CAGD 270

  Konner Rooney

3/2024

2242-CAGD-270-03-2913

ePortfolio Post 1 (Level Design) - Simple DnD Map

Players and Roles

    For both the initial and final interaction of my Simple DnD Map, the players consisted of...  

• Nate, who played as the Ranger, was represented by Luigi.
• Jude, who played as the Mage, was 
• Santiago, who played as the Rogue.

Background

    I knew right from the start that I wanted to take the map in a unique direction. So, instead of opting for your standard DnD fantasy setting, I based my map's design off of the Super Mario series, primarily that of Mario Kart's Rainbow Road tracks. I originally wanted to recreate the entirety of Super Mario Kart's version of the map, but I realized that the vision's scope was too big to create and internally balance by the date of the playtest. And even if I had the time, we may not have enough time in to finish it. So instead, I recreated a specific part of the map, that being the section where the track splits into two roads. At the time, I believed this to be the best part of the map to recreate in a DnD-esc format.

The First Playtest

    For the first playtest, the players found themselves on a box-shaped map. Their goal was to reach and defeat Bowser, who was on the other side of the map, with enemies scattered on both paths leading to him. Additionally, each "cell" on the map changed colors horizontally. This was done intentionally so players could easily tell how close each player and enemy was to each other, allowing them to strategize and initiate combat in the best way. A D6 dice was also used for movement, with each cell representing one space that the players could move. Depending on their roll, players could move anywhere from one to six cells per turn.

Despite a fair amount of progress being made, with the players fast approaching the boss area, only one enemy was defeated before the time limit.

During initial feedback, my map was immediately praised for its unique theme. One of the players, commented that it "took a game franchise and put it into something not seen before" and that it was a nice touch. 

However, there was also some criticism. The first map's design was described as too linear, feeling more like a box of combat that the players were trapped in, and it would have benefitted if the design had more twists and turns to allow for an experience that felt less confining.

After the first playtest, I concluded that the map's design required an overhaul. In addition to the criticisms I received, I noticed that the player's creations had multiple paths to the boss. To address this, I decided to take inspiration from another Mario spinoff series for my map's design. 

The Second Playtest

    The second playtest offered a map that was drastically different from the block-like design of the first playtest, now resembling a Mario Party board. The players were now positioned on a map of two different main pathways, both of which would lead to a key needed to unlock the door blocking the way to the boss' area. One path was shorter but had more enemies scattered amongst it, and the other was longer with fewer enemies. After one of the players reached the key, they could immediately unlock the door. However, the other players would need to backtrack to the entrance. Finally, a pit on the other side of the door would need to be jumped over by all three players to reach the boss. 

The D6 movement was brought back, with the number rolled now representing how spaces the players would move instead of cells. Each kind of space would have an effect, with blue spaces making the player move forward one space following their roll, red spaces making them move back on space, and green spaces allowing them to roll a second time. The space they land on following this effect would not have an effect. For example, if a player originally lands on a blue space and then moves 1 space to the red space ahead, that red space wouldn't have an effect, and the players would end their turn there with no effect. 

Additionally, the enemies' statistics were reworked to make the combat side of the game move faster and not feel tedious or time-consuming. Players and enemies could attack when within one or zero spaces of one another. 

This time around, the players were able to complete all of the objectives, and defeat the boss in a timely manner!

The players were initially surprised to see a map with a completely different design from the original. However, they agreed that this change was for the better. They felt that the new design represented what they would have wanted from the original map. They also found the flow to be well designed, with movement and actions taking little time to execute and feeling satisfying to perform. 

The main criticism of the second map was that there should have been more indication that the players who didn't reach the key first would have to backtrack to the door. As the creator, I assumed they would catch onto this, which was a big oversight for me. Along with that, one player suggested that backtracking would've felt better if the movement was changed somehow. 

In hindsight, an idea I believe could have been implemented would be a looming danger mechanic. After the key was taken, spaces closer to the end could become dangerous, with lava or some other hazard dealing damage to players who don't backtrack fast enough. 

Overall, I feel like the changes I made to my map and the elements incorporated into it benefitted the gameplay and the enjoyment of the players. When asked for their thoughts, they told me that they felt my second map had a good theme and stylization and a unique identity.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to complete my third map in time for the given due date or the play testing day. Despite this, I feel like I learned a great amount of information from this project. While neither of my interactions was perfect, this was a fun and thought-provoking project, and I hope to use what I learned from it in the future!