This is a gallery of Maya viewport
screen grabs of some of the levels I have worked on*. I
took these grabs from Maya because this is how these
levels look in the game. All lighting is vertex only.
There are no shadow maps, and only diffuse textures. All
featured levels are well under 100K polys, with many as
low as 40K. Most Levels shown were completed in 3
weeks.
The aspects of Level Design that I
enjoy:
Depending on the type of game being
made, the level design and mission progression can be one
of the most important aspects of the project's design,
right up there with player mechanics. Getting the
prototype of a level running in the game engine for the
first time, walking/driving/flying around for the first
time in that newborn level is extremely exciting.
Sometimes the very first rev is a blast, and others,
well, at least it looked good on paper. Game-play is by
far the most rewarding part of level building. Fun is
fun. Either something is fun, or it isn't. Artistic
styles and asthetics are a different story. I've always
felt that it is much easier to please the Game Designer
than it is the Art Director.
Another fun part of Level Design is the
level specific animations, particle effects, and
destruction sequences or end events. These kind of things
really bring a level to life. Many triggered animations,
may need several revisions so prefer not bother the
character animators unless I don't have the time. I
really love destructions. Making an end event that looks
great, but is completed in a second is challanging, but I
would love to do some more really grand, multi-stage
destruction sequences.
*For the levels featured to the left, I
was responible for all render terrain, population, BSP
collision, UVs, and early texture work. Most of the
diffuse maps were re-worked by our texture artists. In
many cases, final lighting was tweaked by the Art
Director. Gold-ready game art is a collaborative effort
at Smart Bomb, and I cannot take full credit for it.