Level Design

with RB
Important terms, concepts, problems, ideas, examples, and
everything else
Table of Contents
1. INTRO
1.1. What is Level Design?
1.2. How to Level Design?
2. THEORY
2.1. Space
2.2. Flow
2.3. Paths
2.4. Flow & pacing tools - Bait and Switch
2.5. Flow & pacing tools - Corners
2.6. Flow & pacing tools - Gating
2.7. Flow & pacing tools - Reveals
2.8. Flow & pacing tools - Cover
2.9. Helping the Player with Orientation and Navigation
2.10. Orientation and Navigation Visual Language
2.11. Orientation and Navigation Level Boundaries
2.12. Composition aids - Stairs
2.13. Composition aids - Tangents
2.14. Composition aids - Vistas
2.15. Composition aids - Negative Space
2.16. Composition aids - Applied Gestalt Psych
3. PRACTICE
3.1. Assignment 1 - Individual Project LD Class Discord
3.2. Assignment 2 - Group Project
4. OTHER RESOURCES
4.1. Useful Links
4.2. Sources
INTRO
 What is Level Design?
1

- A level is the physical space in which a game is set -

level design is the process of designing, building and
iterating upon that space
- Not necessary for every kind of game, but most will
require some degree of it
- Possessing 3D art assets is not a requirement (2D ->
blockout)
- Level design as a discipline prioritizes direction and
user experience, and is supported by visual artistry
(first you must know what you want from a space &
how you want it to work/feel, before you work out the
composition, visuals etc.)
- Work done on designing levels can be separated into
“dedicated” Level Design and Enviro Art (as well as
disciplines related to it)

1. https://book.leveldesignbook.com/introduction
How to Level Design?
- You only need basic theory to start. Supplement where needed
- Pick your tools:
- Engines - Unreal, Unity, GameMaker, Godot, CryEngine,
Lumberyard, Source are all accessible for free legally;
- Level editors - Warcraft 3, Divinity OS2, Neverwinter
Nights, DOOM 2016, Halo Infinite, Far Cry 5, Portal 2,
ROBLOX all offer user-friendly editors to build your levels;
- Additional software - art software such as Adobe
Photoshop/ProCreate/Krita/GIMP, and additional tools like
PureRef all come in handy
- Know your environment and theme, all are different:
- Open world? Linear singleplayer? Multiplayer?
- FPS? Horror? Adventure? Submarine simulator?
- Get out there and make levels! And make lots of mistakes (ideally
learn from them)
- Don’t forget to play lots of games, so your personal library of
experiences/reference expands
- Getting interested in architecture, geography, topology and
geometry helps
THEORY
 Space
- Generally, space can be open (free to roam) or linear (fixed to moving along one intended path). You can also create an illusion of
openness in a linear space by introducing branching paths, intersections, other exploration affordances etc. Additionally, space can
be horizontal or vertical.
- “Massing is the general sense of volume and weight conveyed by the shapes. Is this structure thick / heavy, or thin / light? What kind of
place is this?” 2 Additionally massing can be used as a form of visual language (see Destiny and how faction architecture has divergent
massing)
- How to establish the scale of our space? We need to use metrics:
- In level design, metrics are the sense of scale, distance, and measurements across the entire level
- Player metrics - player speed, size, jump heights, fall damage heights, ranged attack distance etc.
- Environment metrics - dimensions such as minimal width/height for rooms and corridors, minimal space required for
combat encounters, wall thickness, minimal water depth for a given scenario etc.
- Both kinds of metrics heavily rely on your intended experience (eg. different metrics for horror vs adventure vs Godzilla
Simulator)
- Rule of thumb - stick to human scale - unless you’re designing for something that is differently sized, or your intended
experience demands something else (i.e. The Utility Room type scenario) but this is usually of considerable difficulty

2 - https://book.leveldesignbook.com/process/blockout
 4

Flow
4

- Flow is the way/feeling of moving through a space. It’s a

tool to be used with intent. Lots of different ways to affect
flow: 5
- “Is the path simple or complicated? Straight or
curvy? Slow or fast? All of these factors affect the
player's movement through the space. In short,
designing flow is about designing movement.”3
-
Ideally strike a balance between interesting &
user-friendly
- Desirable flow changes from game-to-game, from
level-to-level, from beat-to-beat. Example: stealth levels,
exotic mechanic levels,
- Flow also involves verticality which is fantastic for
breaking up horizontal segments and spicing up a level’s
flow

