will not succeed if he cannot grasp issues such as framerate, gameflow, and pacing. A designer who understands these elements yet has no architectural or art experience is doomed to fail as well. Art and Science are the Yin and the Yang of design and it takes the efforts of very talented and dedicated individuals to produce high quality levels.

I. Defining the Role

In the earlier years of the gaming industry, there was no such thing as a Level Designer. Programmers were the “one stop shop” of game creation; they were the ones responsible for designing, producing, and finishing products. With the evolving state of 3d technology, the need for these “digital architects” has appeared, and 3d environments are more gorgeous than ever.

Above and beyond everything that is outlined in this presentation, the role of the level designer on any given project will be defined by two key factors:

What technology will be used for this project?

A project administrator can cut down on training costs and time by hiring talent that is experienced with editing tools that are presently available to the community. For instance, if an Unreal Technology Licensee were to hire talent they’d benefit from acquiring someone who has previously created content with the editor and released it online, or has worked at another technology Licensee. A savvy recruiter will comb map design collection pages as well as closely examining the content produced by peers who are using the same technology for their titles.

What kind of project will we be building with this technology?

Taking a master deathmatch level designer and asking him to create sprawling landscapes for an Everquest style Massively Multiplayer Role-Playing Game would be a big mistake. Even if the designer were able to adapt and create great content then the time and overhead taken to train him in the new design and direction would not be worth the effort. It is possible for a designer who is “trying out” for a job to test his hand at another style in an effort to impress his potential employers, but by the time his content is presentable the job may have passed him by. Although many design elements are universal and will carry over from one style of game to another, it is key to reduce any extra time or risk that is taken in hiring new talent as budgets are constantly rising.

On Ownership

Until recently, at many development studios, there has been a notion of “ownership” in the realm of level design. A level was “owned” by a designer; no one touched his work and he was the one solely responsible for the content. Level Designers would become defensive, even hostile, if another LD suggested modifying his work.

The gaming industry is about evolution. The designers, programmers, and hardware manufacturers who do not evolve quickly fade out and die. The Level Designer is no different from these rules, much like his peers he must evolve. That said, it is no longer possible for one LD to maintain “ownership” of a level as computers and gaming machines are becoming more and more capable of rendering extremely detailed environments. The talent that is hired must be comfortable with the idea of others modifying and improving their work.

There is a direct correlation between the detail that a technology is capable of and the amount of ownership that one designer has over a particular level. With Moore’s law holding true (processor speed doubles every eighteen months) and 3d accelerators constantly raising the bar the detail that game engines are capable of is staggering. It is simply impossible for one driven person to build the necessary amount of detail into level locations in the allocated time, and the more detail technology can push the more people will be required to work on levels.

In addition to having dedicated world texture artists and environment concept designers the need will soon emerge for dedicated “prop” people; artists who create content that will fill up previously static and barren environments. Most architecture is relatively simple, much of the detail in the real world comes from the “clutter,” the chairs, tables, and decorations that fill these places up.

Teams may soon see the addition of “scripting” people who are responsible for storyboarding in-game events as well as assisting in the design and direction of these events. A person of these abilities would need cinematic experience as well as excellent knowledge of the tools that are used to create “cinemas,” such as a scripting language or editor.

It is very likely that the level designer will be like a chef, taking various “ingredients” from other talented people and mixing them into something special while following the “recipe” of a design document. Right now there are companies that have artists lighting levels, as well as doing custom texture work on a per-surface basis. The level designer will evolve to the role of the glue of a project, the hub at which everything comes together.

b. The Glue

Jay Wilbur once said, “Level Design is where the rubber hits the road.”

This quote holds true today, and will continue to hold true in the future. Level designers are quickly becoming some of the most important members of a development team.

Nine times out of ten one finds that programmers are the bottlenecks on a project. A game is not supposed to ship until it is clear of all “A” class bugs, and this requires much programming gusto to clean up and ship a game. On many projects this bottleneck will eventually slide into the realm of the level designer as they’re where the “rubber hits the road.” The LD is the one who is taking everyone else’s hard work and tying it together into a cohesive package. The designer takes the textures created by the artists and places them on his level geometry, or asks an artist to create custom work for his level. He’ll figure out where and when to place hostile AI that was created by programmers and 3d artists while all of it is being rendered by the work of the engine programmer.

