For this introductory level, I had a total of 3 doors with a small handful of enemies blocking one of the switches and one of the pressure pads. There were 4 total rooms, the first room having one pressure pad, and one switch. The next room had a second switch and two doors. The third room had a pressure pad in it. The fourth room was the final room. It had a very simple puzzle built into it, and was extremely straightforward.
A lot of things went right with this level. It was an easy level, as to introduce the game to the player. Enemies were not difficult, so learning the combat mechanic was easy. The puzzle just consisted of understanding the first switch in the first room was connected to the second one in the next room. There was a small bit of platforming involved in order to hit the first switch which players found fun and a bit challenging.
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| Overall Level |
My level also had plenty of flaws. Unity’s asset package was not fully complete so certain blocks allowed players to pass through them, however a little bit of knowledge of Unity fixed the problem quickly. My level was extremely short, so players were able to finish the level in a couple minutes. This could be considered good for a quick introduction, however my level was far too simple. The puzzle was quite simple, however many players thought having more intricate puzzles (still on an introductory level) would make it more interesting. Having more rooms with more platforming was something many players wanted to see, so adding obstacles such as high drops or acid pools to new rooms would be a good addition. The inclusion of enemies close to where you spawn guarding the pressure pad was not a good idea to the players, as it presented too much of an immediate sense of danger. However, it is still a good inclusion, and only needs to be moved. The last thing people noted was the invisible barriers I had to put on the tops of the walls so that players couldn’t get outside of the map. One playtester noted just having another wall stacked on top would be better.
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| Level Concept |
There are many improvements I want to make to this level. For one, the length is the first thing I would change. Adding more rooms with new puzzles will allow players to enjoy the introductory level much more, and having more platforming in these rooms will add to the challenge. Another improvement I want to make is the enemies. There were a few, however the level could use more to add to the challenge. I also forgot to make them move around, so adding movement would make the game more immersive, as to not just have guard dogs puppy guarding the switches.
I think the difficulty of the level was good as an introductory level. The enemies died at a maximum of 3 hits and had a reasonable sight and attack range. Their attacks were not very strong nor very frequent, so defeating them was relatively easy. The puzzle was extremely easy as to not confuse the player, but enough to give the player an idea of the type of game they are about to dive into. The platforming was a little challenging, but nothing so difficult that people would give up playing because of it.
The critical path of the level was extremely obvious. In the second room, the level branches out, however if you just look around enough there’s almost no way to get lost. The flow was good, with areas of rest between the two groups of enemies I had placed in the level. Doors served as loading zones to prepare the player for the next room of the level.
The two main rooms acted as the main path for this level, with the first room leading straight towards the next room, and the second acting as a split in the path. Both had areas that acted as resting points to prepare for the next set of enemies. The doors were loading zones, giving the players some time to observe and rest. This level was very straightforward and easy to play.
I think my level was a success as a very quick introductory level. For my next iterations I will definitely be expanding on my ideas, as my players enjoyed what I had and wanted to see more from it. I enjoyed building this level and look forward to continuing to build on it.
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