Kneedle Knight
Unreal Engine 5
Project Overview
Winner of Excellence in Game Mechanics
Kneedle Knight is a 3D platformer where the player controls a knight transformed into a mouse. To change back he must brave through the witch's castle using his newfound ability to merge into fabric and a needle which allows him to traverse obstacles.
My Role
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Co-designing level 1
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Teach core gameplay mechanics
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Implement early gameplay mechanics
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Working with artists and programmers to polish the level
Engine: Unreal 5.1
Platform: PC
Development Time: 4 Months
Team Size: 22 people
Winner of Short Form GOY
Design Goals - Level 1
Goal 1: Teach the player
As it's the beginning of the game, level 1 should teach and enforce major mechanics of the game. I was in charge of designing scenarios that would teach needle throwing and reinforcing basic movement.
I designed a scenario in which the player must use the needle throw to progress. In the image below a large stack of books block the player's path. The needle throw automatically creates a piece of fabric on most surfaces which allows the player to progress. A small piece of fabric at the top of the books hangs over conveying to the player about the solution to the obstacle. Using tutorial prompts on the bottom right also helped players learn.
When teaching mechanics it was best to combine elements together to reinforce a mechanic's importance. In the image below, the player can create fabrics on the wall to allow a safe path that won't harm the mouse.
The switches and moving platforms were designed as bright blue so they stood from the dark grey/brown areas of level 1. Both level mechanics being blue hints at the 2 elements being connected to each other when in close proximity.
I was also in charge of implementing the fairy, a conveyance guide that shows players the main route through the level.
Designing level 1 as a way to teach the basics of the game went well. This was because we designed the elements that could teach the player first and then combined together in a way that would flow most naturally. Working with another designer also helped as we could build off the design that the other had introduced within their room.
Goal 2: Memorable Scenarios
Room 2 was designed to feel like a big open space that introduced and built upon a lot of elements seen throughout the game.
This was accomplished by taking individual tutorial elements of the level and placing them in a way that would build on top of the other.
- Starts by teaching the kneedle throw and fabric creation mechanic.
- Introduces spike floors that can only be crossed using the fabric merge.
- Afterwards floating yarn balls are introduced that the player can use to get across long distance obstacles.
Finally room 2 ends by combining the moving platforms from room 1 with new moving fabric and reinforcing the spiked floors through the new retracting spikes.
Room 4 was designed to feel like a finale so it was focused on testing the player's reaction time. In order to do this the fabric merge was reinforced.
The final challenge builds upon this simple concept by having more moving platforms and obstacles that the player must dodge.
Goal 3: Proof of Concept
Level 1 was apart of early concept development which meant that the level had to create interesting scenarios for the needle throw, fabric merge mechanic, and exploration.
The player can create fabric wherever the needle is thrown, this allows them to then merge into opening up new paths. The level is designed with to allow the player use this mechanic to progress in their own way.
Due to time, level designers had to help with set decoration, so we went for a dungeon aesthetic that conveyed a medieval and supernatural feel.
Room 2 reinforces the size of your character by having a lot of vertical space and a never ending ceiling. This helps sell the idea of being a small character in a big world.
To help make this world more believable, I worked with the artist to add clutter to non-playable surfaces. This also helps with telling the story as it reinforces being inside a witch's castle.
Rather than use just blocks as platforms we used a wide variety of objects to have the player jump on, such as: books, pillows and dinner ware.
Room 2 reinforces the size of your character by having a lot of vertical space and a never ending ceiling. This helps sell the idea of being a small character in a big world.
This visual themed continued to the final level, which is meant to replicated rafters and providing a feeling of vertical ascension.
Long sightlines allow the player to look back and see how much progress they've made.
Chains and floating magic were used to justify the floating platforms over bottomless pits.
Development Process
Designing the Map
Early on Yifan and I discussed with the leads on what all needed to be in the level. We then worked on drafting out ideas for how to implement these. This was done in a collaborative and individual process. So for Rooms 1 and 2 we drew out the design together, while Rooms 3 and 4 were designed separately and then presented to get feedback.
To create a good workflow we separated the levels into rooms which each focused on teaching/reinforcing gameplay mechanics.
Room 1. Jumping and Movement - Creating challenges that allow the player room to get used to the games feel along with teaching the unique fabric merge mechanic.
Room 2. Needle Throwing - Obstacles were designed that forced the player the player to throw the needle to and create fabric, teaching them the more open ended mechanics.
Room 3. Spinning Block Puzzle - After traversing through a series of spinning blocks, the player must create a path up tower of spinning blocks to progress.
Room 4. Moving Platform Obstacle - The level ends with a series of moving platforms and hazards the player must dodge, testing the player's reaction skills.
Because I designed and implemented Rooms 2 and 4, the development process will focus on these 2 areas.
For the most part development went very smooth for Level 1, we were able to use the level to test out the art style and lighting early. In addition, we were worked with programmers a lot to make sure new features were working as intended.
Post Mortem
What Went Well
Collaborative Process
Level 1 had two level designers working on it at the same time. to ensure that work didn't overlap, we set up separate sublevels for each major section and mechanic. If we ever needed to do something in an active sublevel we would let them know and work on another part of the overall level.
Working with other Disciplines
Level 1 had a one week start compared to level 2 and 3. Because of this level 1 one was used as testing ground of sort for artist and programmers to figure good workflow practices. Often we were the first to be taught how to implement mod kit pieces and new mechanics which we would then pass on to other level designers. It was a great experience as we got to learn best practices from the other disciplines and they learned how to better help us with workflow and mechanic implementation.
What Went Wrong
Initial Draft for the Level
Originally the goal for the level was to teach the player every single mechanic in the game. We were concerned that this would overwhelm the player, but we still went through with it. The first draft of the level was a non stop tutorial and was only linear hallways. It did prove a good learning experience because we salvaged what could work but the time could've been spent figuring out the space.
Emphasizing Existing Issues
There were some glitches that we found during development that we told our leads. While we wrote down the bug, it persisted for months even though we told the leads about it multiple times. Turns out they thought it was an issue that Level Designers could fix when it was actually a Programmer issue. The bug was quickly fixed but would've gotten done sooner if we explained in detail what the issue was.
What I Learned
Designing a Workflow Early
Early on Yifan and I made a list of everything we needed to have within our level. We then drafted out level design concepts and looked at what would be best for the level and combined them in the draft. With the draft completed we focused on which rooms each of us was going to build in unreal and got to work.
Designing for a new Genre
I had never designed a 3D platformer before, so there was some initial hurdles. What I ended up doing was looking back at some of my favorite platformers and learning the design principles they implemented in their level design. The Mario series was especially helpful as it showed how to ease inexperienced players into the game, while also rewarding experienced players who know the games deeper mechanics.
Gallery