3 - https://book.leveldesignbook.com/process/blockout
4, - https://book.leveldesignbook.com/process/layout/flow
5 - https://book.leveldesignbook.com/process/layout/flow#circulation
 6

Flow cont.
- Connectivity describes how the your levels (and the areas
of any given level) connect to each other
- How to feel the flow? Play your level! All the time!
- Flow can be described by drawing maps/diagrams and
mapping paths onto them
- Flow is intrinsically tied to the game’s and level’s pacing 8
- Narrative driven games all exhibit some sense of pacing. The goal for teams
developing narrative games is to ensure that that pacing “graph” is
understood and utilised to effectively hold the players attention, accentuate
moods and deliver engaging experiences. [...]In single player levels, themes
are used to help craft the sense of pacing. If your chapter ends with a
massive, exciting boss fight, you might want to start the chapter slowly. Tight,
narrow corridors and claustrophobic environments would help deliver that
slow experience, and would really contrast against the exciting battle at the
end, emphasising the action.7
- There are many tools to help you control the flow and
pacing of your level (we’ll get to that)

6 - https://book.leveldesignbook.com/process/layout/flow#circulation
7,8 - http://www.mikebarclay.co.uk/my-level-design-guidelines/
 Paths
- We use paths to describe the progression of flow
in a level while designing & there are many kinds of
paths

7 - https://book.leveldesignbook.com/process/layout/flow#critical-path
Flow & pacing tools -
Bait and Switch
Flow & pacing tools - Corners
 Flow & pacing tools - Gating
- “Within the context of level design, gates are
methods by which a designer controls the
linear progression through what would seem
to the player to be non-linear worlds.” 8
- Hard Gates
- Soft Gates

8 - http://www.mikebarclay.co.uk/my-level-design-guidelines/
Flow & pacing tools - Reveals
Flow & pacing tools - Cover
Flow & pacing tools - Cover
Helping the Player with
Orientation and Navigation
- People playing your level for the first time will have a different
perception of it than you. You need to construct it in a way that
helps them know where they are and how to get to where
they’re going
- Theming (level theme + subthemes)
- Signposting (POIs, weenies, landmarks, hero props,
memorable compositions etc.)
- Wayfinding aids (“torii gates”, paths supported by
gestalt-informed design and clear composition, light, etc.)
- Obstacles (enemies, puzzles, traversal elements etc.)
- VISUAL LANGUAGE
Helping the Player with
Orientation and Navigation
 11

Orientation and Navigation

- Visual Language
- Vision-based “rules” that a game establishes with the
player (yellow = follow, red = danger, shiny = pickup,
weathered surface + edge = climbable, big empty room
= bossfight etc.)
- Readability (reduce problematic clutter)8
- Consistency (once you establish rules, stick to them)9
- Telegraphing (“follow me” elements like cables, yellow
tape, vents)10

8,9,10 - http://www.mikebarclay.co.uk/my-level-design-guidelines/
11 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=3WeVAp7JQGk
 Orientation and Navigation
- Level Boundaries
- Levels extend only so far. When the playable space ends, there are two kinds of
boundaries that the player encounters:
- Hard Boundaries are physical walls or obstructions that prevent the
player from leaving the level. They are easier to understand from a
player’s perspective but they add to a levels sense of confinement and
restrictiveness. 12
- Soft Boundaries are traditionally found in open levels such as in
space-sims or multiplayer levels in games such “Battlefield”.
When the player steps over an invisible boundary they are presented
with a message informing them to return to the playable area. 13

PLEASE USE LEVEL BOUNDARIES. Dont end your levels with T̶͉͋̒̓ ̋̐ ͘̚ͅH̗̼͖̪͉͐̅̇ ͘E
̴ ̪̭͙̘̦͊̂̊̿̑̋̔͌ ̴͘͝ ̾V
̵̨̲̺͚̗̝͕̮͈̥͓̼͂ ̀̆ ͔̜͙̩ ̋̌͌̆̐̾͆͐̄͝ ̀̎ ́͐ O̸
̷ ͈̜̠̗͉͎͙̯̮̊̈ ͜͝ ́͌ ́̈ ͝Ĩ̷̭̤͎̝̲̜͍̦͕̺̎͂̈̇̊̆ ̋̌ ̢Ḑ̸
́̋ ̉̑ ̮̰͓̲̙̝̹̇̾̐͑͗̆̚ ̉͐ ̣ ̢͘͜

