Level Designer
The Veiled District
DESCRIPTION
After waking up unconscious on a bus, Kani recalls the police raid on her hometown, Dharavi, and attempts to escape armed guards to reunite with her family.
As she makes her way back, a series of unfolding events and environmental encounters gradually reveal what is truly happening and why Dharavi was targeted.
ROLES AND TASKS
During the Development Cycle of the project, I act as the Level Designer
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Ideating and Documenting Level
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Gathering Refs & Sketching Layouts
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Making LDDs
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Blocking Out Level
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Iterating on Feedback
OVERVIEW
PROJECT BREAKDOWN
- 7 Weeks Full Time
- Solo Project
- Made in Unreal Engine 5.6
- Scripted Event by me in Unreal Engine
- Using Blockout Tools Plugin, Blockout Starter Pack, AGLS Template
GOALS
My goal was to design a proper introduction level that leads with worldbuilding. Through this project I wanted to deepen my knowledge of Sequencers, advanced design techniques, and environmental storytelling.
DESIGN PILLARS
ENVIRONMENTAL STORYTELLING
SPATIAL CONTRAST
PACING & GAMEPLAY BEATS
VISUAL LEASHING
OVERVIEW MAP
1. Walk Through Interior Alley
2. Statue Breaks Down
3. Gunshots Nearby
4. Explore Abandoned Flat
5. Reveal of Guarded Road
6. Cross Guarded Road
7. Explore Ruined Slum
8. Reach Redevelopment Disrict
9. Walk Through Factory
Walkthrough & Design
ACT 01
ACT BREAKDOWN
The opening act drops the player into the aftermath of a riot. The air is thick with smog, sirens wail in the distance, and the streets feel anything but safe. Before the player can get their bearings, the only path forward is violently cut off, making it immediately clear that this world is unstable and unpredictable.
This section is less about gameplay and more about establishing tone, setting the stage for everything that follows.
DESIGN TECHNIQUES
LANDMARK
The first thing the player sees is the silhouette of a statue ahead of them. It reads clearly against the background and acts as a Weenie, pulling them naturally forward.
BAIT & SWITCH
As the player moves forward, an open road with a light hints at the way ahead, then a rioter throws a molotov at the statue, cutting off the path entirely. A new route opens up through a small apartment on the side, forcing the player to reorient and pushing them off the beaten path.
AFFORDANCES & SIGNIFIERS
To help the player understand how to navigate the new path, I layered several signifiers. Headlights highlight a moveable box, hinting it can be interacted with. Pushing it toward the bus, climbing up, and entering the apartment feels discovered rather than instructed.
LEADING THE PLAYER
After a brief moment of silence, chaos picks back up. Gunshots and lights draw the player's eye toward a nearby building, and an open window lit by the cold blue glow of a TV stands out sharply against the warm street lighting, guiding them naturally toward the next path.
AFFORDANCE
The Highlighted Movable Box acts as the "Affordance", Giving the player an idea that the box can be moved and climbed to reach somewhere
SIGNIFIERS
The Highlighted Green Sections on the Bus and the Box act as the "Signifiers", Telling the player what and where can be climbed
CONTRAST
I Play with the Contrast in this scene, Both the Blinking Car Headlights as well as the long Shadow highlighting the Box,
ACT 02
Events
ACT BREAKDOWN
The tension shifts indoors. The apartment is silent in a way that feels deliberate, a brief exhale before things escalate. As the player moves through, the district reveals itself ahead, and with it, the scale of the military presence blocking the way. Getting across the road undetected is the only way in.
SIGNPOSTING
To guide the player toward the exit, I use a distinctly colored door paired with a UI prompt keeping it simple and readable without breaking the atmosphere.
SCRIPTED ENCOUNTER
As the player opens the door, a person lunges at them, triggering a short cutscene of the player struggling to push them off.
Tying the cutscene to the door-opening mechanic means it never feels out of nowhere. The player is already mid-action, so the surprise lands naturally.
Tying the cinematic moments in the player's own actions so the transition between gameplay and cutscene is invisible.
POIs
Walking through the apartment, the open balcony window positions the player toward the slum entrance directly ahead.
From here they get their first look at the streets below. Army patrols moving through, setting the tone for what's ahead.
BREADCRUMBING
The vehicles scattered across the road guide the player naturally toward the entrance, while also doubling as cover from the patrolling guards.
ACT 03
Events
ACT BREAKDOWN
Finally inside the Veiled District, the architecture is chaotic and claustrophobic, streets folding into each other with no clear logic. But what stands out more than anything is the quiet. A place this dense should not be this empty, and that tension carries the player through to what the level has been building toward all along.
ARCHITECTURE
The opening street feels relatively open, its chaos visible and external, scattered vehicles, fire, things out of place.
