I've been thinking about level design lately, and this well-known writing advice by Gary Provost popped up in my feed. I've read it before, but this time I thought, "you could say this about level design, too".
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Here's a nice example from Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker. Each thing the player encounters is a "sentence". The whole game is a masterclass in level design, and a joy to play btw. https://youtu.be/jVsX6nhoY1Y?si=w-VJXGqL5nw3g00J
I'm reminded of @johnromero.bsky.social 's Doom ethos and the work of Valve. Changing up the floor texture when you reach a different height. Know when to expand outward, and inward. Without Wolf3D's limits, go nuts and change up the size, shape, width, height, feel, scope so it's not all hallways
great to think about from the micro to the macro of game design! Flow/difficulty ebb and flow, narrative and how it’s intertwined with the gameplay loop, etc. I think this philosophy can be applied at the various levels to try to figure out when to get spicy and when to give breathing room
Yeah, when you think of it, pacing is essential in any form of creative endeavor. Music, writing, level design, visual arts... Even teaching! You can have the ultimate message to convey and still fall flat if your recipient gets bored, bogged down or confused.
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https://youtu.be/jVsX6nhoY1Y?si=w-VJXGqL5nw3g00J
Fixed all five word sentence.
Just gotta have the groove.
Something something something something attendance.