In this level one team is trying to gain access to the large building and steal one of two brief cases and bring it back to their own base. The goal was to create a space that complimented the gameplay mechanics of a multiplayer tactical first person shooter but to also create an environment that had the atmosphere and mood that would be found in a single player game. Additional screenshots can be seen in the Screenshots section.



Layout



The defending and attacking players' starting locations.


The level allows for many types of play as well as multiple paths to the goals. It contains many areas that players can use to hide and sneak around as well as gain height advantage and snipe from afar or rush in guns blazing.




A connecting bridge ties the two starting locations to one another allowing players the ability to bypass the wide-open kill zone in the courtyard. I used green lights to help guide the player to points of interest and help them move about the level.



Effects and Lighting



Two of the multiple entrances to the defending base: The staircase on the east side leading to the second floor and a maintenance tunnel that connects the two bases.


I used a blue tinted directional light to light the outdoor area and to create shadows with the geometry. A faint ambient light was used to provide a base lighting for the level. The rain was created by placing multiple static meshes that contained a moving rain texture on them. A height fog effect was added to simulate the mist created by the rain hitting the ground and a post processing effect was used to give the environment a blue tint and to create distance blurring to simulate looking at far off objects through a rain storm. Sound effects of rain were also placed around the level to increase the level of emersion.



Environment Population



I placed static meshes of foliage around and inside the buildings to make them appear abandoned and overgrown. In many areas there are holes in the ceiling with plant life growing into the rooms. The floor in the rooms contains static meshes of trash and rubble as well as boxes that appear to have taken water damage. The main room contains many static meshes of barrels, ceiling supports, hand railing and shipping crates which make it look like some kind of storage facility or warehouse. The main room also contains a hole in the roof with rain and foliage coming in.