PROJECT DETAILS

• Developed over 2 weeks
• Created using Unreal Engine 4
• Focus on pacing and narrative
• Level assets created using Maya
• Whitebox
• Epic Marketplace Assets used: FPS Assault Pack, Alien Insectoid

Overview

While looking for reference material I saw an image of a scrapped cruise ship and instantly knew that I wanted to create a level involving a large ship. At first I leaned towards having the ship being a cruise ship as well but after further consideration I ultimately decided to go with a military vessel.

When drawing the overview I planned for certain key moments such as swimming through the minefield, through the large crack in the ship and up on the beach.

I also planned where I wanted the npcs to approach from so that I could plan out my combat spaces.

The blockout

I created the seabed using the landscape tool in unreal. I then used scaled cubes to build the destroyer. Once I was happy with the layout I opened up maya and created the essential meshes making up the level.

I didn’t want the inside and the outside of the destroyer to be separate levels, which is something I kept in mind when creating the meshes.

By making the models modular I was able to iterate on my layout efficiently.

Iterations - during playtesting I noticed that players missed the beach and got disoriented, I resolved this by adding a hook to the beach funneling the player onto the beach.

Staying on track

During pre-prod I created a trello board, where I wrote down each task that needed to be done in order to realize the experience. This also helped me keep track of my progress and made it easier to cut things when needed.

Modular NPCs

Something that I value as a designer is having the ability to tweak values of objects in the editor. Which is the reason I used a data table to set up the npc.

In the data table the designer is able to create and modify different npc types.

Being able to control parameters such as their speed, accuracy, health etc, proved very useful during development since it allowed for quick iterations.

Versatility

As previously mentioned, being able to tweak values directly in the editor is greatly beneficial since it allows for quick iterations. In this project I had to spawn in npcs dynamically, the versatile spawner I created made this a smooth experience.

I was also able to override values set by the data table in these spawners, allowing me to create special enemies with unique properties.

Act I

I wanted the experience to start out slow but tense so I added an underwater segment where the player utilizes a DPD (Diver Propulsion Device). In order to create tension I added a couple of naval mines which the player must avoid.

Navigating through this field is not particularly challenging, but the silence underwater combined with the ambient hum of the DPD does create a very imposing yet eerie feeling.

anticipation

I wanted the player to feel reluctance towards entering the ship. I tried to achieve this by having the player run into a wounded scavenger crawling away from the ship.

By doing this I hoped to make the player feel unsafe and begin thinking of what may be lurking within the ship.

Act ii

Act 2 begins when the player enters the ship. By allowing the player to explore the first floor of the ship without any encounters, I create a false sense of security which I then use to enhance the impression of the mutant ambush further into the ship.

A couple of dead bodies act as a foreshadow of the attack. These bodies are also lootable, rewarding the player for examining the bodies while further advancing the narrative.

Guidance within the ship

A challenge that quickly became apparent was: How will the player navigate the ship without getting lost?

The ship is an old military vessel so having windows between rooms felt unrealistic. Although since the ship was meant to be worn down and damaged I was able to add windows between areas taking the shape of holes and cracks, without contradicting the believability of the space.

ACT III

When emerging from the reactor room, the player is met with a surprise attack launched by bandits. During the attack the player’s boat is destroyed and they must now fight their way to the stern of the boat where there is a helicopter pad.

The final stand

The intensity of the experience peaks with the player reach the stern and must defend against waves of attacking bandits, all while awaiting evac from friendly scavengers.