Simone Lazzarotto
Level Designer
The Floating Dream
In this academy project, we were tasked to create a playable platform level in one month in UE5. We were divided in groups or couples and had to follow these mandates:
​
MUST HAVES:
-
Main emotion: Ascension
-
Golden path duration of maximum one minute
-
Third Person
-
Use of the deafult UE5 Mannequin
​
MUST NOTS:
-
No additional character mechanic other than jump and movement
-
No NPC or enemy
-
No interactive narrative elements
​
NICE TO HAVES:
-
No additional character mechanic other than jump and movement
-
No NPC or enemy
-
No interactive narrative elements
Concept
My partner and I started by writing a High Vision Document going through everything we wanted in the level. We aimed to create a relaxing experience in an oniric and peaceful world.
​
Our goal was to challenge ourselves by designing a level with a distinctive structure and flow. We chose to center traversal around a spiraling path encircling a windmill, creating a unique gameplay experience. While this approach presented design challenges, we embraced them and were ultimately satisfied with the outcome.
After that, we started to gather some references and put them all together in a moodboard.
Layout
The next step was to design the level layout using the mechanics we designed: moving platforms, rotating mills, bouncing platforms, and pistons.
​
While researching platform levels, we learned that the opening section plays a crucial role in onboarding the player; we ensured that the initial challenges allowed them to familiarize themselves with the controls and jump distances without excessive difficulty. We also aimed for a fair introduction to each mechanic, ensuring that the first encounter provided a learning opportunity rather than a punishing experience.
Metrics and Greyboxing
At this stage, we began dividing our tasks. While my partner focused on programming the environmental mechanics, I started refining the jumping distances and heights.
​
To streamline the process, I created a dedicated gym level where I could test various jump configurations and evaluate their feel in gameplay. Once my partner finalized the mechanics,
I integrated them into the gym and began testing them extensively to ensure fair, smooth, and responsive gameplay.
Once I was satisfied with the jump mechanics, I moved on to greyboxing the second half of the level, while my partner worked on the first half. To ensure smooth and engaging gameplay, I focused on testing jumps and traversal after every small adjustment.
​
Throughout the blockout process, we went through numerous iterations, and the final level evolved significantly from our initial layout. As we continued, we realized there wasn’t enough space to incorporate every mechanic we had planned. Because of that we made the decision to cut the bouncing platforms and their corresponding area from the level. That decision also allowed us to maintain a strong gameplay flow and to not overwhelm the player with too many mechanics.
As previously mentioned, my role in this section was to greybox and iterate on the second part of the windmill, focusing on introducing the piston mechanic. My goal was to present this new element in a safe, controlled context before gradually increasing the challenge through traversal design.
​
In the first encounter, I created a safe zone near the piston to allow players to retry without severe penalty, encouraging experimentation without frustration.
​
In the second scenario, I faced a design issue: if the player failed the traversal, they would be sent all the way back to the beginning of the level. Since the game wasn’t meant to be a rage-platformer, but still aimed to offer a fair challenge, I looked for a balanced punishment system.
To solve this, I placed a sloped wooden panel that causes the player to slide down to a previous platform, acting as a setback, but not a full reset. This kept the tension and difficulty intact while respecting the player’s time.
For the final level challenge, the original idea was to bring together all the mechanics introduced throughout the level, culminating in a satisfying climax. However, during production, we realized that, even after cutting the bouncing platforms mechanic, there still wasn’t enough space to build a full section that effectively combined all remaining mechanics.
​
My task was to resolve this issue. I chose to retain the piston traversal segment, as players were already familiar with the mechanic by this point. However, to raise the stakes and increase engagement, I evolved the mechanic: instead of simply avoiding pistons, players now had to jump onto them before they retracted, creating a more dynamic and timing-based challenge.
​
To clearly communicate this new interaction, I implemented simple but effective signposting using arrow decals that matched the level’s visual theme. This guided players intuitively without the need for additional tutorials sections or text.
Postmortem
What Went Well:
​
-
Clear Vision: From the start, we had a well-defined concept and remained focused on it throughout development.
​​
-
Spiral Level Design: We challenged ourselves with a spiral layout, something we hadn't attempted before. and received encouraging feedback from peers regarding its originality and execution.
​​
-
Mechanic Design: We introduced simple but versatile mechanics, which were reused creatively in different contexts to maintain engagement.
​
What Could Be Improved:
​
-
Level Scaling & Planning: With better planning and more accurate estimations of spatial requirements, we might have avoided cutting the bouncing platform section. Early layout testing would have helped in managing scale and mechanic pacing more effectively.
​​
-
Difficulty Tuning: Despite adjustments, the level still leaned toward being too punishing. Designing platforming challenges requires careful iteration, extensive testing and fine-tuning to strike the right balance between difficulty and accessibility.
​