The district flips that. Here the chaos is baked into the architecture itself, wires strung everywhere, buildings encroaching on each other, shops misaligned and spilling into walkways that barely exist.
Nothing is straight. The disorder is not something that happened to this place, it is just how it is.
FORESHADOW
As the player moves through the district, a building in the distance keeps appearing between the gaps. Never fully visible, just enough to register.
FUNNEL BEFORE REVEAL
The building is finally revealed as the player crouches into a new area. A half constructed tower standing tall above the low sheds around it, impossible to miss.
APARTMENT BUILDING
I use smaller Cold Temperature Lights to set the mood of the apartment, to create more tension and fear in the place
That along with the hum of the tv, total quietness and disheveled house sets the mood of the apartment in an eerie way
THE STREETS
I use smaller Cold Temperature Lights to set the mood of the apartment, to create more tension and fear in the place
That along with the hum of the tv, total quietness and disheveled house sets the mood of the apartment in an eerie way
SLUMS
I use smaller Cold Temperature Lights to set the mood of the apartment, to create more tension and fear in the place
That along with the hum of the tv, total quietness and disheveled house sets the mood of the apartment in an eerie way
LIGHTING
I use smaller Cold Temperature Lights to set the mood of the apartment, to create more tension and fear in the place
That along with the hum of the tv, total quietness and disheveled house sets the mood of the apartment in an eerie way
WORLDBUILDING
TECHNICAL DESIGN
BLUEPRINTS
I made several Blueprints, to ease the development of the level.
These mainly spanned from blinking lights, the Car horn at the start, simple triggerboxes for sequencers, as well as smooth transitions from gameplay to cutscene to back to gameplay
SEQUENCERS
GUNSHOTS SEQUENCER
As the player progresses, an open road with a light is also revealed, hinting it as the next way through.
Then immediately a rioter throws a molotov at the statue, blocking the only pathway in front of them
I then reveal a new pathway on the side through a small apartment
HELICOPTER
SEQUENCER
As the player progresses, an open road with a light is also revealed, hinting it as the next way through.
Then immediately a rioter throws a molotov at the statue, blocking the only pathway in front of them
I then reveal a new pathway on the side through a small apartment
ENEMY ATTACK SEQUENCER
As the player progresses, an open road with a light is also revealed, hinting it as the next way through.
Then immediately a rioter throws a molotov at the statue, blocking the only pathway in front of them
I then reveal a new pathway on the side through a small apartment
LEVEL STREAMING
Since I started ideating in blocks, as can be seen in my sketches, I decided to blockout my sections in sub levels
This made it easier to move these sections around, and ideate the layouts in engine. This setup also allowed me to setup level streaming, loading out previous sections of the level to save on performance
Establishing Shot
The player starts on a unusually Dark and Gloomy Street, A Riot has taken place and its events has lead to a burnning and foggy street. The Player is Directly glued to the Statue upfront, acting as a Guidance which hopefully leads to a safe zone.
THE PROCESS
Gathering References
For Inspiration I gathered multiple reference images, and categorized them into multiple headings. From this I jotted down level ideas, as well Observations on the details. I would use these observtions as my guiding lines when starting the blockout
Sketching and Figuring out Beats
I started with a very rough sketch on paper, just to note things down, with that I later figured down the beats and what happens every beat.
Once I had the Beats layed out, I started drawing every sequence in proper detail, stuff like how long every beat would be, enemy placement, explorable areas etc.
Finally after sketching out all the beats, I drew multiple version of the map by placing the beats in multiple layout versions
Iterations
I During the Blockout stage, the level went through multiple iterations, as i figured how I want sequences to occur. Setting up Sightlines, Explorable Areas, Triggering Cutscenes etc.
Playtests
Throughout the Development of the game, I conducted multiple playtests with 30+ people
After the Playtests, the playtesters would answer a specific set of questions which I would note down, I would also write down some observations by watching them play the game.
I collated all of these into a big Feedback Document, noting down multiple possible solutions based on them, which would then be shared with the entire team for further discussion.
These Playtests Collated to Multiple additions to the game such as
Knockback Indicator
QuickShots
Dynamic Camera
My Role And Responsibilities as Scrummaster
I took over the role of Scrum Master from Week 3 to Week 8 of production.
During this period, I ran the Daily Standups, Sprint Reviews, and Retrospectives, and I was responsible for managing the KanbanFlow board.
I also met with each discipline to help streamline their workflow for the sprint, track progress with burndown charts, and ensure the team stayed aligned and on schedule.
Reflection
Overall, I'm very happy with how the project progressed. I started this as a side project during my usual classes to improve upon my level design skills. Mainly in creating more Detailed Blockout and Environmental Storytelling, while trying to mimick a proper Industry Workflow. This is still a WIP project and ill update the project as it progresses.