Level Design and Player Progress: Devlog #10

A Double-Digit Devlog

         'Level-design' can mean a lot of different things depending on the context. For this devlog, I'll be using it to refer to the structural layout of each unique stage that the player goes through. I'm getting very close to the point of development where I can start designing full, fleshed-out stages that could be put into the final product. Now that I have the baseline mechanics for players and enemies implemented, it's about time that I start the process of defining the structure of Enchanterland's stages. What formula should I follow to keep levels consistent? How should each level differ from the others? To answer these questions, I'll go ahead and do what I always do: improvise a plan while writing a devlog post and acting like I've had it all figured out from the start.

         There's another factor at play here as well. The stages of a game don't exist in a vacuum; a player's experience in one will affect their outlook on the next. Instead of just looking at different levels individually, we need to look at how they interact with one another through the player's perspective. For example, most stage-based games put easier stages at the beginning and harder ones at the end. The order in which player's experience these stages is often taken into account . Sometimes it isn't. Sometimes, developers opt for hysterical anarchy like the Mega Man franchise did, where players are given the unspeakable power of playing levels in whichever  order they want to. It's really just a matter of developer preference. With this in mind, how should Enchanterland lay out it's game progression on a wider scale? I'll need to lay out a few paragraphs before I can answer that. So, let's get going.

Stage Structure

         In general, games that use 'stages' tend to have linear ones. Even in the anarchical Mega Man, individual stages have pretty linear layouts. Players can pick the next robot master's level to play, but it's all a straight line from there. I think the main advantage of this linear approach compared to a nonlinear one is the levels' familiarity. It's a lot easier to make each stage unique and memorable. This is partially because developers can fine-tune their contents a bit more, and partially because players will be playing through them several times over. I can almost immediately recognize any New Super Mario Bros. Wii after starting it, perhaps even before starting it. Linear level design seems to help each level stand out quite a bit. On the contrary, stages with complex, winding paths are understandably harder to map out in one's head. That's usually what the appeal of them is; but notably, this design choice sacrifices recognizability for complexity. When players can more easily recognize and become familiar with each level, they will also start developing muscle memory. Their run-throughs won't be exactly the same every time, but they will start to become comfortable with the patterns and get into a rhythm. Linear level design, while it isn't used much anymore, absolutely has its benefits.

Only the second game in the series, and Capcom had already run out of good ideas for robot masters.

         I like the idea of designing recognizable levels, but there's just one problem: straight isn't an option with me. I just wrote about ways to give players more autonomy; there's no way I'm going to design anything linear in my game. Luckily, I think there's a way to make levels that have a 'rhythm' without making them entirely linear.

         While I'm sure there are better examples of games that have implemented similar ideas to this one, Miitopia is the only one I can think of. In that game, levels will follow a linear path most of the time, but then occasionally branch off into alternate ones. That's not a revolutionary idea by any means, but I'm surprised that I haven't seen it more. I think the levels in Enchanterland could follow a similar formula: the 'linear-but-not-linear' approach. Stages could have a few unique paths that all lead to the same goal, but present different obstacles and provide different benefits. They could also contain little shortcuts, secrets, or side-routes that could contain extra challenges for players who are willing to take them. These side-routes could also be great locations for the 'challenge chests' that I discussed a few weeks ago. In order to not let all hell break loose, I'll keep the number of different routes and bonus areas in each stage to a minimum. However, I think their implementation will still do a lot for keeping things interesting.

         At the same time, I also don't think every level has to have a 'reach the end' or 'defeat the boss' objective. Some levels could be about defeating a select few targeted enemies in different parts of the stage, where players are given the unspeakable power of choosing which target to go towards first. Total Anarchy. I'm also uniquely fond of 'survival' objectives, where the camera scrolls automatically or follows something besides the player . However, since I know casual players and speedrunners alike may not enjoy auto-scrolling levels, those ones will be entirely optional if I do decide to implement them. Having some diversity among the objectives of each level should also help players quickly become acquainted with each one. Besides, things should be mixed up every now and then; I don't have the attention span to play through a game that isn't just a little bit anarchical.

The Bigger Picture

         I think the 'linear-but-not-linear' design could work well on the larger scale as well. When looking at the game as a whole, I want to focus on some giving the player some sense of discovery. Sure, you may not figure out exactly what each level has in store for you just by looking at the select screen in Mega Man, but you get pretty damn close. While it certainly doesn't ruin the game, this design decision does sort of spoil the inherent joy I get from unlocking new levels. I still get to unlock new abilities, but that isn't quite the same thing.

         At the same time, the way Mega Man's level selection is laid out makes hard to ramp up the difficulty as the player gets more experience. Instead, the games usually just start off difficult and then stay that way. I don't want Enchanterland to be like that, I think the game would work a lot better if players were put through tougher challenges as they get better and unlock more items. There are certainly ways to make a non-linear game have more balanced difficulty curves, but I'm not going to bother with that. 

         On the 'not-linear' side of things, the answer is simple: bonus levels. I thoroughly enjoy any and all bonus levels that aren't the B-sides in Celeste. There's no better way to evoke that feeling of discovery than letting players unlock entirely new levels through secrets. Some of my favorite levels in games that aren't Celeste are optional side areas. Maybe that's because bonus levels sometimes have more thought put into them or are more challenging, but I think the mere fact that they are a 'bonus' makes them interesting in of itself.

Done and Done

         This devlog was a little bit shorter and sloppier than usual, which is probably because I procrastinated a bit too much. Whoops. I've also just had to take some steps back with development due to classes, but I'll get back on my feet over the next few weeks. My strict goal is to release Enchanterland sometime between now and 2065, so I'll have to start working really hard if I want to make that deadline. And with that, all has been said. To the next 40 years of development!