Week 3: Research & Development, Production start

 Development Blog Week 3 - Horror Level Design

Hello and welcome to Week 3 of my Horror Level Design development blog. This week I have been busy finishing up research and development and starting to create the first floor of the asylum. 

Firstly I created a level pacing chart and decided upon the location of world events. The gameplay I have decided upon is inspired by Outlast and therefore there will be scripted jump scares, audio and VFX that the player will encounter. I will create this in a way so that it is immersive but also helps to give the level unique elements. I have decided to move into the production side of the project a week early as this will give me plenty of time to create my proposed project.

After ending the production stage I then proceeded to create a new project within Unreal Engine 4. I then installed a plugin to assist with easily creating the level design blockout using the plans I have previously made. This plugin allows easy scaling of geometry and has pre set shapes for windows, stairs and other types that speed up the process.

Once I hopped into the project I used the tools to create a baseplate that is used to contain the building. I created this project using the Unreal Engine 4 Third Person Perspective template which gives me quick and easy access to an already existing movement system, allowing me to focus on my level design.

I then changed the camera angle from the original third person template to a first person perspective as this is the perspective I chose to create to compliment the level design.

I did this by removing the camera boom and the parenting the camera to the character mesh. This then allowed me to choose a bone to socket the camera. I then chose the head of the character and moved the camera into the head of the player. I changed some of the camera options to use the yaw rotation so that the camera moves correctly when the player moves. All of this gives the desired effect of a good looking first person perspective.

After this I then created a basic system for a flashlight. The flashlight turns on and off when the player presses the 'F' key. I did this as a lot of the level will be dark and therefore the player will need to be able to see in certain rooms. 

This is an example of the flashlight system working, in which a light will be shown in front of the player. This flashlight is built using the blueprints system in Unreal Engine 4.

Once I had created the base plate and had gotten all of the basic systems and camera changes in place I then began work on the level blockout. I firstly created the entrance corridor and created the surrounding walls around it.

I was then happy with the overall layout and scale of the corridor and I decided to add windows into the side of each wall. This will eventually look out into the woods to give an immersive feel to the level.

After I had created the layout for the corridor I added a roof onto it to get a feel of what it would be like during dark locations.. I then started blocking out the reception area of the building. I added two different doorways which correspond to the plan I made previously.

I then decided that the reception room had a good scale and position relative to the plan I had created. This then lead me onto creating the staircase that will be used to get to the first floor. I colour coded the stairs so that it was easy to correspond each different element of the level.

Following on from this I then created both the security room and communal area as the way the rooms are designed allow them to be created simultaneously. I also decided that the staircase room did not feel correct. I made a minor change to the staircase room to add an extra doorway which would loop into the communal room. This also opened up the ground floor to a non linear path which I think helps with the pacing of the level and allows for more player freedom.

This is the completed floor plan of the bottom floor. It includes the main corridor and all the bedroom blockouts.

I then placed a roof over all rooms apart from the reception as this is going to be able to be viewed from the first floor. This allows a base for the first floor to be made in the near future.

Thank you for reading this weeks development blog, next week I will be creating the blockout for the first floor and deciding if the current plan is suitable.