YEAR 3 - BA3b - Level Design and music

I want to incentivize movement and action in Alien::Qualifier so I design the levels to try and encourage this as much as possible.

I try to stick to a specific set of rules when designing maps:

1. Generally I don't like giving players blocks in front of them when they're standing on ground (map 3 is an exception) because it gives them a safe place to hide and wait for the opponent to approach. Map 1 has ground that allows bullets to pass through it in the middle. This allows me to create an island at ground height without giving players too much cover.

2. The only situation where I do allow cover like this is when there is an easy way to get the drop on the defensive person such as in map 3. Due to the landing on heads mechanic, and the limited air jumps, the most powerful areas are the highest points.

3. I try to always give at least 2 points at the highest altitude so that both players have the option to pressure one another. map 2 is an exception because the highest point has ground directly above it, so a single reflected bullet coming towards them forces them off the platform, which is now available to the attacking player.

I particularly like map 2's circular structure. In play tests I've noticed players move around a lot on this map, constantly trying to exploit the high ground on top of the floating island whilst using the island itself as an areal shield. I also think visually it's one of the more appealing maps to look at and understand.

I like the endless pits in map 1 too because it always feels really skillful to drop into a hole, hover, and jump out again to avoid a bullet. It definitely requires more technical skill though and can lead to lots of accidental self-destructs so I'm generally going to avoid putting endless pits in the caves given that they're intended to be the easiest maps.


I've been looking for music for a little while now, and the first person I messaged never got back to me but the second one did, and said I could use his tracks in the game. MrNightVarga on Newgrounds. I wanted something that was sci-fi but upbeat atmospheric. I didn't want to distract the player but I also wanted the music to bring a sense of place to the various areas in the game. MrNightVarga's tracks are the closest I've found so far.
Fragile Machine
Celestial Enchantment
Red Reflection
Bumpy Wheel