Extended Practice: Location Initial Ideas and Wonders of the World Ideas Initial Level Ideas

After the research stage we moved onto looking at the different locations around the world where we wanted our level to be set. We already knew that we wanted to create a platformer that was based for children so this was a great opportunity to pick any place in the world and figure out a story from there. Sophie and I had a quick brainstorming session and came up with a couple of ideas and we really liked the idea of using the 7 wonders of the world a basis for our idea.

 We then had a look at the wonders in a little bit more detail and in the end we narrowed the ideas down to looking at the ancient wonders and the new wonders, as there are so many in the middle as well. We then looked at which ones we thought could inspire possible game levels and interesting ones at that and can up with 6 main locations which we then explored in further detail to see which ones we were going to take forward for our final location.

Great Pyramid of Giza

These set of pyramids are located in Egypt and is a collection of 3 large pyramids, along with smaller ones dotted throughout. This could be seen as a very interesting location to set one of the game levels in due to the fact that there is so much intricate history that can be used to design a game environment. The idea of basing one of our game levels in Egypt and in the tombs of the Pyramids is a very exciting prospect to me. The initial ideas that I have for this is very trap based, as the pyramids are known to be filled of traps, whether this is entirely accurate is another matter, but it still can be something added in.  

Taj Mahal

The next wonder that I looked into more detail was the Taj Mahal which is in India and again holds a rich history behind it and again holds a lot of different possibilities for a game level. This is an interesting idea for a level due to the stunning location and the beauty of the building itself. A game level could either be set inside, using the architecture and the different rooms located within, or set outside using the stunning gardens and landscapes around it to form a level.  

The Great Wall of China

The Great Wall of China is another fantastic setting, but could be a little bit more tricky to create a platformer around the idea of it. The level could be set on the wall itself and there have been obstacles placed in certain places to stop the character from progressing further and this can then be used to jump over or to jump onto something else. Another possible movement for this idea is taking the landscape and breaking it up, putting pieces of the wall in random locations and it's the character job to try and put the pieces back together. The landscape around it could be used extensively and due to the size of the wall, any part of it could be used. 

The Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef was again another very interesting location to look at and it was a different one at that. Due to again its size and particular beauty this could really open up different possibilities for a game level, possibly bringing in the element of an underwater level, a clique now that every game has to feature one, but it could be doable. It also offers a different scenario for the character as well, not being comfortable in his surroundings and offers a different game play mechanic in terms of swimming, but land aspects could be added in as well. 

Stone Henge

Stone Henge was probably the strangest location we could look at, due to the fact that if it were just going to be a game level in itself, a bunch of rocks would be rather boring to walk around. This however could be used in a different location itself, the rocks could have transported to a different place entirely, taking the character into the heart of London, trying to find all of the pieces, or into the quiet countryside, looking around a place that is breathtakingly beautiful. 

Colosseum 

The last location that I looked at was the Colosseum in Italy as this is one of the most famous places in the world. Again it offers a lot of different possibilities for a game level and even though part in ruin, could still offer multiple levels to platform around and jump off and this could also be taken into a gladiator type situation for a boss level in which there are waves of enemies for the character to defeat or simply trick if he didn't want to kill.