Level Designer
• During my time on the project took over ownership of two levels, Hunting the Bow and Battle of Munychia
• Setting up mission logic and flow through visual scripting in editor
• Creating levels from blockout to final state + Setting up VFX, Cinematic Sequences, AI and Puzzles in the levels
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▶️ During my time on the project, I took ownership over two Greece themed levels; Hunting the Bow and Battle of Munychia. Blocking out areas and implementing stealth, parkour, puzzle and combat scenarios. Scripted the mission logic and implemented the early versions of the Voice Overs and Cinematic Sequences.

▶️ Prototyping new puzzle ideas on my own and showcased them to stakeholders. Collecting thoughts and pitching new ideas to improve the game experience for the player.

▶️ I onboarded and mentored a junior on the project, who worked together with me on Hunting the Bow and Battle of Munychia. Next to that, I worked closely together with the other level designers and environment artists from co-dev studios who supported me with the design and tasks on the levels.
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I worked on Hunting the Bow and Battle of Munychia. Gameplay credits to the players
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▶️ Battle of Munychia is one of the few levels in the game that starts at night time.

Under Thrasybulus command, Kassandra approaches Munychia. She must secure the harbor, held by one of the 30 Tyrants. Clear the fort for the Athenian forces, who are moving in under the cover of the night.

▶️ This mission is mainly a stealth mission that gradually unfolds as an epic final fight on the battlefield. The level is a mission with clear objectives and segmented into different areas that serve as "gameplay bubbles" with semi-open world sandbox elements.

Core objectives
- ACT 1 | Sabotage the Ballistae
- ACT 2 | Eliminate all Spartans in the fort
- ACT 3 | Defend the Munychia and Kill Critias, the Tyrant commander
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▶️ ACT 1 | Sabotage the Ballistae

Kassandra arrives by a small boat. She will have to swim towards the port, infiltrate the area and sabotage the ballistae. In Assassins Creed Nexus VR, the levels are based on a semi-open world sandbox design. Players need to decide for themselves how they approach the mission. There are multiple pathways to achieve the same objective. Like a puzzle game, they will need to find their own approach.

At the port, the player needs to disable 3 Ballistae. Which one they decide to do first is up to them. Players will need to scout ahead and create a plan of action. I give the players 3 options. 2 of them are clear, I allow the player to either infiltrate the port from the left side of the wall or the right side of the wall. Next to that players can also hide in the water and swim their way deeper into the port, this is a more risky approach but if done well will give the player an easier time later on.

The placement of cover assets and set dressing are important to convey clear choices. I create this with use of contrast and negative space. Stealth games are like puzzle games, when you clearly show a certain path as an option, players will take it into account in their decision making. It eliminates the doubt of "is this a viable option, yes or no?" it is always better to make it clear that it is an option.

▶️ ACT 2 | Eliminate all Spartans in the fort

After Kassandra sabotaged the Ballistae as the port, it is time for her to infiltrate the fort, eliminate all the enemy soldiers and open up the gate for the Athenians to enter the fort. Just like the first act, the player needs to scout the location and find their own way on how to eliminate all the Spartans in the fort. There are 12 soldiers in total that the player needs to eliminate.

These soldiers have unique behaviors, they patrol and sometimes stop at certain points to talk with other soldiers. It is up to the player to recognize these pattern and create a plan of approach to eliminate the soldiers when they are the most vulnerable. Like for example, when they are isolated and alone in an area because of a blind spot.

Around the map I have placed throwable objects, players can use these to lure guards and even use them to stagger enemies + assassinate them.

▶️ ACT 3 | Defend the Munychia and Kill Critias, the Tyrant commander

Its a new day and Thrasybulus is on top of the fort walls. When you talk to him a cinematic sequence will be played and he explains that for this fight to end, they will need to eliminate the enemy commander across the battlefield. To avoid going through the battlefield, someone needs to parkour their way through the cliff faces. Of course only someone like you could do that!

Parkour in AC VR is simple, you hold the jump button and parkour your way forward. It needs to feel smooth and simple, with opportunities for the player to feel like an assassin. I placed the parkour assets and ledges based on metrics. We neither want the player to overjump or barely reach a ledge. This would feel bad and clunky. Give the player enough buffer to reach the jump.

When the player reaches the commander, another cinematic sequence will play. The commander tells you that you ruined his plans and that you will have to be eliminated. A boss fight will happen, kill the commander. After the commander is dead, the Athenians thank you for your efforts and a final scene will unfold where you attend the funural of the tyrant commander.

▶️ Are there any differences between making a game for VR and for a normal video game?

In terms of level design it is very similar. You would still create a level as you would for any other non-vr game. As level designers, you still have to adhere to metrics, gameplay intentions and gameplay ingredients to create a fun experience for the player. But the main question that needs to be resolved at the start of the project is if you want the player to have a set height/length in the game.

This is because in VR, your physical length in real life can affect how you would play the game. As an example; If you are tall you can look over assets, if you are short you might have an easier time using stealth. As a level designer it is very difficult to create a level taking into account all the different heights and other metrics like arm lengths. Someone might be 1cm too short to shoot an arrow over a fence, while someone else might be 1cm too tall to use a certain asset as cover. It would be difficult to control the player experience if we allow this to happen. We also need to take into account players who can't stand and perhaps can only play the game while sitting, overall it will be difficult to tune the experience.

If you care about controlling the player experience, I believe it is important that regardless of the players real height, the height of the playable character in game should be consistent to make sure we don't encounter the previous mentioned issues. This is why for AC-VR, we calibrate and adjust the player camera when the player enters the game. But of course not doing this could be a deliberate design decisions, if its a core aspect of your game.

▶️ Overall it was an interesting experience to make a game for a relatively new tech. I hope that in the future VR will be further developed and go mainstream. Assassins Creed is one of those games where I believe it benefits another VR sequel. Perhaps this time a PCVR title with their own storyline.