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Jiaxin Yan
Level Design
Using Cover to Modulate Pacing
“ Breakthrough ” is a single-player level for the game , Half-Life 2 . Throughout the level , there are multiple different types of cover . These cover objects are based on a variety of properties , such as static and dynamic , full and partial , destructible and indestructible , and hard .
This study ’ s hypothesis was that when the cover in an area has attributes such as dynamic , partial , or destructible , the pacing will be higher . In contrast , the pacing will be lower when the cover is static , full , or indestructible .
I chose this topic because I like to play FPS ( First-Person Shooter ) games . In FPS games nowadays , cover has become an essential part . There are also various types of cover in the game , such as dynamic cover and destructible cover . I wanted to try to use different types of cover to manipulate the pacing of the level .
It took me about seven months to complete this project , and I learned a lot in the process . At the start , I spent significant time researching cover and pacing in video games as well as their connections . Then , I finished the level and conducted playtests . The results were surprisingly close to the predicted pacing , except for some differences in some parts , and testers ’ feedback did mention the effect of cover . I learned about other factors that could affect the pacing of the level by studying the differences .
In conclusion , good pacing should be a goal for designers to create an immersive experience for players , and this study provides a way to manipulate it . I believe this would be helpful to designers in the industry because cover has become an essential part of modern games , and pacing is important to the level . I look forward to more research around cover based on my study .
80 LEVEL DESIGN