Quake
Playthrough
Information
Solo
Time: 4 weeks
Editor: Trenchbroom
About
This map is about finding your way in to the castle and eliminate all the enemies in your way.
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Can you do that before it's too late?
Level Design
Overview of the map
End
Start
Research
To gain a better understanding of the level design in Quake, I started by playing some of the original maps. This helped me to get a sense of the spacing in the levels and how the encounters were set up.
Additionally, I explored some of the maps created by members of the Quake Mapping Discord Channel. This provided me with a more contemporary perspective and approach to level design.
Learning Trenchbroom
After some initial struggles, I found TrenchBroom editor to be very user-friendly and similar to the Source editor called Hammer++ in terms of its capabilities and functionality.
Setting up encounters
When I started creating this level, I began by designing​
enemy encounters.
Blockout
Door
Stairs leading to a button (key)
I designed the blockout for one of the first encounters,
and it looked like this: the main focus was a locked door.
I showed the player the door before they found the key.
This was my approach to creating this Quake level.
Why did I do this? Because I wanted the player to be more interested in finding a way into the room and exploring it further.
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One thing about this encounter is that the player will see a
nailgun and when the player takes it. An enemy will show up, just like a trap.
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This is called risk and reward.
Trap room visible when pressing the button
Blockout VS finished version
Progression and Level breakdown
The Quake map consists of two distinct phases - a sewer area and a castle area.
The player starts in the sewer area and progresses towards the castle.
Sewer Section - Beginning
In the first phase of the game, there is a clear progression. The player starts off with an easy enemy walking away from them, making it easy to kill.
As the game progresses, the player comes across a locked door. This indicates to the player that they need to find a key to open it. On the way to finding the key, the player comes across a more powerful gun. However, picking up this gun attracts better, stronger enemies.
Once the player finds the key, they soon realize that it was a trap. They get stuck in an area where they have to fight enemy waves, starting with easy enemies and slowly progressing to more difficult ones. However, since this is still the beginning area, the skill level required is still relatively easy. When the player completes the wave, they can now go to the locked door and continue their journey.
Start where the player can see an enemy and were they could go next.
Player finds the locked door, needs to find the key.
Shows the door before the key.
Two types of enemy encounters
First set up
This encounter forces the player to move in a different direction as they cannot remain still on the small platform to avoid getting hit by enemies. The player has the option to either go left or right to evade the enemy or move forward to engage in close combat.
Key trap
During this particular encounter, the player will face three waves of increasing difficulty levels. The purpose of this is to create a sense of progression as the map becomes more challenging, making the player feel more accomplished when they finally obtain the key.
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Risk and reward.
Last encounter before going to the castle area
This last encounter is to keep the player on their toes.
It can be quite unexpected to have an enemy right behind the door.
Castle Section - Middle/End
In the second phase of this level, the area becomes non-linear instead of linear like the sewers.
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After the player leaves the sewers and castle, they will enter a transition period where they can catch their breath before the next battle. Upon reaching the castle, they will encounter a locked door. As with previous doors, it's better to show the door before the key. To open this door, they need to use a button that's placed a bit away. It's worth noting that the player can choose to walk past the button and not open the door, as this is a non-linear approach.
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Later on, the player will face another encounter where two knights appear from the walls. This is meant to show that progress can be made without opening the door, even though it leads to a better weapon.
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After completing a certain part of the game, the player will arrive at a "mini" hub. At this hub, you will be able to see the main paths and a locked door that leads to the final room which is guarded by a knight. Opening the locked door requires two different keys, namely a silver key and a gold key. The paths in the hub lead either downwards or upwards, and they offer different encounters.
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The final room is a wave encounter where the player increasingly encounters more difficult enemies as each is eliminated.
Showing the door before the key
Hub Area
In this section, the player will come across a door that is guarded by a knight. This is meant to draw the player's attention to the door. To open the door, the player will need two different keys that can be seen from the hub area. One of the keys is located on top of a platform, while the other one is behind bars. There are two paths available to the player - one leading down and the other leading up. Both paths lead to a key, but they also have different encounters along the way.
Silver key on platform
Gold key behind bars
Two different paths -
Down and up
An encounter in the castle
In this room, the player will come across a locked door located just before the key. To open the door, the player must press a button that serves as the key. However, when the button is pressed, it triggers an ambush/trap.
The wall next to the button will open up and reveal a ranged enemy that will attack the player. This forces the player to retreat, and as they do so, they will encounter another set of enemies as a punishment for backing off.
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The player cannot destroy the ranged enemy's attack, but using a wall as a shield can destroy it.
Final Room / Wave Room
Upon entering the final room, the player is faced with a wave of enemies that progressively get more difficult as they are defeated. The room initially appears to be empty, but the presence of ample ammo creates tension for the player, hinting at the impending danger.
As the player progresses further into the room, the door suddenly closes, signaling the start of the waves. The first wave consists of easy knights, followed by more challenging ranged and jumping enemies, and finally, the toughest wave with two formidable opponents.
During the last wave, the player is highly vulnerable, with no cover or effective countermeasures. However, there is one strategy in Quake called in-fighting that can be used to the player's advantage. In-fighting occurs when the enemies start attacking each other instead of the player, triggered by an attack from one of them.