Preproduction Blueprint: How to Plan Game Environments and Level Designs, 2nd Edition

“Preproduction Blueprint” is a complete system for planning your game environments and level designs. This could be for a playable level or a game environment exploration to show off in a portfolio.

Planning process is called pre-production and what you end up with is a “Preproduction Blueprint”. It is an essential step to finishing your projects. Unfortunately, planning tends to be a rushed part of the process or completely ignored.

Creating a game environment or a level design is very similar. Once you have an idea you have to go through the steps of:

• Knowing what you are going to create
• How the game environment is going to look
• How the level will play
• Location, theme and setting of your game environment or level design
• Creating a top-down layout
• Defining and designing objectives, obstacles and scripted events
• Knowing your project purpose
• Collecting photo reference
• Creating a story
• Visual development
• Creating to do lists, a plan of action

Rushing into a level design or game environment without planning will most likely result in unfinished project.

All you need is a solid plan of what your environment is going to look and play like prior to creating it.

“Preproduction Blueprint” is the planning system and workbook. These are the same steps I use to design environments and levels. It took me years to figure out and to refine so you don’t have to. I laid everything out for you to use in a step-by-step process.

After going through the book, you’ll be able to close your eyes and walk through the environment. The level will be finished in your mind. The next step will be to open up a level editor and begin construction.

Table of Contents

• Inner Cover
• Legal: Copyright, Trademarks, Disclaimers
• Acknowledgements
• Table of Content:
• The Secret Behind Preproduction Blueprint
• 11 Step Planning Overview
• How to Follow “Preproduction Blueprint”
• Playable Level or Stand-Alone Game Environment
• Step 1: Ideas
• Step 2: Setting, Location and Theme
• Step 3: Project Purpose
• Step 4: Features
• Step 5: Photo/Video Reference and Research
• Step 6: Story
• Inner Cover
• Legal: Copyright, Trademarks, Disclaimers
• Acknowledgements
• Step 10: Visual Development
• Step 11: Making Lists
• Final: Preproduction Blueprint
• Thank You!
• Reference
• Preproduction Blueprint Worksheet
• Preproduction Blueprint Checklist