Deathmatch Map - Unreal Tournament - Balancing Rocks

Introduction: For this Level Design assignment we had a first approach to the level design pipeline, this meant that we had to design a 2D layout for a deathmatch map inside Unreal Tournament and actually bringing it to life. I loved this idea especially because I have been a fan of FPS most of my life and this was a task I had always been looking forward to tackle. We had to pay close attention to the game's metrics, pick ups density and location, respawn points, etc.

Design Process: Before drawing the first iterations of the layout on pencil and paper, I was feeling lost, I couldn't come up with an interesting use of shapes and verticality. I proceeded to google some references and I came across balancing rocks. I was intrigued by the way different pieces could actually fit on top of each other and could create 1. interesting shapes and combinations 2. Balance.

Then I proceeded to draw layouts seeing each rock as single spaces and rooms in the level and as opportunities to create moment to moment gameplay.

Below you will find my first iterations on pencil and paper based on the previously mentioned idea.

Later in the process I picked the design I felt the most comfortable with translated into photoshop. With an established grid and metrics I was able to quickly put together the layout, and item and hazard placement.

This 2D layout allowed me to have an agile implementation inside Unreal Engine using BSPs and it ended up looking like this.

I will share with you a video of the whole navigation inside the map.

Conclusion: Looking back at this assignment I learned a lot about the ideation process of a map all the way to the implementation inside Unreal. I got the chance to get comfortable with the interface allowing me to iterate and be agile at building my designs. Moreover, thinking outside of the box allowed me to get unstuck and approach a deathmatch map from a not very common approach.

Thanks for reading and have a great day!