Conceptualization - Level Design and Game Mechanics
So as soon as I finalized my core
game idea, I wanted to do some research on familiar and some new science and
engineering concepts and make a list of all the possible phenomenon and
mechanisms that could potentially be implemented as game design concepts. One
of the primary criteria was to make sure at every step of the design process
that I stick to the idea that the protagonist is an Engineer and hence everything
he does and by extension every game mechanic is centred on that principle. So
from the tools, equipment, weapons and outfits, everything was derived from
existing technology, but I had to gamify certain elements by stretching it to
limits that would be deemed unrealistic, but then again I’m not trying to create
a science/engineering simulator.
Since last week every waking
second I was thinking about how I can implement real world engineering concepts
into this game. So, I sat down and started to write everything the player character
has in his possession, the progression for both the player and the world (since
it’s a metroidvania), moment to moment gameplay, player interactions etc. Thus
began my conceptualisation of the game mechanics and along with it the level
design. As an artist I have already started imagining every piece of equipment,
every object in the level, how it looks, the lighting, the atmosphere and the
overall mood all of this invokes.
I would say the core pillars of
my game are Level design and game mechanics, followed by secondary support
pillars narrative and art direction. So the primary focus for me was to design
a tightly knit gameplay loop that would keep the player engaged at every point
in the game and drives them to make intelligent decisions at each and every
step, be it during hectic combat or methodical stealth or during paced exploration
and puzzle sections. I had to come up with ways of making the game unique in every
run and replayable. I had to find ways of balancing randomness; I have to make
the levels and encounters random but not the mechanics and interactions. I had to
find new ways for pushing the player to play another run and then another one,
over and over again, now that is something even the greatest game designers
struggle with, but I have to pull it off in a matter of few weeks.
So my work process is now divided
into two: Game Design and Game Art. Once I have squeezed all the conceptual and
design juices out of my brain and when I realize that I do not have any new
ideas for the day, I jump to doing some concept art. At this point drawing is a
relaxing activity after the hours of stress I put on myself trying to come up
with game design ideas. I start by going through my design notes and selecting an
interesting piece of equipment or an object to start designing . I start making
multiple rough versions of the same thing. I decided to go with the wrench as a
starting point, want to know why, because in every game where the player was
given a wrench it served nothing close to its actual purpose, all we ever did
in a game with a wrench was smack people/things with it. Since this game is
about engineering, you will get to actually use it for what it was designed
for- wrenching; loosening nuts and unscrewing pipes. And this workflow
continues.