LEE CAVE
Lee Cave is a level blockout for a third-person adventure game with exploration, light combat and stealth.
.png)
Level Designer
3 Weeks
Summary
Lee Cave is an adventure game where you play as a rebel tasked with sabotaging a nearby research facility. The blockout features basic behavior trees with patrolling enemies and a melee weapon.
​​
Core Gameplay
​MELEE COMBAT
Eliminate guards using the energy sword. Your weapon can also be used to remove certain obstacles.
​
STEALTH
Utilize the environment to discover advantageous positions to enter combat from, or try to avoid the enemies entirely.
​
EXPLORATION
Item discovery is rewarded to players who wander off the main path.
Project Role
Level Designer
-
Created a level from the text document stage to refined blockout.​
-
Researched cave systems and environments across film and video games, as well as real locations.
- Performed a very light and partial art pass for practice in exploring potential art directions.
- Added basic debug tools to create a more seamless playtesting experience.
1.
END
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
PLAYER START
Level Flow
Enter cave main room.
Receive lore item.
Foreshadow encounter and path progression.
1.
2.
3.
Acquire energy sword.
Explore deeper into the cave.
Aerial takedown onboarding.
4
5
6
4.
5.
6.
Stealth takedown onboarding.
Stealth encounter.
Locate research facility.
7
8
9
7.
8.
9.
TENSION GRAPH
_edited.jpg)
DESIGN TECHNIQUES
Foreshadow
By reducing backtracking, focus is emphasized on the path ahead. This also strengthens the player's sense of progression.
Bait and Switch
I added combat encounters and scripted events in order to showcase the core gameplay. This helped me balance high-tension gameplay with lower-tension moments of environmental storytelling.
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.
WORKFLOW
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 reference for the team and myself.
widgetid
Loading...
THE LEVEL SKETCH
The sketch serves as my statement of intent. I've discovered that it helps communicate my design and gives me a chance to align my goals with those of the team.
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 also used this project to practice working on the grid, closely following metrics, and ensuring the level had consistent and believable scale.
​
The greatest challenge I faced was my tendency to add excessive elements to the level which did not hold up under scrutiny. It became easy to add more enemies or scripted events. However, feedback helped focus my design on details that directly and significantly contributed to the intended player experience.
​
Overall, I am happy with this level. The feedback and guidance I received from Tid Cooney was a defining moment in my level design career.​