Sanctuary of Seasons
Open World Exploration
Introduction
The goal of this piece was to create a small open world that feels genuinely rewarding to explore. Landmarks and composition make player goals clear, while the classic mechanics of Zelda pair with a few of my own invention to reward and challenge players.
Project Details
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Open-world exploration
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9 weeks half time
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Unreal Engine
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Template of my own creation (With much help from CobbDev on YouTube for climbing)
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Assets Used:
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Dreamscape Tower
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Stylized Nature Pack
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Infinity Blade: Grasslands
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Advanced Village Pack
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Horse Starter Kit
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Realistic Starter VFX
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OVERVIEW
A MINIATURE WORLD
This level aims to deliver a meaningful open world akin to Breath of the Wild in a much smaller experience. Exploration, player choice and multiple modes of movement were essential and baked in from the start. I wanted players to be able to set goals, but also to get lost along the way.
The level is three floating islands: a miniature world with defined limits, small enough to identify and reach two end goals within 15 minutes. To progress to the Sanctuary of Seasons, the player collects blessings from the Ice Temple and the Evertree, each the major landmarks of their own island.
exploring the world
BUILDING A MENTAL MAP
To make navigating an open world fun, it is important for players to develop their own sense of direction. To do so, they need goals and reference points from which to develop a mental map.
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The two landmarks can serve both roles: they are an end goal and a grand feature to orient players. Therefore, I have ensured that they grab players' attention at key points throughout the level, using framing and leading lines to make them as prominent as possible.
SETTING GOALS
In an engaging open world, the player wants to do more than transit themselves from landmark to landmark. Along their journey, I have made sure that players have not only long-term goals, but middle- and short-term ones as well.
In the short-term, players are generally invited towards a single goal that moves them into the next space, but in the mid-term, I try as often as possible to present multiple goals, to let players express agency in crafting their own journey.
UNCOVERING SECRETS
I wanted players to be curious about my world and explore it as fully as possible: to do so, I made sure to reward that curiosity as often as possible.
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Around the level are collectibles and interesting spaces that the player will find if they take the time to stray from the main path and engage with the environment. Some take puzzle-solving to uncover, while others simply require close attention and curiosity.
Heart of The Ancients​
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Collect to restore HP
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4 can be handed in for a permanent HP upgrade
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Consumed to restore stamina
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Allows players to climb higher and glide longer
STAMINA
HERB
Scripts and features
CLIMBING
For this level, I reproduced the free climbing found in Zelda, creating gameplay opportunity all over the landscape. If players can manage their stamina, this mechanic invites them to overcome any obstacle.
GLIDING
Once they've gained elevation, players want to quickly cross the distance to the places they now see. I've made a glide that is fast both forwards and down so players can get far but elevation remains an obstacle.
RIDING
The last element of the movement puzzle is the horse. Allowing players to traverse long distances quickly is key in creating a level large enough to be worthy of exploration without wearing on players' patience.
BOW
I added a bow that can shoot interactable crystals and affect the environment, as well as allowing for simple combat. I have copied Breath of the WIld's bullet-time mechanic, allowing the bow to be useful even in mid-air. This allows players to demonstrate ingenuity and skill in key places across the level.
MAGIC ARROWS
When the player arrives at either landmark, they must overcome a puzzle (Evertree) or combat (Ice Temple) challenge, receiving magic arrows of the corresponding element as reward.
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By growing trees and freezing waterfalls, these arrows open up new paths for the player, creating a sense of progression across the map. When both have been collected, players can return to the central village to complete the level.
process
Initial Blockout
PRE-PRODUCTION
To begin the project, I gathered reference pictures to settle on distinct biomes and a look for a central hub. After settling on the lush, forested biome and knowing that I wanted to do floating islands, I also looked for images that could highlight the potential of cliffsides and flowing water.
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Once references were gathered, I painted the overview seen here, which served as the basis for the first blockout.
ITERATION - TUTORIAL ISLAND AS AN EXAMPLE
FROM BARE-BONES
TO HAND-CRAFTED
The player starts the level on this smaller island. Iterating on it was, in many ways, a microcosm of iterating the level in general.
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From the earliest blockout, the sequence of revealing the landmarks was determined, and soon after tutorials for each mechanic were laid down.
Players were somewhat overwhelmed by these early versions, and as I worked I gave each tutorial more room to breathe while refining the composition of key views. Of course, the island also received some collectibles of its own!
FIRST ITERATION
FINAL LEVEL
INTRODUCTORY VISTA
From the beginning, I wanted the Ice Temple to be the first thing the player sees. Its provides a sense of scale without overwhelming players with a view of the entire world. The vista remained mostly the same, only amplified by framing and leading lines.
Playtesters expected more out of the introduction to climbing. They climbed absolutely everywhere and went off the intended path. I added darker obstacles and different angles that guide players while also inviting the creative use that players wanted.
THE FIRST CLIMB
INTRODUCING GLIDING
On first instinct I introduced gliding with a cinematic experience gliding towards the main island. Unfortunately, this overwhelmed players as a tutorial. I retained the cinematic glide but also added a smaller, safer space to let players get comfortable with the glider.
Reflections
The power of process: In this piece I revisited a level I had worked on for 4 weeks as an assignment before portfolio began. In that time, I intentionally kept detail to a blockout level. I believe this did a lot for the final piece, as I ensured interesting paths and compositions at the level of basic shapes before I went on to refining and adding content.
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Testers know best: Starting with a playable level also meant I was able to do plenty of playtesting. The wealth of feedback focused my attention on key areas - like the climbing tutorial and approach to the second island. Players were unsure how to navigate these areas and where to go next. Refining them helped players to identify the main paths with confidence, which freed them up to explore more independently.
Trolled by trolls: Building the troll enemies was quite a task. Players are especially sensitive to low polish in combat, so I spent a lot of time honing everything from AI to animation timing to particles. The trolls did enhance the level by raising tension at key points. However, a simpler enemy, like a homing orb, might have been a better way to test skills in the core bow mechanic and could be re-used during traversal.
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The magic of arrows: I would also like to explore the design space of the magic arrows more. The current arrows mostly interact with one object (e.g. pine trees) to do one thing (e.g. enable climbing). I would like to integrate the arrows with more systems and places across the level - for example, growing consumables with plant arrows or freezing platforms to cross a rushing river.
- thank you for your time
WALKTHROUGH
SOUND ON