Martin Larsson
LEVEL DESIGNER - GAME DESIGNER - TECHNICAL DESIGNER - PROJECT MANAGEMENT - SECURITY CONSULT
Operation Green Delivery
INTRODUCTION
I wanted to make a first-person tactical shooter based on this present day. The goal was to provide a white-box experience that included tactical tools. The project includes level design and simple scripting.
PROJECT DETAILS
Developed in 6 weeks (4h per day)
Engine: Unreal Engine 4
Level Design
Whitebox
First Person Perspective
Basic Scripting
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Blockout Tools Plugin
Advanced Attachment Bundle
Low Poly Shooter Pack - Free Sample
Industrial Area Hangar
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From bimobject.com
Contents
1. PROJECT BREAKDOWN
Inspired by:
Inspired by Splinter Cell and Swat.
Summary:
I decided to create a tactical shooter game centered on stealth.
The main objective of this level is to OVERTAKE the enemy that has taken over the school. As you start you begin underneath the school in a culvert, and as you progress you'll meet up with your team. Your squad is placed under an ambush at your meet-up spot, but they haven't realised that yet.
What sounds like an easy in and out operation is now a whole new situation.
Level structure:
As I have made these areas I had to come up with distinct ideas for every act. The level has been divided into four acts, and to get better control over my work and level flow I have separated the level into four acts, instead of one bigger.
The acts were created based on how I wanted the player to go through the level. I utilized The Game Assembly's layout as a guide in the first act. Outdoor space, Church, Workshop, Warehouse, Residential area, Apartment / University / Office complex were the other areas.
Act 1 - The Game Assembly's layout
Overtake the enemy in school
Act 2 - Outdoor area, Church,
Meet your team
Act 3 - Apartment / University / Office complex
Find the last team member
Find an alternative way to the getaway car
Find evidence
Act 4 - Workshop, Warehouse,
Get payback
Find an alternative way to the getaway car
Find evidence
LEVEL FLOWCHART
2. Gameplay / Core mechanics
Night Vision goggles
The player can utilize night vision goggles to easier sneak around in the dark and perform non-lethal takedowns. The goggles use a specific type of battery that can only be recharged between missions, therefore the player must be extremely cautious when using them.
Flashlight
In darker environments you get the option to use a flashlight, but this option doesn't come for free. You have to chose when to use the flashlight, and when to use the night vision goggles. But, as you chose flashlight the enemies will be able to detect your presence.
Laser pointer
Instead of a crosshair, I choose to utilize a laser pointer. This is due to the fact that it takes up less screen area and feels more appropriate for a tactical shooter.
Second gameplay mechanics
Leaning / Peeking
This feature was added for both offensive and defensive purposes. I intended for the player to be able to attack enemies while being safe behind corners.
Open Lock
The player can shoot at locked doors in order to break them open. These locked doors allow for backtracking and opening shortcuts around the level, making the level more exploratory.
Exploding Barrels
Exploding barrels are always a good way to add excitement and drama to a scenario in a game. These barrels can be shot at to cause them to explode and harm nearby enemies.
3. LEVEL OVERVIEW
ACT 1 - Overtake the enemy in school
ACT 2 - Meet your team
ACT 3 - Find the last team member
Part 1 - Floor 1Part 2 - Floor 2
ACT 4 - Get PAYBACK
Part 1 - Floor 1Part 2 - Floor 2, Floor 3
I created a own page that I go into greater detail about my DESIGN TECHNIQUES AND DESIGN CHOICE.
5. SCRIPTING
Modular ladder
I want to make a ladder that I can use several times regardless of height.
Open Lock
I implemented a padlock to the door for backtracking and opening shortcuts in the level and then making the level more interesting and fun to play.
Enemies
I created an AI that can move inside an editable radius.
I also added a boolean to determine whether or not they should look hard for the player or give up more easily.
Modular Spline
Speed up the building progress in the level.
6. GAMEPLAY
Here are four videos of gameplay over the 4 acts.
Act 1 - 6:33, Overtake the enemy in school
Act 3 - 6:07, Find the last team member
Act 2 - 1:48, Meet your team
Act 4 - 6:14, Get Revenge
7. IMPROVEMENTS
If I had a couple of more weeks to work I would:
I would make pick-ups such as Health, Ammo, and evidence/documents to further build upon the level's narrative.
General set dressing.
Think more about the performance, Blockout Tools Plugin has a lot of blueprints that take a lot of the performance.
Some motion-blueprint like Leaning / Peeking feels a lite wobbling, that’s need to review
I should have to make a Sequencer to make the story more believable.
8. FINAL THOUGHTS
With the work I have done so far, I'm happy with it, and the experience has taught me a lot of new things, such as creating bigger areas and deciding to divide them instead, creating acts which leads the player wanting more.
I am happy with the landmarks and the guiding lines and satisfied with how the daylight become. But there are small detail and empty areas that I wish I could fill out more.
Overall I am satisfied with my effort.
Thank you for reading
