Adventure Platformer

This is the gameplay demo for the final project in DES2 at Full Sail University. This project was a collaborative effort with designers Joshua Caldero, Robert Knapp and myself Piers Farthing aka Spearborn Designs. The gameplay is separated into 3 sections designed by Joshua, Robert and myself respectively. You will find that text roles across the screen at the beginning of each section to indicate which designer made this portion of the game.

Game Specs

Platform:

Windows PC

Tools Used:

Unreal Engine

Completion:

2024

My Contributions

Visual design: The level uses a vibrant color palette and contrasting light and shadow to create a visually appealing and immersive experience. Leading lines are used to draw the players eye to the next objective or to scenic environments.
Atmospheric elements: The level uses the environment to tell a story and to set mood. Each portion has a distinct mood that is captured in the shapes, spacing and lighting present in the zone.
Level progression: In the beginning of the level the trees form a winding path but are spread out enough to not feel claustrophobic and to create an environment of peace. There are soft curves and circles in the design language to symbolize that the entry is peaceful and non challenging. The second portion is all lines and square rooms to symbolize that we are in “Puzzle solving mode” as the player progresses through the maze of the Library. The Third portion has the trees tightly packed together to let little light in, with sharp turns in the road to cause disorientation to the player. There is also fire to cause an air of danger to the zone. At the end of the level things open back up a lot so the player can see the sky and the elevation changes to give the player a sense of “crawling up out of the dark”.
Storytelling: The level hints at a past civilization of wizards and scholars, suggesting a mysterious history to the surrounding forest.
Rising tension: The level gradually becomes darker and more dangerous, culminating in a dramatic confrontation with fire and destruction.

Screenshots

This shows an example of the first portion of the level in Blockmesh and then in Final Art.

Here we see our first glimpse of the level focal point “The Library” as we begin to traverse the level. Note that trees are cleared away and the subject matter is elevated to draw the eye.

Here we see the player advancing through the platformer obstacles, making their way closer to the focal point, always keeping the goal in view.

Here we have an example of a set design piece inside the level. Player can take a break to view the mountains and other buildings out in the distance. This is an example of forced perspective because the mountains and trees are not actually far off, they are just significantly scaled down to give the illusion of distance.

Standup Shots

These are a series of images that show my process of transforming my blockmeshed assets into final art assets. During this process I had to make some design changes to the blockmesh to achieve the proper feel. Some elements had changed once I saw them from the ground in the player characters perspective. Lighting and space was a big factor moving from Blockmesh to Final art.

The level is about 50 percent converted at this stage of the project.

In process of redesigning the roof of the library to not look silly from the ground but also grant some elevation to draw the eye in.

Ensuring none of “The Void” is visible from the players perspective.

Perforce

This project was collaborative to simulate working in a studio with other designers. My Teammates were Robert Knapp and Joshua Caldero, who’s contributions can be seen in the youtube video, prior to the 4:20 mark. Each level was designed and built completely separately, but we used “Perforce” to collaborate and share files, as well as update in real time. Perforce has a learning curve and their were several times when a team member would accidentally wipe out work performed by others. We learned the importance of backups and of good documentation to explain changes to the level as well as commiting to strong communication between Team Members so one would know when others had certain assets checked out.