FAR CRY OUTPOST
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Date: March-May 2021
Engine: Created in the Far Cry Arcade level editor.
(Note: Pictures may not show in the right order on phones)
This is a project I made in order to explore outpost and open-world level design. Using the level editor in Far Cry Arcade allowed me to do this, while working with a very specific set of affordances and constraints which I believe to be very important for any level designer.
Goals and Constraints
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Creating an enemy outpost fitting the general tone and gameplay of the base game (Far Cry 5)
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The area needs to resemble an american location in Montana (Summer Camp).
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Outpost needs to accommodate different play styles (action, stealth).
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Open-Wold design, the camp needs to be approachable from different directions (360º design)
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The project focuses on the level design, environment art is secondary.
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Player’s objective: To take down all the enemies in the outpost.
Design Breakdown
Playthrough
Process
1. Research:
- Found examples of summer camps for inspiration.
- Researched the previous outpost from Far Cry 5. Looked into their designs and common elements.
2. Paper design:
- Tried out different versions of the level.
- Mapped out different paths for each entrance and play style.
3. Blockout:
- Consisted of a few iterations in order to get a sense of scale and for early play-testing.
- Created compositions that would help guide the player's attention towards the outpost. The triangular shapes in the pictures represent spots where the player would be standing, with that as a reference I made the big house the center of attention.
4. Polishing:
- Created new iterations of the level with higher detail.
- Built the surrounded areas where guiding the player was the primary goal.
5. Playtesting / Applying feedback:
- The play-tests focused on finding out how the players navigate the level and how completing the outpost with both play styles (action/stealth) felt. Could they find out the outpost easily? Could they complete the outpost in their desired play approach?
- Recording the play sessions and asking for feedback allowed me to improve on each iteration of the level.
(Pictures show an example of the big house's changes through feedback gathered in playtests)
Download files
Play the level
- In order to play, Far Cry 5 needs to be installed on your pc.
- Put the files into this folder:
C:\Users\(your user name)\Documents\My Games\Far Cry 5\user maps
(If you don't find this folder, open Far Cry Arcade and create a map, then you should have it).
- Open far cry 5 and choose far cry arcade - choose 'Open map' (you should be able to see my levels available if put them in the right folder).
- There are two versions of the same map, the only difference is the starting point. Choose whatever version you want and play the other later.