FUNDAMENTALS OF GAME DESIGN, SECOND EDITION

Design to Level Design Handoff

In the first stage, the game designers will tell you in a general way what for the level: its setting, mood, key gameplay activities, and events. You then generate a list of features you want to appear in the level:

■ Events that can be triggered by player action

■ Props (objects that will be present in the level)

■ Nonplayer characters (NPCs)

At this point you also create a rough overview map of the level, showing how the landscape varies and what props and NPCs will be in which areas. See Figure 12.7 for an example from an unproduced driving game by Pseudo Interactive, set on islands inhabited by dinosaurs.