AAA First Person RPG Open World

ROLE

Level Designer

Introduction

I have never played Skyrim. Yes, I know. I might be the only person that did not play this game. I don't play regularly First Person perspective games. But this project was the opportunity to get out of my confort zone and learn new things to improve my Level Designer skills.

In this project, I needed to create at least one Point of Interest. I created multiples Macro, Meso and Micro POI.

YEAR

2025

Project Details

Developed in 2 weeks
Made in Unreal Engine 5
Level Design Blockout
Blueprints scripting
Level Sequences
AI enemies patrolling

PRE-PRODUCTION

Skyrim Level requirements

Skyrim Level requirements-2

Skyrim Level requirements

1/2

References

I found my main Macro POI inspiration when I was walking and I saw my town church from far away! From that, I searched and found old photos and local newspaper article about the church!

Workflow

Paper Design

I do a first Paper Draw Design to setup the Golden Path that the player will get, adding obstacles and enemies based on my requirements.

Blockout Process and Iterations

At this point, I open up the Game Engine and start my Blockout. During the whole process, I will try to improve my design by Playtesting multiple times and fix issues I might find.

First Blockout Iteration

Final Iteration

Open World Final Design

POI Final Design

To gain in efficency and to add a more realistic result, I use existing architecture that I found inspiring and I mimic them with a twist to add more depth in the game.

Open World Design

Landmarks

There are three Macro Landmarks (Church and two on top of mountains), Falkirk as a Meso and few other Micro Landmarks (Campfire, Axe, Lights, Signpost).

Quests

Give an objective to the player so he/she knows what to do and stays Engaged in the game.

Show POI's name

To give the player reference points in the environment, the name of the POI is displayed when the player approaches the POI.

Paths

As no player games the same way, it's important to offer multiple paths to the player. These paths also guide the player to nearby POIs.

Exploration

The feeling of Freedom is important in Open Worlds and so are the Points of Interest and the Quests.

Guiding using Environment

Environment is a good tool to add Affordance. I used different items to guide the player and keep him/her Engaged.

Points of Interest Design

Lights

To get a good Affordance in this dark map, I use Lights to guide the player.

Intensity Curve

To get a good Game Feel, it is important to have a good Intensity Curve. That's why I set the enemies strategically throughout the POI to keep that curve.

Gating Player Progression

The altar acts as a Hard Gate, the catacombs' bridge is a Soft Gate. The portcullis in the catacombs is a Back Gate, preventing player from backtracking.

Leading Lines

To guide the player to progress in its quest, the carpet in the church leads the player to the altar.

Capture d’écran, le 2025-07-18 à 13.00.15.png

High Loot Density

To constantly reward Exploration and Combat, the player stumbles frequently on Loot which enhances his equipment and allows him to explore even more challenging POIs.

Vantage Point

The player can analyze the situation and choose which strategy to overcome enemies.

Capture d’écran, le 2025-07-18 à 13.11.45.png

Funnel

The benches guide the player to the altar and when he/she turns around, the balconies are Revealed.

Conclusion and Thoughts

Like I stated in the introduction, I never played Skyrim, so I started with a steep learning curve on how to create a fun level that will well represent the world of Skyrim. I like challenges so I was thrilled to start a project completely blind and do full research about it.

I found a local newspaper article about a journalist visiting my local town church. It was very inspiring with all the "secret" rooms that we could find in the church (the way to the Bell Tower, a passageway between the church and the presbytery, an underground cemetery, etc). Also, I always liked the architecture of this building with its stories of the past, its cracking wooden floor and its peaceful and mysterious aura.