A level designer is not just an architecture monkey or a guy who throws “cool stuff” into the pot of development. Above and beyond everything else they need the ability to judge what is fun, what gameplay elements work and what do not. He needs to judge what content works in any context while making sure his work is cohesive with the rest of the game.

II. Design Commandments

Now that the role of the level designer is defined the following are some tips for him to live by.

Designer, Evaluate Thyself

The best level designers are never afraid to step back and re-evaluate their content. Often this requires a period of respite from the work in question; distance can clear up a clouded mind. A great designer isn’t afraid to throw content out or re-work a concept that needs attention.

It is also extremely important for a level designer to recognize when he is becoming tired of his own work and when his work is not coming together. There is a huge difference between the two; in one instance a designer becomes weary of playing his own content over and over and is just sick of it. A great level might get scrapped or reworked because a development cycle is dragging on and a designer feels the work is not as fresh as it used to be. The designer must recognize that his view is tainted; he has been playing this content for months on end and by nature the work becomes stale to him. This does not mean that the work will have any less impact on the user, however! At this point, a designer should have his map tested repeatedly by new and experienced players and simply polish the work instead of reworking it.

Thou Shalt Seek Peer Criticism

Assembling and maintaining a great team of designers is a challenging task. It is important to hire easy-going talent that gets along well together. A great designer is never afraid to take criticism from his peers; in fact, a great designer is the sum of himself plus his peers. Many artists feel that they’re more talented than the next, this cockiness can be the weak link in a design team. The ideal designer seeks criticism even from those he may consider “less talented” than he, because even if he believes that the critic in question has no skills the commentary will be fresh and from a new perspective. The best way to go about doing this is to have periodic “peer evaluations” where a lead designer or lead level designer picks two designers and has them evaluate each others work while acting as a mediator.

Thou Shalt Value Rivalries

In addition to taking suggestions from one another it is key for level designers to feel a desire to “one up” each other. Healthy competition in any area of a development team means improved results. However, a positive, healthy competition can quickly turn ugly as one designer may accuse another of stealing his style or designs.

If a designer is emulating the style of another this benefits the project, as the environments will become more consistent. The Design Lead should encourage overlapping designs and work towards smoothing ruffled feathers and the Art Director should make sure the environments are consistent by leading the team’s aesthetic designs.

Do Thy Homework

As much of this work is moving into the realm of the Art Director and art team, the designers remain the Digital Architects and they will still be responsible for much of the look and feel of the levels. Therefore, if a project calls for an accurate Roman Empire then everyone had better be doing his or her homework. Having a shared directory of R+D images on a server as well as an art bible that is referred to all designers and artists will contribute to a more consistent look and feel.

At any given point in development a designer needs to be able to step back, look at his work and think, “Does this make sense?” More often than not he’ll discover little details that make no sense, such as structurally impossible architecture that seems out of place or ice beasts near lava pits. The users may not notice these details on the conscious level but will sure feel it on a subconscious level which will affect his overall game experience negatively.

Good research lends itself to good planning. Some designers simply sit down and build while others carefully plan every nook and cranny of the game. The best designs are the ones that are a combination of careful on-paper planning and improvisation.

Thy Framerate Shall Not Suck

If the designers are working with a technology that can push 100 million polys then they’re going to try to make the tech look like it can push 3 times that. Although much of the framerate issue falls upon the programmers, with optimizations and level of detail technology, it is extremely important that designers have hardcoded guidelines for framerates, detail levels, and RAM usage.

The Lead Level Designer should be the one responsible for enforcing hardcoded design limitations. Unreal Tournament had extremely strict limitations on how detailed a level’s geometry could be, as well as overall framerate time.

Framerate can be sacrificed somewhat if a title is slower-paced and does not require action-oriented reflexes. However, if the team is building an action game and levels are bloated and framerates are dying then the hardcore action users will reject the title and every review will read “looks nice, runs terribly.”

