EVACUATION
PROTOCOL
Evacuation Protocol is a level blockout for a singleplayer action-survival game which takes place in a city at the start of a global pandemic. Feedback and instruction led by industry veteran Tid Cooney.
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Level Designer
2 Weeks
Solo
About Evacuation Protocol
Evacuation Protocol is a level blockout for a singleplayer action-survival game which takes place in a city at the start of a global pandemic.
MELEE COMBAT
Eliminate the infected through close-quarters combat. Discover weapon upgrades that make encounters extra punishing for your opponent.
STEALTH
Gain the upperhand by sneaking up on enemies. Eliminate them before they alert the others.
ESCAPE
The city is in shambles. Navigate unpredictable terrain at the construction site, platform on crashed cars, and climb your way through a subway car wreckage.
Project Role
Level Designer
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Created a level from the text document stage to refined blockout.
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Implemented basic scripted events and a sound pass to further convey my intention and mood for the player experience.
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Conducted daily playtests with colleagues and implemented feedback.
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PLAYER END
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PLAYER START
Level Flow
Subway crash wakeup.
Explore construction site.
Gridlock encounter.
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Garage encounter.
Point of no return.
Enemy ambush.
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Window grab.
Flee to ship.
Safely board ship.
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DESIGN TECHNIQUES
One-way valve
At certain points, I replace the player's conceptual starting point with a new one. By reducing backtracking, focus is emphasized on the path ahead. This also strengthens the player's sense of progression.
Pacing
This is a high-tension level. To create a context for that to emerge, I combined platforming challenges, combat encounters, and scripted events. Reward paths and exploration provide the necessary moments for tension to fade before building again.
Multiple Paths
While the level is linear, there are opportunities for the player to express their playstyle. Completing an objective can be done in more than one way.
TENSION GRAPH
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ENCOUNTER DESIGN
I designed five combat encounters for Evacuation Protocol. The first three encounters must:
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Allow the player to choose between engaging or evading the enemy.
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Present clear, multiple paths for direct combat, sneak attacks, or evasion.
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Reward the player for taking a risk.
The last two encounters must:
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Introduce a reduction in player agency.
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Dramatically increase tension.
GRIDLOCK
GARAGE
Evasion
Sneak
Direct combat
For the first encounter, I needed to accomplish a few things:
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Onboard melee combat.
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Present the enemy threat from an advantageous position.
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Provide multiple paths through the encounter.
THE GARAGE
There is a chance the player misses the melee weapon if they take the sneak path.
Therefore, I placed a second weapon in the garage ahead.
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Create and pitch design sketches
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Align with team before creating in-engine blockouts
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Conduct both internal and external playtests
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Refine blockouts in response to feedback by colleagues and industry representatives
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Place props throughout the level
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Create and establish collaborative workflow using Unreal Engine's sublevel system
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Close collaboration with artists in order to define the modular kit used to construct the level
THE GARAGE
GRIDLOCK
Direct combat
Evasion
Enemy foreshadow
Loot
DERAILED
This second encounter is optional.
I reward the player for exploring the garage as well as reveal the weapon upgrade and foreshadow the enemies through the garage door.
If the player chooses to engage, they can successfully sneak attack one of the enemies. This provokes the second enemy, leading to a fight in a narrow space.
With limited mobility, succeeding here is rewarded with a weapon upgrade.
DERAILED
GARAGE
Sneak
Direct
combat
Loot
Evasion
The third encounter is the largest combat space and contains the most enemies (3) thus far. This is the last opportunity for the player to explore and approach combat more freely. Beyond this point, I funnel the player into increasingly dangerous spaces.
After this encounter, the player reaches a point of no return, and the level nears its end.
Every path option is represented, as well as multiple reward paths. However, the more challenging route (Sneak/Direct) contains a weapon upgrade in addition to loot items.
If the player chooses the evasion path, they will spot a previously concealed enemy hunched over a corpse. Players may ignore this enemy. However, the enemy will pursue the player if they get too close.
This makes platforming on the vehicles by the subway tense, and builds nicely into the next scripted event.
