BioWare - The Long Road #3

Dave Feltham has kicked up Part 3 of The Long Road to BioWare.  This installment talks about his current role:

Before I tell you what I do, I have to start with a description of what a Level Designer does. A Level Designer determines the building blocks of an area of the game, is owner of the fun of the level, and is a funnel for all departments who bring their work into the game. We model the blueprints of the level, we script in events, we give XP and treasure, and we put in combat that is challenging enough that you find it rewarding to finish, but not so hard that you die a lot. If a level is great fun or not fun at all, that’s due to the Level Designer. Blame him or her.

A level at BioWare, and specifically on Mass Effect, starts with a writer’s rough overview for the plot. After everyone involved with the level (artist, Level Designer, cinematic designer, cutscene artist and writer) are in agreement with, on paper, what will happen on the level, the Level Designer takes that and begins to craft the level. Sometimes a sketch is made in the meeting, other times not. But the narrative playable, the 3D version of what was discussed in that writer’s overview, is the goal: show how the level looks, show me how the mission is paced, and show me where the conversation and combats happen. And if this is approved, then everything evolves from this.