Thou Shalt Deceive

Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. If a designer can simulate a newer technology with some trickery then by all means allow and encourage this. If the programmers are exclaiming things such as “I don’t remember programming that!” or “How did you do that?” then something special is going on. If a scene can look more detailed with creative texturing then go for it. If bump mapping or specular highlighting can be faked even though the engine does not “truly” support it then why not? Only the hardest of the hardcore gamer will know the difference.

This mode of thinking can be carried over to nearly every aspect of development, not just level design. Programmers can find creative ways to “fake” new effects; a sneaky artist can make a character look more detailed than he actually is with good texture mapping or smart use of polygons.

A very basic example of this would be a designer who uses “masked” textures to create the illusion of much more detailed geometry. For example, making a grate on a wall can be done by only using one polygon that’s masked instead of constructing the actual holes of the grate out of individual level brushes. Masked and translucent surfaces were used in many areas of Unreal Tournament to simulate weather effects such as snow and rain.

III. On Design Techniques

Many of these techniques can be applied to either a single player oriented title or a multiplayer oriented title. Every technique is governed by an overall concept of “Gameflow.” It is the mystical “life force” that makes a good game fun and it is very much a reward-response system that challenges the gamer and then provides a “treat” for completing tasks. Time and Time again this document will refer to the “Carrot on the End of the Stick.” This is the incentive for the gamer to keep going; many of these “carrots” are built and planted by the level designer as these drive gameflow.

The Gameflow of a Single Player title is driven entirely by the level designer. He’s the one who is creating a task and then placing the carrot in front of the gamer, encouraging him to complete the task. It is very much a cause and effect design, create a problem and then encourage the player to solve it. This is why many titles use violent elements as their focus as it is the easiest and most basic form of conflict.

Multiplayer Gameflow varies quite a bit from Single Player Gameflow; it is more about rationing risk and reward in a social environment. A Level Designer who is building for a Multiplayer-oriented title is much like a playground architect. He’s building the space where real people will be driving the game and experiencing the action firsthand; the gamers themselves largely dictate the gameflow. Designer-placed elements such as AI or story can often prod this along but more often than not it is the gamers who are the catalysts that keep that carrot on the end of the stick for the gamer. A title like Ultima Online creates a world where designers carefully place resources around the player and the users who harvest these resources are proud to wear their spoils of war. This creates a desire for the “have-nots” to become rich and prosperous and drives the game.

Controlled Freedom

Let the player think he has a choice in where to go and what to do but gently guide him to his destination.

This is an avidly debated topic; if a player has the freedom to go anywhere and do anything (as many gamers claim they want) then he will quickly get lost and frustrated. By keeping level design somewhat linear and giving the illusion that there are multiple paths one has the freedom to choose then the player will have a more enjoyable play experience. This way, the player experiences the best of both worlds; the player gets to the carrot on the end of the stick, and feels like he made the right decisions on where to go.

This can take more time to design but ultimately adds up for a more enjoyable single player experience for the user. It is completely possible to build a title that revolves around the notion of “go anywhere, do anything” but a developer who does this must allocate plenty of time and funding to make this a reality. Often previous titles that have had very much “open-ended” designs have had users that have found themselves lost and asking “what do I do next?” Only the most hardcore of the hardcore gamer will stick with a title that is too open-ended. It can be done; it simply requires longer design times and a more focused and dedicated user.

Pacing

Constant scares dull the senses.

The scariest horror movies are the ones that lull the viewers into a false sense of security and then spring something scary upon them, and a great level is no different. An excellent recent example of this is System Shock 2. One minute the player is being chased down by pipe wielding maniac hybrids, the next he’s tucked away in a quiet bedroom aboard the Von Braun, reading log files from dead crewmembers while wondering what will be around the next corner. If the monsters were constantly in the player’s face the game would cease to be scary. However, the down time lets the player forget, for a moment, the peril that he is in… just long enough so that his guard drops and he’s scared (and killed) by the next baddie.

The best multiplayer titles are driven by a system of good pacing through intelligent resource distribution. It requires a bit of effort in one’s skills or “character” to improve at the game and move up in the online world. For instance, in a Deathmatch or Teamplay game a player acquires his skills by learning battle arenas and how to aim. A designer’s pacing in a level will determine if the game works or not, if every character starts with a crazy arsenal or if there are areas that are impossible to breach or defend then the game suddenly fails to be entertaining. In titles that are more role-playing driven or strategy oriented a designer must be cautious with wealth and resources. If, for example, there isn’t enough ore to mine in an adventure game then players cannot build weapons and the game system crumbles. The designer is the key to making the entire game system work and often has to work and rework his ideas to make sure they balance the world well.

