he fiendish puzzles. The waist-high blocks

that protect you in a firefight. The platforms

you stand on as you survey the path ahead

of you. While you’re solving them, using them

as cover or leaping across them in a game,

you probably don’t stop to think about how

these elements got right there, in that perfect

spot. They make you feel like a hero. They

make you feel like you absolutely nailed what

you were doing. And they all came out of a

level designer’s mind.

Whatever your favourite level of all time is,

these genius game developers built it. But

how do they come up with these excellent

creations that we relive, over and over, for

days, months or even decades after we’ve

finished a game? What are the toughest parts

of making a really great level? And how do

you account for us pesky gamers, who are

unpredictable, easily confused or just want to

break the heck out of a beautifully designed

stage? We spoke to the level designers

behind some of this generation’s most unique

games to find out.

Going solo

“As a human being, you feel much more

about your environment than you know,”

explains Arne Oehme, Eidos Montreal’s lead

level designer on Shadow Of The Tomb Raider.

“You understand if architecture makes sense;

ABOVE &

FAR RIGHT Many

early designs

have elements

that stay there

until the final

version.

BELOW Height and

depth are

important parts

of the level

designing

process.

T

066 THE OFFICIAL XBOX MAGAZINE

OXM INVESTIGATES