Super Hero Level

For this level, I took inspiration from superhero games and media such as Spider-Man, My Hero Academia, and X-Men.

My objective was to create a level that put the player in the role of a superhero, running into danger and dodging attacks from the villain.

The grand finale of the level sees the player using the largest set-piece in the environment, the glowing sign, to defeat the villain. This creates an exciting climax. It utilizes a piece of the environment the player can see the whole level as a tool, making the level feel cohesive and unified.

When playing superhero games and watching shows and movies I always loved when the big fights would incorporate aspects of the environment into the choreography and staging of the battle

Blockout

The player starts the level on their way to a date at a rooftop restaurant.

From the first moments of the level, he player can see three points of interest.

The player sees the restaurant, which marks their first objective.

The player also see the office building that they will be navigating through later-

- and the billboards that will serve as the climax of the fight.

Inciting Incident

The date is interrupted by the villain crashing to the ground from the sky, which causes npcs around the player to panic.

The player must leave the date and go save the day.

Stop Villain, Save Civillian

The primary objective is to reach the villain at the center of the chaos.

The player also has a secondary objective of saving the civilians hiding around the level.

Rescuing the civilians as encourages the player to explore the nearby area and offers the player a moral choice:

Or do they make a beeline for the villain, offering a quicker resolution to the conflict?

Do they go out of their way to save the civilians hiding throughout the level?

As the player triggers the villain's attacks, they will see a red translucent shape flying toward them.

These initial shapes are meant to act like a Spider-Sense, allowing the player to react to incoming projectiles and immediately feel like a superhero!

The player then must use platforming to make their way up the floating and rotating debris to reach the villain at the center.

Superhero fights are often larger-than-life conflicts that span wide areas. I wanted to incorporate verticality to give a similar sense of motion and perspective.

Ascending the Office Building

After reaching the villain, the player is quickly dispatched and thrown into the office building behind them.

The first thing the player sees upon looking out the window is the glow of the large billboard at the center of the fight.

The player must make their way toward the roof so that they can use the billboard as part of the grand finale.

The next two floors are also filled with civilians. The player is again forced to choose between rescuing those civilians or moving straight to the villain.