CLOCKWATCHERS
Sneak
Hidden
enemy
Derailed
After traversing the crashed subway car, the player exits into the administrative office of the train station.
The encounter is blocked out to give the player a false sense of security, as there is a hidden second enemy.
Once the player enters the space, the hidden enemy in the corner will ambush them.
My goal is to set new expectations of the player, and not allow them to grow too comfortable with what they've come to learn about the enemies.
PLATFORM 17
GARAGE
DERAILED
CLOCKWATCHERS
Surviving the ambush at CLOCKWATCHERS, the player discovers a balcony with a nearby platform.
Building on the previous encounter, I want to reinforce the irregular enemy behavior. Therefore, the player is grabbed by an enemy, and pulled through a window. This transitions them into a new, unfamiliar space.
This is the final encounter, and all the player can do is run or die. I want the player to feel alienated in the environment they once felt familiar in.
SCRIPTED EVENTS
In order to strengthen my vision for the player experience, I utilize triggers and sound cues throughout the level.
Each serve to either move the player forward, or to deepen the player's sense of environmental immersion.
Leaving GRIDLOCK, players who take the critical path towards DERAILED trigger an event showing mobilized soldiers defending the city.
I added this piece to show that there is a military presence, and to create a recognizable set piece players will be familiar with during the end chase.
Before I added this scene, the soldiers present during the end chase were not recognized as allies, but as armed assailants. This added the wrong type of tension and only confused players.
Once the player reaches the construction site, it has been established that things have gone horribly wrong. It's time to bring them closer to the threat.
The player has maintained a privileged perspective from the safety of their upper-floor office. Not only did I want to remove this privilege, I wanted to surprise the player while doing so.
The partially-built structure provides a natural justification for a sometimes structurally-unsound space. The player falls through planks and into a room below.
At DERAILED, I wanted to present a new platforming experience to players. Up to this point, they have taken a ramp, jumped on vehicles, fallen through some planks and crouched under a car wreck.
To make vertical traversal contribute to the environmental storytelling, I added a sound cue when the player enters the subway car. It communicates questionable structural integrity as the metal groans under your weight.
Once the player enters the second subway car, it rotates downward, and the first car detaches and falls down to the street.
As the player closes in on their end goal, there is a perfect opportunity to subvert expectations.
While platforming, I added a trigger which causes an enemy to grab the player and pull them through the window, returning them to building interior.
This thrusts the player into the highest-tension moment of the level: The Chase.
There is an overwhelming enemy presence, motivating flight or over fight. Leaving the station interior presents your military allies once again, this time closer and directly assisting your escape.
The burning plane suggests an even larger-scale outbreak and its inherent mayhem.
WORKFLOW BREAKDOWN
THE TEXT DOCUMENT
Inspired by Steve Lee, I create a brief text outline describing the key features of my level. It serves a dual purpose:
1. At the start of a project, it helps me conquer the blank page problem. By formulating design goals, challenges, and questions, the level begins to take form.
2. Throughout production, it can be revised and polished in order to serve as a concise piece of documentation for the team.
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THE LEVEL SKETCH
The sketch serves as my statement of intent. In the context of my workflow, I've discovered that it is most effective for communicating my design with the team.
THE BLOCKOUT
I used a modular blockout set which allowed me to quickly lay down the bones of the level. Furthermore, it offered several pieces which gave me the opportunity to provide greater detail to each scene without leaving the engine.
Modular kits are an essential aspect of my workflow. They help me provide a consistent scale throughout the level and make iteration quick and simple.
Click a photo to learn more!
REFLECTIONS
This project was a fulfilling experience in iteration and playtesting. I conducted multiple daily playtests and leveraged feedback to cut and add elements as needed.
I learned that even if I believed that I clearly communicated my intention, from the player's perspective, it may not be the case. The feedback which pointed out this disconnect was most valuable. This helped me focus my attention, time, and effort during iteration and revision.
Overall, I am deeply pleased with this level blockout. I can only hope players will be as immersed in the level as I was designing it.