Fortress - Half Life 2
Fortress is a Half Life 2 map designed to create the most economical use of space. The entire map is built around a single pillar in the center, around which the player's path radiates. Initially inspired by much of the level design from Dark Souls, the space was designed to be cyclical and compact with many areas overlapping and flowing into one another smoothly.
Engine: Source
Team Size: Solo Project
Project Length: 1 Month
When beginning the development of this map, instead of designing it on paper first, I gave myself a large piece of simple geometry in the center of the map and built the major areas of the map around it. I felt that by designing the map this way, I created a more realistic space. Additionally, this helps the environment feel more organic.
Verticality was a major aspect of the map's design. I wanted the player to content with enemies both above and below them, and as such, much of the environment is built around funneling the player upwards, while enemies are spawned behind them. The highlight of this principal is during an encounter at the highlight of the map, where the player must cross a bridge while enemies below fire at them.
Another major pillar of the map's design is the treacherous environment the player is thrust into. Instead of relying on enemies to make the map challenging, I instead created a vertigo-inducing environment, and populated it with enemies that complement that design choice.
One of the best examples of this is the use of zombies in the beginning of the map. The player is only equipped to deal with them at close range, but if they aren't careful, they will get shoved into the toxic slime that surrounds the map.
Half Life Fortress Demo
Here we see the player fight their way through a horde of zombies and go toe to toe with the Combine Overwatch. Special attention was paid to the route the player needed to take to traverse the level and it was my intention to create the most economical use of space I could to create a sense of realism within the space.
Small architectural details like these support struts not only help to make the space feel more manmade and real, but also serve as cover for the player and create a visually interesting silhouette.
The blue light in the doorway was used to make is destinct from the orange hues of the rest of the map. Additionally, the walkway curves around the space as the player ascends, revealing the treacherous fall below.
Although small, the player gets a lot of mileage out of this space, with the numerous crisscrossing pathways and catwalks over the moat of sludge.
Above all, Fortress was meant to feel brutalist and imposing, with huge slabs of concrete and metal bristling with supports and cables.