DM-SPACEMALL
Unreal Tournament — Deathmatch Level Design
Research & Inspiration
The aesthetic was born from researching high-end brutalist architecture fused with 1980s retro-futuristic malls. Technically, I analyzed classic UT maps like DM-Rankin and DM-Deck16 to understand how verticality was used not just for combat, but as a traversal tool.
Design Planning
Fast Traversal
Ensuring unobstructed paths to maintain momentum during high-speed chases.
Vertical Combat
Leveraging multiple elevations to create distinct height advantages and risks.
Balanced Distribution
Strategically placing weapons to avoid dead zones and encourage exploration.
Multiple Routes
Preventing bottlenecks by providing at least three exit points for every room.
Clear Landmarks
Using architectural focal points for instantaneous player orientation.
Continuous Encounters
Designing compact, interconnected routes to reduce downtime between fights and encourage frequent player encounters.
Design Pillars
Fast traversal
Verticality
Movement flow
Leashing
Gameplay ingredients
My Design Responsibilities
Level Design
- ▪Level blockout and greyboxing
- ▪Node-map development and route optimization
- ▪Sightline, cover, and spatial readability
Gameplay Design
- ▪Weapon, armor, and health pickup placement
- ▪Jump-pad and lift traversal tuning
- ▪Spawn placement and combat pacing
Testing & Iteration
- ▪Playtest planning and observation
- ▪Layout adjustments based on gameplay feedback
- ▪Performance profiling and optimization
Node Map Evolution
Observation
Central room was too large; players spent too much time searching.
Action
Added a second floor and four jump pads to bridge the vertical gap.
Optimization
Redistributed power-ups to fix central camping issues.
Validation
I reviewed gameplay and minimaps recordings to assess player routes, encounter frequency and downtime. This informed my evaluation of V4’s layout and pacing.
Level Breakdown
Center Arena
Primary focal point housing the Shield Belt. Its exposed position creates a high-risk, high-reward objective
Cafeteria
Sightline breaks and tight corridors for close-quarters combat specialists.
Tech Room
Medium-risk combat zone containing the Flak Cannon, connecting the lower mall to the main atrium
Art Gallery
A long-range engagement zone designed for snipers and flanking maneuvers.
Spawn points
Positioned near outer-room entrances facing the central combat ring. Nearby weapons support quick re-entry, while sightlines into the ring guide players toward active encounters and reduce downtime between fights.
Playtesting & iteration Loop
Tested whether the level size supported the pace of a deathmatch
Reduced oversized spaces and tightened routes to increase encounter frequency
The layout became more compact and better suited to fast-paced combat.
Tested spawn locations for fairness, orientation and immediate exposure to combat.
Adjusted spawn placement around the map to reduce unfair starts and improve access to multiple routes.
Players could enter the match from different areas without one spawn providing an obvious positional advantage.
Tested weapon, health, armor and power-up placement, including how different pickups worked together.
Repositioned pickups and adjusted combinations to avoid creating overly valuable areas while encouraging movement between combat spaces.
Revised pickup placement encouraged movement between combat zones and created more varied encounters.
Assess whether the final layout supported competitive encounters across a full multiplayer lobby.
Conducted a full-lobby deathmatch playtest, observing player movement, combat locations, and kill distribution.
Kill counts were relatively close across players, and no single area appeared to dominate the match. This was an encouraging indication that the layout supported varied combat opportunities, although kill distribution alone could not establish overall map balance.
Final Level Production
Project Outcomes
Promising Combat Balance
Full-lobby testing showed relatively close kill counts and no obvious location-based advantage, suggesting the revised layout supported competitive encounters.
Iteration Impact — From Oversized to Purposeful
Four rounds of playtesting informed changes to the level's scale, traversal routes, spawn positions, and pickup distribution. The final layout was more compact, with clearer movement opportunities and fewer spaces that interrupted combat flow.
“Build from the player outward, not from the level inward. Starting too large made scale, traversal, and balance harder to control.”
I would conduct additional playtests with different player skill levels and track encounter frequency, spawn survival, and control of high-value pickup areas to assess balance more systematically.
Reflection
What Worked
Movement Chains
Players naturally discovered infinite loops using wall dodges and jump pads.
Visual Orientation
The central spire served as a recognizable landmark for navigating all sectors.
Weapon Pacing
Weapon density supported the fast pace of Unreal Tournament combat and kept players moving between encounter spaces.
Biggest Lesson
The most valuable realization during this project was that addition is easy, subtraction is hard. The map only started to feel competitive when geometry was aggressively removed unless it served a specific mechanical purpose. Minimalism in level design is not about less detail; it is about clarity.