Step 6. Refine Gameplay Until It Is Fun.................
Of course, the gameplay is what makes or breaks the game, so it is absolutely essential
that the designer repeat step five until the level is fun to play. Sometimes, refining the
gameplay may take you all the way back to step number three. It may turn out that the
area you thought would play well just is not suited to the capabilities of the AI. Or that
the creature you thought would be able to spring out at players from a fissure in a cliff
does not really have enough space to hide. You may need to change the layout of your
level to compensate for the problems you discover once you start implementing the
gameplay.
For some designers, modifying existing level architecture to suit the gameplay can
be quite a painful process. For instance, suppose a designer builds some architecture
she is happy with from an aesthetic standpoint. If the gameplay then does not work in
that space, the designer may be reluctant to go back and rework that geometry and may
instead settle for substandard gameplay. Of course, this is the wrong choice to make. As
painful as it may be, in order to get the best gameplay you may need to throw out some
of your work. This is why I suggested only making base architecture without refining it
too much; that way making radical changes to the level will not mean that too much
work was wasted. In the end, gameplay must always trump all other considerations,
whether aesthetics, story, or technology. If it’s not fun in the end, nothing else matters.
Therefore it is only logical that you must first get the level fun before you spend a lot of
time on other aspects of the level.
This is the step where your level really comes together and you start to get a sense
of whether it is a success. Now you can take this space you created and really start to
play in it. If you do not start enjoying yourself at this point, you may need to take a look
at your level and ask yourself why it is not fun to play. In the worst case, you may realize
that the level will never be fun, and as a result you need to start fresh. Ideally, however,
this stage can be truly revelatory, as all of the work you put into the level starts to come
together and pay off.
Step 7. Refine Aesthetics ........................
Now that the level is playing well, you have an opportunity to make it look good as well.
You may recall that in steps three and four we just set up base architecture, enough to
allow players to navigate and to give you a feel for the level. Now is the time to texture
your level as needed, apply lighting effects, add decorative objects, and really flesh out
your level from a visual standpoint. Depending on your development process, this may
be the point at which you hand the level off to an artist. Many teams spend the bulk of
their time working on aesthetics for their levels, and certainly you should put in the
time to make the level look as good as possible. But, as I have emphasized, it is crucial
that you put off finessing the level until you are confident that the level plays well and
that it accomplishes its gameplay objectives. Otherwise, you may waste your time
making areas look nice that end up being scrapped. As you are finessing the level aes-
thetically, you must always remember not to break any of the gameplay you have
already set up.
Chapter 23: Level Design 471