12, 13 - http://www.mikebarclay.co.uk/my-level-design-guidelines/
Composition aids - Stairs
Composition aids - Stairs
Composition aids - Stairs
Composition aids
- Tangents
Composition aids
- Tangents
Composition aids
- Tangents
Composition aids
- Vistas
 Composition aids
- Negative Space
12

14 -https://weburbanist.com/2018/03/10/vernacular-void-wood-walls-warm-negative-space-in-gray-brick-home/
 Composition aids
- Applied Gestalt Psych
- Gestalt psychology is a school of thought that looks at the human
mind and behavior as a whole. When trying to make sense of the
world around us, Gestalt psychology suggests that we do not
simply focus on every small component. Instead, our minds tend
to perceive objects as part of a greater whole and as elements of
more complex systems. 13

15 - https://www.gestaltcleveland.org/what-is-gestalt
Composition aids
- Applied Gestalt Psych
Composition aids
- Applied Gestalt Psych
Composition aids
- Applied Gestalt Psych
Composition aids
- Applied Gestalt Psych
Composition aids
- Applied Gestalt Psych
Composition aids
- Applied Gestalt Psych
Composition aids
- Applied Gestalt Psych
PRACTICE
Assignment 1 - Individual Project

- Pick an existing linear, singleplayer-first, FPP or TPP game (i.e. Dark Souls,
Wolfenstein: The New Order, Half-Life 2, Dishonored etc.)
- You will be creating a new level for this game - blockout stage only. Do not
replicate an existing level, inspiration is fine.
- What is the point of the level? Why is the player character there? Set a goal
- The goal does not have to fit with the game’s existing main story. Think of it like if
you were designing a DLC level
- Do NOT use final art assets. Use ONLY prototype assets. The quality of visuals is
not important, the quality of your design and composition IS.
- Two consultations are REQUIRED before the final deadline
- Final deadline: April 26 2024
- Assignment gives one grade
Assignment 2 - Group Project

- Same guidelines as individual project

- Two consultations are REQUIRED before the final deadline
- Final deadline: June 14 2024
- We’ll be using GitHub as a SVN
- Ownership:
- Divide into groups of 3 or 4 people
- Every person works on their own individual level fragment.
Helping each other is ofc fine, buuuuuut
- You are responsible for your part of the level, both in terms of
accountability and creative control/freedom
- Assignment gives two grades: individual and group performance
OTHER RESOURCES
Useful Links

● Join the Class Discord Server!

● Designer's guide to Unreal Engine keyboard shortcuts [UE4 but works for UE5]
● Traversal Level Design Principles
● The Preview Mesh - SUPER useful for keeping good scale
● 8 Common Problems with Level Layouts / Blockouts
● Struggling to practice level design? This is why.
● World of Level Design - Tutorials to Becoming the Best Level Designer
● [How to] Prototype Assets for Level Design in Unreal 5
Sources

● Yang, Robert, The Level Design Book. https://book.leveldesignbook.com/ .

● Barclay, Michael. "My Level Design Guidelines." Michael Barclay – Level Designer. 13 maja 2016,
dostęp 01 października 2022, http://www.mikebarclay.co.uk/ .
● Norberg, Tommy. "resources | Tommy Norberg." TOMMY NORBERG LEVELDESIGNER. 5 sierpnia
2020, zmodyfikowano 20 maja 2022, https://www.tommynorberg.com/ .
● Norberg, Tommy. Personal Twitter Profile Media. Twitter. dostęp 22 lutego 2024,
https://twitter.com/the_Norberg/ .
● Geller, Jacob. “Three Specific Kinds of Terror.” Youtube. 20 listopada 2023, dostęp 22 lutego 2024,
https://youtu.be/ZDrHpmkL4rY/ .
● Millard, Adam. “ Why Are Explosive Barrels Always Red?” Youtube. 22 grudnia 2020, dostęp 22
lutego 2024, https://youtu.be/3WeVAp7JQGk/ .
THANK YOU!
Special thanks to Tommy Norberg, Robert Yang and
Mike Barclay for sharing their Level Design expertise
for free!