UEFN CAPTURE THE FLAG LEVEL
PROJECT FOCUS: LEVEL DESIGN
SOFTWARE: UNREAL ENGINE FOR FORTNITE
Minesite Mayhem is the name of a map I made in UEFN for a Capture the Flag game. For this level, I wanted to make a map inspired by the Team Fortress 2 level called Doublecross, made by Valve. To do this, I focused on having two main avenues of play-- an upper "main" path, and an underground "alternative" path.
I also wanted to have a "main room" that encouraged chaotic and competitive play. Over the course of development, I refined my level's design and added a few more pathways, and stylized the level to look more like the magical cave I wanted it to look like. Below is what I ended up with, and the process to getting there.
FINAL PRODUCT
This level was developed over the course of around four months. I followed the entire level design process, from doing research on capture-the-flag levels, to creating a level design document, grayboxing, creating the level, playtesting, iterating, etc. By the end of development, I had learned a lot about the process of making a multiplayer shooter map, and how to improve my level designing process. I also used learnings from my previous Fortnite level design experience to improve this time's process and end result; the main changes being to focus less on the art of the level, and creating clearer paths for players rather than an open arena. At least for a capture-the-flag type level.
MY WORK
LEVEL MAPS
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FINAL LEVEL SCREENSHOTS
GRAYBOX VIDEO
GRAYBOX MAP
RESEARCH (CASE STUDY)
TAKEAWAYS
My main goal with making this level was to improve on my skills and avoid making the same mistakes I did with my past Fortnite Capture the Flag map (Magical Turf War). Since I struggled with too much open space and not enough guided routes for players in Magical Turf War, I focused on adding what I missed: better cover areas, clearer routes, and lighting/visual signifiers. By focusing only on making 2 main routes and adding those specific details, I was able to make a level I was proud of, and played as I expected. The biggest help by far to this project was the playtest sessions I conducted, as they gave me valuable tips from people who had more experience playing Capture the Flag type games than I had.
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Overall, I really enjoyed working on this project, and felt like I knew what I was doing more thanks to past experience using Unreal Engine for Fortnite. It was very useful to me to make a new level from scratch to expand my skillset and figure out what worked, based on what I learned from Level Design classes and from personal experiences with games. I'm happy with how this level turned out, and hope to make more good levels for all sorts of games in the near future.