Risk Incentive

In single player design, there are oodles of ways a designer can utilize this time tested technique to let the gamer make his own decisions about how much trouble he’s going to get himself into for treasure.

That’s the beauty of risk incentive. The player weighs the risk; he assesses the challenge, and gets to make a decision. He feels like he’s in control, and the designer provides him with a choice.

For example, in a traditional shooter the designer might place ammunition or health below a pair of sentry turrets. The turrets can easily be avoided by crawling behind a pair of desks, however if the player wants to make a dash for the goodies it is his choice. Therefore, if the guns rip him to shreds and he screws up he blames himself, not the designers.

In a Deathmatch style game a player will have the choice of going for an ass-kicking weapon, only if he risks his neck by going into an extremely open and well guarded spot.

Never underestimate the usefulness of this technique.

On Revisiting

The concept of “Revisiting” or “Doubling Back” refers to the gamer seeing an inaccessible area of a level and wondering “How do I get there?” The gamer then proceeds to complete a series of tasks which move the game/story along (as well as his virtual self) and he then suddenly looks around and realizes “Oh! I’m up there now!”

Revisiting areas from a different angle is a good thing for designers to practice. It keeps the gamer motivated as he tears through your designs, as well as saving time and money. The same rooms are viewed from multiple angles as well as revisited, and this saves the designer from building more areas. This will be more and more of a blessing as levels become more detailed and expensive to produce in the near future.

Many Multiplayer titles are dependent upon revisiting areas of levels as Multiplayer design often focuses around character interaction instead of just exploring. A recursive design is extremely important in any kind of social title.

Supply And Demand

Leave the gamer always concerned about running out of ammunition and/or health, but not to the point where he’s running around bullet-less, dying constantly, while cursing the designers and their product. This is yet another carrot on the end of the stick trick that makes for a satisfying gaming run. It teaches resource management, and makes it a better experience when the gamer finds health and ammo. Good supply and demand makes these goodies more valuable.

In a Multiplayer Title the designer has to account for players trying every available option to exploit the game and level design. It is key for the designer to balance the amount of resources that are available in any multiplayer game to prevent a tiny percent of the playing population from enjoying all of the virtual “wealth.”

Scene Composition and Contrast

Relatively simple objects arranged in an interesting method can result in a far more eye-pleasing image. This is true with art, architecture and, of course, level design. It becomes especially relevant when working with low-polygon geometry and strict detail budgets.

Many art classes will spend time focusing on the idea of scene composition. This is another example where an art background will come in handy for a designer.

Work With The AI Guy

AI is tied directly into the structure and composition of a level. It is where the AI does its thing, it is the place where all that hard work on the part of the AI guy is supposed to be shown.

It is crucial for a level designer to construct areas that take advantage of the AI while working with the AI guy and figuring out what the AI is going to do. For instance, if there is an AI that is really good in firefights, ducking behind boxes and taking pot shots at the player, a designer should plan to build an environment with waist high crates all over the place. If the AI guru programs a great pack AI, make space that accommodates it. Often AI does not work perfectly, it is important to maintain patience and have faith in the AI talent as the designers manage to iron out kinks in the system.

Smart designers and programmers will work together to create memorable scenes where puzzles and areas are built around crafty artificial intelligence.

On Sound

Steven King, in Danse Macabre, said something along the lines of:

“When the lightning crashes and the door opens and you see a ten foot bug standing there, a part of you sighs and thinks “Whew, I thought it was going to be a TWENTY foot bug.”

Designers must work closely with sound technicians to assure a compelling and exciting audio experience. A great designer never underestimates how much mileage he can get out of a good bump in the night. No matter how good the talent is, the monster that is in the gamer’s head is always scarier than what is seen onscreen. If the title calls for chills and thrills, let the sound do much of the work!

