Level design solo project made in Unreal Engine 5, inspired by the popular shooter Overwatch. It serves as a level design study for multiplayer environments, promoting dynamic types of gameplay across a vast hero roster.
Check out the final blockout walkthrough below!
Overwatch - “Lisboa”
Build a central circular objective to encourage dynamic engagements on point
Promote agency with flanking opportunities and verticality, offering meaningful level and movement choices
Enable a large roster of hero kits and playstyles
Add a personal touch, drawing inspiration from my own life experiences
Design Goals:
Engine: Unreal Engine 5
Duration: 2 Weeks
Team: Solo Project
Project Details
Use of height and elevated spaces for interesting engagements
Ensure cover is purposefully placed for engaging combat spaces
Allow for various styles of gameplay, considering different hero kits and role passives
Avoid long sightlines without proper engagement cover or flank routes
Stay symmetrical to keep teamfights fair and balanced
Project Learnings:
Level Design Process
Research and Ideation
For the design of this map, my primary goal was to highlight and practice key concepts commonly used in multiplayer maps.
I started with a moodboard, showcasing all references images I used to design the level. I wanted to bring a little of my life into my design, so I chose Lisbon, Portugal as the inspiration as my dad is from the city. I particularily chose the marques de pombal as the direct inspiration as it’s a city landmark, and I remember visiting that exact roundabout from my visit to Portugal.
Paper Designs
I created a paper design using Miro to determine player paths, choke points, the main objective, and of course the spawn rooms. This paper design served as the initial idea to start building the map.
I aimed for symmetrical design of the overall map to avoid any risk of making one side “better” than the other, as well as to adhere to the principles set by other Overwatch Control maps. Overwatch is it’s best when it’s fair!
Once I had a clear idea of the map design and my design intentions, I established choke points, player pathing around the map, and team spawn rooms. Additionally, I determined placement of both small and large health packs to guide the flow of the map.
Choke points are purposefully more open than other routes, allowing the attacking team a more dynamic approach to overtaking the objective. By placing the objective on a lower elevation, and proving multiple height and sightline advantages, the choke point promotes stronger teamplay to cover all engagement zones.
Blockout and Development
I transformed the original paper design into a functional and playable blockout. My focus was on integrating multiple elevations to create strategic gameplay dynamics. The player's height and proximity to the main objective would provide different engagement angles. I also prioritized symmetry to ensure balance and fairness for both teams.
Key components to enhance player navigation were:
Rooftops: Utilize the rooftops of Lisboa’s buildings as routes towards the main objective, or towards the enemy side. Accessed through ramps and climbing, promoting non-flying or high-jumping heroes to perch above. Allow for strategic position holding and movement.
Main Objective: A central circular main objective area with a large statue in the centre, which serves as a dynamic focal point for strategic control, and the zone where most teamfights will occur
Flanking: Multiple pathways promoting flanking and creating a 3-lane flow, including the main lane towards the centre objective
Health Packs: Only 1 small healthpack is available near the main objective, while larger health packs are located closer to each spawn room. This ensures flank players can sustain themselves longer, while support heroes can reliably push with the tank on point
Final Learnings
I had a lot of fun with this personal project. I have over 2,000 hours in Overwatch (😅), so I set out to replicate the level flow and layout as naturally as possible. Through this project, I learned important components of the level creation process:
Verticality: In high-speed shooters such as Overwatch, verticality and varied elevation proves to keep engagements dynamic and promote team synergy to tackle strong chokepoints against the opposite team. In other words, if the whole level was flat, the level would feel boring and repetitive. By adding variation in height and sightlines, I keep options open and allow players to make meaningful decisions.
Cover: Purposefully placing props and cover in key areas that provide cover are crucial to a balanced and engaging fight. Cover should not fully protect a player from all angles, but should be placed in spaces that promote engagements for key areas on the map. Using cover should allow players to make meaningful choices for their next move
Map Shape: Keeping maps rectangular and blocky feels uninspired. By shaping moving varied ways across the map, I keep each section/lane feeling unique, and promoting the type of gameplay I want in that specific area. For example, flank lanes are narrow and are located further from spawn, while the main objective is circular, open, and has several vantage points to create a more “brawl” dynamic