Mood Board and Level Design Concept

We finally decided on the order and themes of our levels, for our games. 

The first level, which will be the tutorial level, is the Temple. 

The second level, is the Power Room.

The third level, is the Cave of Wonders.

The fourth level, is the Lava Level. 

I chose to create the third level, the Cave of Wonders. 

I find that being in the dark, in a wide-open space, induces more tension than being in a narrow, closed-off darkened area. You know that there is nothing more behind you, and the only unseen dangers lie ahead - not to your right, nor left. Yet in a widened area, danger is all around you and you really have to stop, and listen and look and feel your way around. 

So from the very beginning, I had this image stuck in my head: this grand crystal pillar, right in the middle of the level. I knew I wanted a very organic and open level, in order to break the hard-edged and linear feel the first two levels were shaping up to be. 

I created a test crystal pillar, which was the base of my level. Putting a translucent emissive texture on it, and placing it in my map, I discovered this absolute beauty that this created: anything that passed in front of the pillar was silhouetted against the brightness. It was no longer a bright spot on a dark canvas, but instead, darkness on a bright canvas. To see glimpses of shapes and dangers, crossing past the brightness of the crystal, created a visually stunning effect. 

This landmark, could almost be seen as a beacon of light, in the level - a reference point, should the player ever feel lost.   

Small mood-board, showing off my inspiration and general direction I wanted to build the Cave of Wonders. Visually, I loved the idea of a giant crystal - this great landmark right in the middle, surrounded by raw crystals that littered the ceiling, almost like a night's sky.

I also liked the idea of going deeper and deeper underground - into the oppressing darkness. With that in mind, I decided that a small exotic gameplay would be a nice break. During the whole game, we are taught that we need to go slow, to observe our surroundings and make calculated decisions. A well-placed light-beacon can light up our way. So to break that, I thought it would be fun to have this brief, 30 seconds of heart-beating action.

Thus, the (disgusting) Spider-Chase was born. (Yes, it is funny that the severely arachnophobic person decides to create a fast-actioned chase, with blood-thirsty spiders right on your heels.)

The entire chase sequence would take place underneath the main level. It is a 30-second exotic gameplay section, just to break any redundancy in the game. The winding path descends around the same crystal pillar found on the surface. The player must execute well-timed beacons of light, in order to hit the Bait Spiders, which will in turn force the Chase Spiders to stop momentarily to devour the Bait Spider afflicted with light. This gives the player a little time to continue to run down the path, repeating the action whenever the Chase Spiders draw near.

The Chase Sequence ends when the player makes it to the Safe Zone. 

First draft of my Cave of Wonders concept, of the surface.