Ben Nichols Game/Level Designer
Grand Siege
Goal:
To create an immerse and action packed siege experience that has the player using a variety of combat styles.
Project Breakdown
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2 Weeks
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Unreal Engine 5
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Blockout
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Marketplace Assets used
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Dynamic Combat System
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Modelling Tools plugin
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Level Focuses
Feel
The enormity of the siege is felt throughout the level, through the variety of combat encounters, multiple unique tasks to conquer to progress the siege and constant movement in the background (moving siege towers, troops fighting in the distance etc ). All these elements make for an awesome feeling siege experience.
Combat Encounters
There are two types of combat styles in the level:
- Melee
- Archer
The level takes advantage of these styles unique systems to help the player progress through the level and keep the game constantly fresh.
Level Development
Level Progression
Gameplay Beats:
- Pushing the ram
- Opening the gate
- Taking out the archers
-Killing the lord
The two main focus points for the level:
1.) What were the objects/gameplay beats going to be.
2.) How would I mould the environment to support these objects.
References
I spent a lot of my time looking into the impact that siege battles in movies/shows such as Lord of the Rings and Vikings created. Looking at what made these battles so impressive and impactful.
Looked at a variety of fort/castle layouts. Specifically studying which layouts would best support the mechanics/concepts that I wanted to insert into my level.
Summary
Thoughts:
The overall layered approach to the siege battle( the layout of the environment and the different combat styles through the level) results in a truly impactful and awesome experience.
Improvements:
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Minor tweaks to AI in some sections to further enhance player experience.