Archive: 8 posts

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I am trying to create a level I have lots of gameplay and logic that i like but my opening to my level doesn't fit so I have I few question. For the question lets say im making a volcano level Do the player care about how he got into the volcano or can I start him all ready inside? How much does the player care about story, does there need to be one at all? "why am I in this volcano?" Should the first thing that happen be something for my player to watch (the volcano erupt) or for him to do some platforming or a puzzle? (jump fire pits) Does there have to be someone (or some animal) that tell the player what to do? (you must go into the volcano the fetch the gem of life) What elements make an opening good and interesting? (Light, Sounds etc.) Thanks for your help

2010-04-18 05:05:00 Author: mr.cool Posts: 18

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All of those elements you just mentioned make a great opening, but a good opening is really a matter of opinion. There's tons of ways to make an interesting opening, but at the end of the day, it's still your choice. Some good opening have short cutscenes to watch, others throw you right into the action with some sort of catastrophe happening and your sackperson just happens to be there to save the day. Sometimes you can have a good opening by just having a visually appealing setting, like a nice door frame. (In your level, think about a doorway made of lavarocks maybe? I have something similar in a mountain level I'm making.) As far as story goes. Some players don't care about story at all, some do. It's really just preference. I enjoy having a story sometimes, sometimes I don't. Just depends. Just make sure if you do have a story, to make sure players who play your level randomly won't get lost if they haven't played the prequel levels to it, that way your random level pickers won't be like, "....why am I finding a gem of life? What IS the gem of life?" Eh, just an example. Use your imagination to do something really exciting, you always want to impress the player within the first couple of minutes with something, otherwise you may end up losing some ratings from those "in and out players" (As I like to call them.) You know, the members who jump into a level, give it a 30 second chance and split. You'd be surprised how much of an impact you can make if you get them to stick around, finish and rate it. Good luck! ^^

2010-04-18 05:54:00 Author: blanejoyner Posts: 59

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Thanks for the great feedback but a few more question How do I get the motivated to do the quest? (I don't want to find the gem of life) How do you naturally make your level change the amount of layers? (For example if my level starts out side the volcano how do I make it look nature that once you get inside there is only one layer to move in?) If I do use gameplay in the opening should it be simple jump from here to here or time this jump or something complex to wow the player? As for story does there need to be a host at all or is thin air talking to you ok? (does there have to be an explore behind you saying "now go get the gem of life or can thin air just say "Search the mountain for the hidden gem of life"

2010-04-18 06:13:00 Author: mr.cool Posts: 18

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May I suggest you build the level to how you want it & to stop worrying what other people want. The reason being that your not going to be able to please everyone, some will like a level no matter how good or bad you or I think it is & some will dislike it. How do I get the motivated to do the quest? Well a good introduction can help, good text & cutscenes. But again it's down to the individual as to what interests them, some like story levels & some don't, some like a small amount of text & cutscenes & some may like alot. Like I said best to do it to what you like & im sure plenty of other people will like it also. How do you naturally make your level change the amount of layers? A example could be to have the front layer as lava that hurts the player, middle layer as your floor and a wall behind the floor. It depends how you design your level, just experiment & see what you like.

2010-04-18 17:25:00 Author: Unknown User

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Sorry for double post but met the ps3 character limit in my first one. If I do use gameplay in the opening should it be........ Keeping things simple can sometimes be better but as ive mentioned it's down to preference, experiment & see what you think is best for your level. As for story does there need to be a host at all or is thin air talking to you ok? I personally would prefer the text to be coming from a character or object rather than thin air. Why not try taking a look at some levels in the Community Spotlight (http://www.lbpcentral.com:80/forums/showthread.php?25574-Community-Spotlight-Episode-37&p=443044#post443044) for some idea & good examples of level design as well as what people are enjoying when playing LBP.

2010-04-18 17:40:00 Author: Unknown User

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Character(s) relating the general idea of the story is a good idea. Simple jumping should be enough for the opening. When the player is jumping, show the title and the author's name in a cool font that matches the theme of the level. For the layer issue, use a combination of a rock and grass material for outside the volcano and once inside, (maybe you fall in?) using one layer should be fine. Might want to add fire to the two other layers to add depth.

2010-04-18 19:19:00 Author: Silverpanther Posts: 156

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I know this is a shameless plug but for story you may want to check out my latest blog post which you can read here. (http://www.lbpcentral.com/forums/entry.php?1254-The-Film-Makers-Blog-Story-Chapter-1-Basics) I personally believe a story, no matter how simple it is, should be in your levels. If you were making a level to purely show off a concept then yes you don't need a story but having a simple one does allow the player to have some kind of motivation to finish. You can start the player outside or inside the volcano, the difference is though is that outside, it is a little easier to set up the story then them already being inside. I say this because then you can tell why the player needs to go into the volcano using whatever method you want (a character, making it look like the sack boy is talking, a giant sign that says free treasure in the volcano, etc.) Where as if they are inside the volcano, it seems like the sack boy knows why he is already in there even if the player does not and you have to reveal that to the player. As far as cutscene versus gameplay at the beginning goes, I find that totally depends on the level and the story. If you have a simple story that is a basic get from point a to point b, you don't need a cutscene, just indicate somehow that the player needs to get to point b. You can even just make it a challenge, the player wants to get to point b because they were challenged to get to point b. If you are trying to show how the world is being turned to ice and it's because of this alien race and that it's in the future and that you have to retrieve the legendary golden key that will activate the planets defenses and you want the player to know all of this in the first minute of gameplay, then yes a cutscene may be what you need. I think that is enough for now. I do recommend again checking out my blog post on story, it should help answer some of your questions.

2010-04-18 20:23:00 Author: shebhnt Posts: 414

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Do the player care about how he got into the volcano or can I start him all ready inside? How he got in How much does the player care about story, does there need to be one at all? "why am I in this volcano?" story is important Should the first thing that happen be something for my player to watch (the volcano erupt) or for him to do some platforming or a puzzle? (jump fire pits) watch something for an intro Does there have to be someone (or some animal) that tell the player what to do? (you must go into the volcano the fetch the gem of life) no it's all up to you What elements make an opening good and interesting? (Light, Sounds etc.) good lighting, sounds, and visuals

2010-04-18 22:00:00 Author: jonlolz Posts: 155

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