For my first level I had finished the first pass a few months ago. The first pass being the initial stage of designing the level, or what some level designers would call the blocking pass. It’s in this period I put rough shapes and geometry so I can get a layout of how the level would eventually look out. For this I used shape brushes, which in Unreal are basically common shapes that can be altered in almost every possible way. And from research most people say these brushes aren’t meant to be in the final form of any stage, they are mere place holders, temporary pieces. Though, lazy person I am, I was fine with using the brushes for the whole game. Later when I realized the shapes were very limited in their function compared to if I used actual 3D models that’s when I knew I had to prepare to replace my building. Thankfully there are assets in the market that have modular pieces, models that are separated so you can put them together how you want just like lego. I was using a fantasy set that had sets that looked similar to what I had already put together.
It’s time consuming replacing the entire rooms, especially because the sizes are different. But it turned out for the better, the ceiling is much hider and the rooms are more spacious. Previously it felt as if everything was a bit too close. The lighting is not perfect but that’s because there are still some holes in the building and I am thinking about taking out the other floors. Three whole floors with nearly a dozen rooms each might be a bit too much to explore unless I made it absolutely necessary. I wanted there to be a lot of optional texts/descriptions. The first floor is enough for now especially with this being only the first/introductory area of the game. It’s a good thing I had already dressed up all the rooms of the first floor. I merely had to rearrange or move the objects to fit the larger rooms, and once I’m done replacing most if not all the brushes then I can go back to refining the finer details. I also learned a neat trick to select certain objects on the screen so I don’t have to click them individually. This was helpful when I was moving several models.
I’m glad I started to replace the shapes that were holding up the level, everything looks much more vibrant and the windows have a great shape that filters the light very well. The boss room might be a little more tricky because I had the windows in a very specific shape, but I will figure it out as always. I’m very excited to see how the finished level will look like once everything is in place.
GoldenGratus Games 