Intelligent Backtracking

If a designer is forcing a gamer to backtrack he must make sure that it is done in a logical and non-frustrating manner. This is a dangerous time in design, as the “carrot on the stick” of seeing a new area is gone. A designer is re-using a previously seen area and it is important to make the area seem fresh or interesting as the player navigates it. This often requires subtle scene changes, or the addition of new hostiles to prevent the area from seeming “dead” and “used.” Much like a used-car dealer will polish up an older model, a designer who is re-using an area must put more effort into it to make sure that it seems new and fresh.

It is also key to make sure that the gamer does not get lost as he is backtracking. If, for example, a gamer must activate a pump so he may drain an area with waste and cross then the route back to the previously hazardous area had better be pretty easy to navigate in reverse. Using controlled freedom here will ensure that the gamer knows where he’s going; perhaps by blocking off a redundant area or placing highly visible signs that direct him on where to go he’ll have more fun.

IV. The future

Gaming continues to evolve and is heading in a variety of directions, and level designers will be at the forefront of this revolution. Programmers will be responsible for entire tool sets that the designers use and it will be important to have a good synergy between designer and coder.

On Editors

Level Editors will become closer to high end modeling packages such as Lightwave or 3dstudio max, as real time scenes are approaching pre-rendered ones. Many developers have forgone traditional in-house level editors for packages such as these, so it can’t hurt for a designer to learn Max, Maya, or any of these programs. Chances are, in-game editing tools will be at a similar level of complexity in the future.

There are basic 3d editing concepts that these programs are built upon that everyone should know, a designer should understand how to manipulate low polygon geometry as well as high polygon geometry.

On Texturing

In the past, geometry was extremely simple and nearly all of the world detail was done in the textures. Many current titles feature approximately a 50/50 ratio of texture detail to world geometry detail, levels feature many custom textures, a simple polygonal arch will be framed by a custom texture that makes it look that much more detailed and planned. The real Next-Generation titles will feature a more detailed “material” system where simple maps are mixed to create realistic surfaces. For instance, a designer will be able to specify the shininess, depth, and color of any material that will then be placed on world geometry.

On AI

In the future Designers will have to work even more closely with the in house AI programmers. On one hand, design will become easier as AI will become better at tasks such as navigation and conflict, while on the other hand the job will become trickier as users demand more and more cinematic experiences. Smart designers will build many custom AI “scenes,” such as exciting stand-offs between hostiles and teammates while building in a failsafe “backup” AI that keeps the scene convincing if the user “breaks” the action. By “breaking” the action the user may, say, blow up a character that is supposed to jump through a window or trigger some sort of action.

On Skills

Every level designer at Epic Games has primary and secondary duties. Some designers, besides working on levels, are competent texture artists. Others are good at modeling characters or decorations. As the level designer evolves it will become more and more important for him to be familiar with many of the tools that artists and 3d modelers use.

This reduces any potential “middle man” time risk. For example, if a texture artist has created a great brick pattern for a designer before leaving for the day and the texture does not tile horizontally on a surface correctly the designer can open the art in PhotoShop and make it tile himself.

A designer who can “do it all” is both a blessing and a curse. If he can create his own textures, architecture, lighting, and decorations then he’s an all-in-one package, a one-man design machine. However, designers who are this talented often have their own notions about how they want “their” work to look and can be very difficult to work with when the time arrives for “shared” design. Another problem with a “do it all” designer is that his time is divided between texture creation, world creation and decoration creation and often finds that he’s bitten off more than he can chew! These designers often require the least amount of management at the start of a project and the most at the end when they’re struggling to finish all they’ve started.

Conclusion

The last quarter of a game’s development cycle is the most crucial for the entire team, especially the level designers. Features that are often broken will finally be working and the game can be solidified and polished. Truly talented designers will shine in these moments.

It is important to remember that, much like many sports, creating a game is not a one-man show. As important as level designers are for the team, they are nothing without quality programmers and talented artists to back them up, and vice-versa.

The gaming industry is constantly evolving; a short while ago there was no such thing as a “level designer” and now they’re key team members on a project. The level designer needs to understand where he fits in amongst the other talented people he works with, and needs to have an open mind and a good artistic sense if he’s going to help put everyone’s hard work together into a fantastic product. (source:cliffyb


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