Build Your Levels for Action
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If your game features action-oriented gameplay, consider the following strategies to enhance engagement.
Allow for Vertical Navigation
Incorporate vertical navigation into your level design to increase the challenge and emotional intensity of the action.
Design multiple floors within a level.
Provide diverse methods for transitioning between floors, such as:
Broken ceilings.
Catwalks.
Climbing nets.
Climbing walls.
Elevators.
Escalators.
Ladders.
Piles of construction material.
Ramps.
Ropes.
Staircases.
Teleports.
Trampolines.
For additional details, refer to the section Allow for Horizontal and Vertical Navigation.
Allow Players to Use Different Itineraries to Reach Their Destinations
Offer players multiple routes to their objectives, each providing distinct advantages such as bonus time, increased cover, or opportunities for reward collection. For more information, refer to Allow Players to Choose Different Itineraries to Reach Their Destination.
Interconnect these routes at various points to enhance strategic flexibility. For instance, in a multiplayer action game, players should be able to switch between available paths to evade or lose pursuing enemies.
Allow for Multiple Playstyles
Players should be able to complete levels using a single consistent tactic, if they choose.
Your level design should support various tactics, allowing for different combinations of gear, vehicles, spells, and other options.
Design environments that accommodate short-, medium-, and long-range combat:
Narrow spaces where short-range combat excels.
Medium-sized areas that support mid-range tactics.
Expansive areas where long-range engagement is advantageous.
Introduce enemies that challenge the player’s tactics mid-combat, prompting adaptation and preventing repetitive playstyles.
Alternate the Pacing
Prevent boredom by ensuring periodic action sequences, even between major missions or quests. For more information, consult Define Your Level Flow.
Provide players with moments of respite after intense events such as battles, chases, or escapes. This gives them time to reflect on the narrative and recover from exertion.
Implement chokepoints or bottlenecks, where combat is likely to occur due to limited space.
Make Gameplay Fair
Level design must not unfairly benefit any one player or team.
Ensure well-balanced maps, giving all players equal opportunities to succeed. Symmetrical level design, where one half mirrors the other, can facilitate balance, particularly in team-based gameplay. Consider also designing asymmetrical maps, while acknowledging they are more complex to balance.
Avoid dead ends to promote fluid player movement. All areas should interconnect via visible entrances (e.g., wide gates, large doors) and, where appropriate, hidden entries (e.g., shafts, tunnels, secret passages).
If dead ends are included, ensure the risk is justified by placing valuable rewards at these locations.
The fewer the available paths, the easier they are to defend.
Players tasked with defending a target should have that target located close to their spawn point.
Spawn points should be placed outside danger zones to ensure players have sufficient time to respond to threats.
Traps must allow players enough time to react and escape..
In Celeste, players are granted adequate time to evade large incoming objects that could otherwise crush them.
Credit: Extremely OK Games. Footage captured by the author.
Distribute the most powerful rewards (e.g., weapons, ammunition, power-ups) across the level to prevent a single player from collecting them all and becoming overpowered.
Enemy NPCs should not remain idle until players engage them. Instead, they should:
Maintain vigilance and scan their surroundings.
Patrol designated areas.
Take cover and prepare ambushes.
Prevent players from exploiting long-range vantage points to eliminate enemies across the map. Add cover to limit line-of-sight where needed.
Avoid designing spawn areas vulnerable to sniping from static positions.
Refrain from including rooms with only one entrance, which could be easily defended by camping players. Incorporate multiple entry points instead.
Create Spaces with Different Features
Low / High Terrain
Players attacking from higher ground often enjoy a tactical advantage.
Elevated positions provide better situational awareness.
Lowered floor areas may offer concealment from enemies positioned above, and vice versa.
A lowered floor section can conceal a player from enemies above.
Dark / Bright Environments
Darkness facilitates stealth, ambushes, and sneaky tactics.
Well-lit areas make enemy detection easier.
Large / Small Areas
Players in large, open areas are more exposed if distant from cover.
Varying space sizes should accommodate different combat styles.
Sparse / Dense Cover
More cover increases tactical possibilities and encourages diverse strategies.
Dense cover makes traversal safer and supports flanking or stealth.
Greater spacing between cover spots makes players less inclined to move out of cover.
Encourage players to break cover by introducing enemies that:
Use melee attacks.
Deploy throwable or remote explosives (e.g., grenades, suicide drones).
Advance aggressively toward players.
Allow Players to Take Cover
Include a variety of cover types to promote diverse tactics and strategic adaptability. Different cover types lead to richer gameplay experiences.
Low / High Cover
Low Cover
Should protect a crouched or prone character.
May allow players to vault or jump over it.
In third-person view, players may observe action from behind the cover.
High Cover
Should protect a standing character.
In third-person view, visibility may be more restricted than from low cover.
High cover may reduce spatial awareness, limiting strategic planning compared to low cover.
Partial / Full Cover
Partial Cover
Offers limited protection, exposing parts of the character.
Examples include walls with windows, fences, shrubs, or trees.
Full Cover
Shields the entire character from at least one direction.
Opaque / Transparent Cover
Opaque Cover
Prevents visual detection of characters behind it.
Constructed from materials such as wood, stone, concrete, or metal.
Encourages players to remain behind it for safety.
Transparent Cover
Allows visual detection of characters behind it.
Made from materials like glass, fabric, or acrylic panels.
Encourages movement due to lower protection.
Permits players to spot enemies and set up ambushes.
Soft / Hard Cover
Soft Cover
Does not block incoming damage.
May consist of wood, plastic, cloth, paper, foliage, or water.
Encourages movement due to lack of safety.
Hard Cover
Effectively absorbs or blocks damage.
Made from solid materials like stone, metal, or concrete.
Encourages players to remain behind it for protection.
Destructible / Indestructible Cover
Destructible Cover
Can be damaged or destroyed, prompting players not to stay behind it for too long.
Indestructible Cover
Provides long-term protection, allowing players to remain behind it indefinitely when necessary.